Rating: 
Summary: Raw; Powerful look at combat
Review: On October 3, 1993 American Rangers, Delta Force members and aviators engaged in a running gun battle with Somali militiamen over the period of 16 hours. When all was said and done, 19 Americans and at least 1000 Somali's were dead. It was the bloodiest day for American infantry since Vietnam, a period that encompassed Grenada, Panama, and the Gulf War."Black Hawk Down" is director Ridley Scott's adaptation of Mark Bowden's incredible chronicle of that day's events. In my opinion, he has created a remarkable film, and a powerful tribute to those who lost their lives. In fact, in terms of the shear power of his portrayal of combat, I would have to argue that this might be the greatest war film ever made. There are those who say that this film is lacking in character development, that it doesn't tell a story or offer a big picture view of what happened. They miss the point. Scott's purpose was to portray the brutality and terror of combat in the most realistic way possible, and he succeeded. The only character development that matters is that which appears under fire, and the big picture story is irrelevant to the viewer because it was irrelevant to the American soldiers who were fighting for their lives against an entire city. Likewise, some accuracy was sacrificed in order to facilitate the telling of the story within the confines of a two-hour movie. Some events and people are merged; others are eliminated entirely. If you are interested in the "big picture" I would strongly recommend reading the book prior to the movie, as it will offer insight and depth into what is happening on the screen. And there is quite a bit happening; Scott filmed "Black Hawk Down" with the fill support and backing of the Army, and it shows. No matter how good CGI has become, it can't compare to an actual Blackhawk (my one pet peeve about the book and the movie is that "Black Hawk" should be one word) helicopter. Likewise, the representation of the soldiers' gear is largely dead-on, with the discrepancies largely due to an effort to minimize confusion among viewers unfamiliar with military operations. Also, the cinematography is spectacular. Scott used a host of different angles, as well as dismounted cameras to as closely as possible replicate the chaos of combat. At the same time, the cameras seem to have been left unfiltered and the result is a bright, gritty, incredibly realistic look. The acting was likewise superb; while there was no "lead actor" per se, there wasn't a single bad performance out of a group that included at least 20 people with significant lines. In particular, Tom Sizemore proved himself to be one of the best character actors around today. He'll never be a great leading man, but he is an incredible presence on screen nonetheless. Unfortunately, this remarkable performance and the men it honors have been let down by a terrible DVD. While the sound and picture are fine, the extras are a joke. There's a making of documentary that is all right in and of itself, but that's it. The original theatrical trailers weren't even included, and there was an excellent History Channel documentary that should have been added. No director's commentary, no actor interviews; I'm sure there'll be a "Special Edition" in a few months, I would recommend renting this movie until that comes out because this edition left me feeling distinctly ripped off. Still, that shouldn't detract from this fantastic movie. It is a raw, graphic, disturbing, and profoundly moving portrait of the heroes who defend our country every day. This isn't a movie for the faint of heart, and even those of us who are hard to touch may shed a tear. That said, it is both an important movie, and an extremely well shot one. All emotion and gripes about the DVD aside, it is not a movie that should be passed on.
Rating:
Summary: Gripping, action-filled war drama.
Review: As a movie about a little known event in U.S. history, Black Hawk Down is informative in military logistics and, even more importantly, the absolute terror a soldier feels in warfare. The battle scenes come at an almost non-stop pace, with dozens of skirmishes, and as expected, the results are gruesome. Obviously, this isn't a film for everybody, but those for the stomach for it will find Black Hawk Down to be one of the top war movies.
Rating: 
Summary: Nothing but shooting and explosion
Review: I thought this movie was stupid.
It didn't really have a good story like "We Were Soldiers".
I did not care for any characters by the end of the movie.
Don't waste your time.
See "We Were Soldiers" instead.
Rating:
Summary: Can i review this movie fairly ?
Review: I wonder if Im able to say what I want to say about this movie without coloring it with my own experiences of the military. Maybe partially...but you may need to be or know an American soldier to appreciate the thrust of this movie, which is to put forth the fact that our military has heart. Alot of it doesnt...but I am firmly convinced that the Rangers, Deltas and their ilk are in another class of soldier. We get to see the "never leave a buddy" work on screen. We also get to see the naivete of young soldiers who have been trained to kill but never have done so. Maybe I'm biased, but I felt proud to watch, knowing that similar circumstnces befell real soldiers nine years ago. The raid was a botch up. We all know this now. We tried to do something good, but the country proved too hostile to repair. So we left, thankfully, before any other soldiers died to add to an intractable tragedy. Ridley Scott and all the actors have reminded us what soldiers do-oft forgotten by many civilians, and inexplicably treated with contempt by some.
Technical stuff:the cast had to do some soldier training to prepare for the role. Gives you an idea of how out of touch actors are with reality when they marvel at a military haircut in one of the special features. That was cool. The young actors didnt use their teen appeal at all, thank heavens. Tom Sizemore rocks. Normally, I hate Jerry Bruckheimer movies (I couldnt manage watching the whole of Pearl Harbor) but this was a triumph. Very gory, very fast and furious pacing, which accounts for why I couldnt figure out who anyone was for about an hour, since the introductions were shallow. But thats only a minor caveat. You can call this propaganda if you like, but I call it homage. The whole "it was racist because white guys kill black guys" plaint is bogus-grow up, people. Equally pompous is the complaint about how one sided it was...how it only showed the American side...well, duh, thats what the book was about! And thats the only side anyone in America should care about-let the Somalis go into cinema if they want to tell the other side. Better that than watch some detached third party make up a pack of lies about what"really" happened.
Rating:
Summary: Don't listen to the negative complaints.
Review: Black Hawk Down may have minor flaws, but they sure as heck don't go to the extent of 1 star out of 5 rating. I mean, do these people actually, truly believe this film is on the same level, as say, Wild Wild West or Battlefield Earth, or war films like The Green Berets and Platoon Leader? If you look at those 2 and 1 star reviews, you'll notice that the majority of the complaints is that this film is nothing more than a lot of shooting and explosions. While battle scenes do take up the majority of the movie's running time, it should be made clear that the focus of the issue at hand, that being that a soldier fights not for politics or idealism, but simply to protect his mates, is a theme that's never, for once, ever lost in the midst of all the gunfire. I wonder if some of these viewers can even get it through their heads that this movie isn't concerned with politics, only the soldiers that have to fight.
Rating:
Summary: Greatest War and Action Movie Ever!!!
Review: I was told by a bunch of people that Black Hawk Down was no good. A few days ago I bought the DVD and boy how wrong they were. First of all, war is my favorite genre in movies. BHD is now my favorite war movie (my second being Saving Private Ryan.) There is so much action and thrills to this movie. All of the cast is great including Tom Sizemore who was also in SPR. What made it even more great was the use of all the real ARMY blackhawks and little bird helicopters and all the other vehicles that the ARMY provided to make this movie as real as possible. This movie has been directed to a very high level of excellence. I heard that people that were actually in this eventin 1993 said that this movie has captured the truth extremely accurate. I rate this movie as my second favorite movie of 2001 right under my first of LOTR. This is a movie that you can watch one day and the next day and the next as I did. It IS just that great. I suggest, no I am telling you that you should buy this movie or at least rent then buy it!
Rating:
Summary: this movie is sweet
Review: this move has nonstop action if u liked saving private ryan u will like this movie it feels like ur actuly there and then u have these people straded and all these people just commin after them it turns into caous it a relly good movie u should get it
Rating:
Summary: 'Black Hawk Way Down'
Review: "Black Hawk Down" is about an American siege of the Somalian city of Mogadishu in October 1993. U.S. Rangers in Black Hawks were assigned to capture key lieutenants of Somali warlord Muhammad Farrah Aidid, but two of the helicopters were brought down. From there on, the movie was about the survival of the chopper's men on Mogadishu streets. No character development, nobody to care about. Josh Hartnett's face is all over the cover and he's hardly in the movie. Ridley Scott is on a downward streak after the horrible "Hannibal." There is so much chaos going on in this movie and dudes in Hawaiian shirts jumping from alley ways shooting at anything. Bullets flied all over the place not harming anyone. I was cheering when the movie was finally over. There always has to be little kids running in slow motion with the soldiers? Just like "The Thin Red Line," another boring war movie. The book is a lot better, written by Mark Bowden. This true story deserves better. If I wanted to see this much lunacy, I would have gone to a swap meet.
Rating: 
Summary: Awesome war movie.
Review: I went to this movie expecting a rambo-esque display of guns and violence, after seeing the beautiful preview, but i was quite surprised when it emerged as a modern counterpart to full metal jacket. The film does not focus only on the violence, but beleive me you will notice it. At the same time much time is spent discussing the politics of the situation in "the Mogue" as well as the morality of war. I recommend any war movie fan to buy this dvd right now.
Rating: 
Summary: Ho Hum
Review: After a boring intro, the rest of the film is one long battle scene. While the film had the potential to make a strong comment on the futility of war, it turned out to be a showcase for special effects and noisy set pieces. This is a classic example of a film that favors style over substance. For die hard war movie fans.
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