This Is How You Do It

Rating: Null/10 (21 January 2006)

BLACK HAWK DOWN affected me profoundly on my first viewing, and now, with four more to reflect on, the genius of this piece is obvious.
As another reviewer stated spot-on, this is as though one were watching documentary footage. And you better believe it is. This is hands-down the most realistic war footage ever filmed and offered to the public's eyes next to archival video of an actual battle. The action is intense, unrelenting and accomplishes the rarely achieved feat of having the viewer's emotional attachment draw in, sustained and juggled in perfect balance between varying characters at a consistent enough rate to let your heartbeat rest alas at only the final few minutes-- if even then.
The cast and crew's unquestionably tremendous efforts are visible through every moment here. The performances, editing, cinematography, lighting, effects, pacing-- it's almost a dream for a film-goer. I am a film lover and yet I only have about twenty DVDs, an intentionally small collection as I only buy the rare movie I am engrossed in and can be sure to enjoy no matter the ninth or ninetieth viewing, and BLACK HAWK DOWN is one of them.
I just watched it again today for the fifth time, and when the mission begins, I felt the same acceleration in my heartbeat, the same chill down my spine as the first. Those are the signs you're experiencing something; not just "watching a movie."
10/10