Rating: 
Summary: Riveting War Drama
Review: Director Ridley Scott followed up his Academy Award winning film Gladiator with another tale of war and battle. In Black Hawk Down, he moves from the battlefields and coliseums of ancient Rome, to the modern day battlefield of Mogadishu, Somalia. Black Hawk Down is based on a series of articles and subsequent book by Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Mark Bowden who recounts the story of an elite unit of Delta Force soldiers and Army Rangers who are part of a U.N. peacekeeping force who are trying to capture two lieutenants of local Mogadishu crime lord Mohamed Farah Aidid in October of 1993. Most of the men are getting their first taste of real combat and although the mission is considered dangerous, it is supposed to be fairly routine. But upon their decent into the city, two Black Hawk helicopters are shot down by enemy fire and all hell breaks lose. The Americans are committed to get every man, either dead or alive, out of the city and in the process become surrounded. The firefight between the Americans and Somalis is a harrowing and gruesome affair that lasts for fifteen hours. It is the longest ground battle involving American troops since the Vietnam War. When the fighting ends, eighteen Americans are dead and seventy others wounded. Mr. Scott uses an almost documentary like approach to the film and the camera work is stunning. The battle scenes are eerily realistic and brutal. The film is painstakingly detailed in the visual end but it does sacrifice character development. We never really get to know the men involved in the battle. That is small price to pay for the overall visual greatness of the film. The cast is filled with fresh and familiar faces. Josh Hartnett is the central character and is surrounded by other young stars as Ewan MacGregor, Orlando Bloom (Legolas from The Lord of the Rings), Eric Bana (star of the upcoming Hulk film) as well as veterans like Tom Sizemore and Sam Shepard. The film won two richly deserved Academy Awards, one for Sound and the other for Film Editing, but Mr. Scott lost out for Best Director for the second year in a row.
Rating:
Summary: The truth hurts, doesn't it?
Review: 50 stars to Ripley Scott's accurate portrayal of events that occured in the streets of Mogadishu, Somalia, during Operation Restore Hope. ... I've had the pleasure of serving under Marines and befriending Army soldiers who were ACTUALLY THERE.1) Yes, the street battles and urban combat are accurately depicted. 2) No, we weren't there to install a "puppet" government. We were there, under a UN banner, to feed people being tactically starved by their own countrymen. If our aim was to install a puppet government, then Pakistan, Belgium, and all others involved share equally this guilt. 3) Yes, over 1000 Somalis were killed in the two day battle. Yes, a majority of these Somalis were ruthless militiamen SHOOTING at the very people trying to feed their children. Some of these militiamen were trained under, and had links to, al-Qaeda. .... 4) The conclusion that we "lost" this battle, in which 18 Americans were killed compared to 1000 Somali gunmen, defies all logic of war, and the hasty retreat ordered by a civilian administration only served to strengthen the already existing, if inaccurate, views of one particular ambitious aggressor that America is a paper tiger. What makes people so mad about this film is that it's absolutely true. No, there's not much character buildup, nor plot besides a two hour glorification of the battle itself. But even the most radicalized opponents of US military intervention cannot use the age-old argument that this operation was driven by a vampire's lust for oil. Nor is this movie racist against Somalis any more than Schindler's List was racist against Germans. Again, the events of the movie are a depiction of what ACTUALLY HAPPENED, backed up by countless testimony from people who were there. No, this isn't US propoganda. I currently am stationed in Europe, where I know several former UN peacekeepers who were also there, and relay the exact same story. Nor does this movie depict Somalis as a bunch of war-mongering terrorists. Yes, the small section of town under Aidid's control was run by these killers. But as the Rangers enter the safe zone, they are immediately greeted by friendly scores of children and others. Having lived in Africa for over a year, I can give credit to the notion that a small number of armed bandits can indeed be hated, despised, and feared by an overwhelming majority of peace loving African civilians. The heartless murderers are so unrepresentative of, and hated by, Africans as a whole that much of the population does not object, and in fact applauds, when police forces or government troops extrajudiciously execute known criminals on sight. So I highly recommend this film for an accurate portrayal of urban warfare, and also to show how anti-American gangsters repay us for feeding their own people.
Rating:
Summary: words can't describe
Review: the feeling you get for the men and women who serve our country after watching this movie. Every time I watch it I get chills.
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest War Story Ever
Review: I am only fourteen, and I went to see this at the movie theater. I was truly amazed by this compelling story of recent military history. It's a horror story all on it's own. Now, if you have seen the movie, you'll know that people in Somalia, or Africa, were being starved by warlords controlling them. Seeing the people suffer is horrible! In 1993, the U.S. military, including Delta Force and the Army Rangers, were sent in to help with the situation and restore order to the crumbled society. Quite a compelling story at first glance, especially when it is actually true! Seeing the blood and violence is not for the light-hearted or very young children. Mature enough teens can see this. The movie is incredible. I've been waiting a long time for a movie to be pure action from start to finish. This one is. The characters are also good in the movie, and it's easy to feel a real sense of compassion for the victims of the tragedy. Master of action, Ridley Scott, directs the film, while Hans Zimmer provides a powerful score. Acting veterans are scattered everywhere in the film, such as Josh Hartnett and Orlando Bloom. The visuals are too hard to describe-you have to see it to believe it! The whole time I felt as if I was really watching the event take place! From start to finish, all action. This is not another Saving Private Ryan. The DVD extras stink, but that's okay if a DVD is all you've got. The trailers and behind the scenes aren't worth the money. Trust me and get a VHS on this one! If you really want it, it's not a complete waste. Don't forget the Black Hawk Down game coming out this spring on almost all platforms!
Rating:
Summary: Best war movie: leave no man behind
Review: This movie is absolutely great; it is the best war movie I have ever watched. It is based on a true story. The action is great, the actors are doing very well, the suspense is excellent; on top of all that, great values are demonstrated (team spirit, courage etc.). This movie definitely sets a good example.
Rating: 
Summary: Who? What? Where?
Review: In general, I enjoyed this movie. The camera work during battles really made you feel like you took part in the action. Not a super "gore fest" like some war era movies, but didn't sugar coat the realities of armed conflict. The acting was very good and I could believe the internal battle going on in Josh Hartnett's head.
My biggest problem: Except for very few war/military movies, it's so hard to pin a name to a character when every body looks about the same. I think that's why I liked 'Full Metal Jacket' while critics scoffed. In FMJ, you met the actors before they became the Marines 'Killing Machines' and that helped define them as individuals. PS, the stats relayed at the end of the feature in no way represent the true number of Somalian casualities.
Rating:
Summary: Black hawk down is awsome
Review: I think that anyone who is in to action movies of war movies this is the number1 movie to see because it is so good and awsome. There is a lot of blood so if you are sensitive to any blood at all walk away but if you are reading this you are probally not sensitive to blood. You should see it!!!!!!!!!!!111
Rating:
Summary: Great war movie
Review: It shows what a group of men can accomplish under dire circumstances. An outstanding film for anyone that likes the genre.
Rating:
Summary: A MUST - Definitely one of the best war movies ever
Review: A very, very good war movie indeed, about a true story (which I did not know before). The action is great and very realistic, and there is lots of suspense; you actually get in the middle of the action and you might believe that you're part of it !!! The confused environment of the fight is also perfectly depicted. Finally, the necessary human touch is also present. It's the best war movie I've ever watched, and it's a movie to feel as well as watch.
Rating:
Summary: BEST IN IT'S CLASS
Review: This is the best movie that depicts a crisis like this one in times of Peace-DON'T FORGET, WE WERE NOT AT WAR, WE WERE MERELY TRYING TO HELP OUT THE 500,000 PEOPLE WHO HAD DIED FROM STARVATION, because of their corrupt leader. I would say that this movie is just as good as Saving Private Ryan, if not better. This is a movie to own!
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