Gritty, powerful, and intense war movie masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (12 August 2015)

Ridley Scott, director of Gladiator (2000), takes the audience into an intense and realistic re-imagining of an ill-fated mission that took place in Mogadishu, Somalia back in 1993, with gritty performances by a strong ensemble cast and spectacular combat action-set pieces. Set in October 1993, Black Hawk Down tells the story of 123 elite U.S soldiers sent to Mogadishu on a mission to capture Somalian warlord Mohamed Farrah Aided, who has lead mass starvation to the country. Before too long, the mission goes terribly awry when the two Black Hawk helicopters are shot down, leaving the U.S army in a brutal fight for their lives against the Somalian army. The film features a stellar cast including Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Eric Bana, Tom Sizemore, Willaim Fichtner, Ewen Bremmer, Jason Isaacs, Orlando Bloom, and many others.
What I expect from a war movie is for the horrors of war is to be demonstrated in a strong and authentic manner, and this movie sets a great example of how they should be portrayed. This movie does an incredible job on depicting the harsh reality of soldiers in combat. The plot follows the story how these soldiers are caught in a highly stressful situation when their helicopters are shot down and how they struggle to survive with no help on the way. The combat scenes are absolutely amazing, the camera work and sound editing are very well done and as you are watching these scenes, you get the feeling that you are actually in the middle of the battle. The combat definitely does not hold back in terms of intensity, they are extremely bloody and graphic, and can be tough to watch for those with weak stomachs. At the same time, they are very realistic and give the scenes a gritty atmosphere.
While the film does an amazing job on portraying the realism of active combat, the only thing I think it struggles with is the character development. While few of the characters like Josh Hartnett's character Sergeant Matt Eversmann is well constructed and easy to remember, the lot of the characters feel a bit thin, and therefore, not very comprehensible. However, if you really get into the plot and the action, it will be pretty easy to forgive the flawed character development.
Black Hawk Down is certainly one of the most realistic and powerful war movies Hollywood has to offer. Ridley Scott did a magnificent job with this movie, and I am proud with the awards it received. This film does get extremely intense, but it is a must-watch for those who have yet to see it.