Rating: Summary: SNAFU Review: A war film that makes very few presumptions and even less moralizing. This is refreshing in light of the horrible mess depicted in this film and depicted in cold colors and dark ambience. It may seem like the story of a wasted battle and it is. Supplying food and then trying to take apart the corrupt and criminal warlords and their troops (called technicals) you can only wonder why any more lives weren't wasted. 19 American rangers were killed and thousands of Somalians and for what? The film says it best when an American prisoner is told that politics will not change in Somalia if the warlords are gone, the fighting and killing will go on, it is their way.The realism of battle is compelling if somewhat overly technical at times. The musical score is excellent and not overbearing. Themes are established early on and developed to the sadly logical conclusion. This is modern warfare that amounts to another miniture Vietnam. Send troops in on a loosely defined mission, micro manage it in Washington while the innocents die. No one wins here, yet the symbolism and metaphors are not smashed into our face. We see the conflict as the participants and leave the film wondering how this sad chapter of history ever happened.
Rating: Summary: Excellent film Review: Amazon saw fit to cut out more than half of my review, which was originally well under their 1,000 word limit. No explanation was offered. Since they won't let me withdraw it, I have replaced it with the explanation you are reading now. Sorry folks.
Rating: Summary: Required watching for all Americans Review: This movie is a lot like Saving Private Ryan in the fact that all Americans should be required to watch it. This is another movie that will show the types of sacrifices that our men and women in uniform have to make, and will remind us all that they choose to serve for us... This is a well made movie, with a great cast. The scenery and special effects are incredible, and the story line is top notch. This movie actually made me cry. Maybe that is because I am such a patriot, or maybe it is because of the things that the people that this movie is about went through. The real men that were there that day in Somalia were true heros, and this movie does an excellent job showing that. This is especially obvious when the men are trying to retreive the bodies of their brothers from the crashed Blackhawk while taking intense enemy fire. No one was left behind, and after seeing this movie, it is pretty clear why two men were awarded the Medal of Honor for action that day. Great movie, very moving. A must see!
Rating: Summary: Two Thumbs Down Review: A racist, simplistic, patronizing, juvenile and comic-book depiction of the USA's brief involvement in Somalia's civil war. There's no post-Cold-War context, no geopolitical analysis, and no contemplation. In fact, no brains. Just good guys and bad guys ripping each other apart with bullets and rocket-propelled grenades while screenwriter Ken Nolan and director Ridley Scott assault the audience with cliches for two and a half hours. Don't waste your time on this turkey.
Rating: Summary: A Motion [Advertisement]! Review: It was a good movie, with good action, good acting, good directing, editing, photography, music, etc.... But am I supposed to rout for these guys just because they wear an American flag on their arms? At the end of the movie we learn that 1000 somalis died in the clash and only 19 Americans died. I learn that, after I'm forced to view these guys as the heroes, and the Somalis as the villains when all they were doing was defending their city. ...
Rating: Summary: Cooooooooool Review: Black Hawk Down is a very good movie. I have seen it two times. Josh Hartnett plays a really good part in it. It tells about the horrible failure of U.S. involvement in Somalia on 10/3/1998. It tells about how they got stuck there.All in all it was avery good movie. I want my mom to buy it for me, since I can't.
Rating: Summary: Excellent Movie! Review: I watched this movie after I had read the book which I found to be excellent. A team made up of Delta Force commandoes and Army Rangers are sent to seize General Aidid and some of his inner circle. Two blackhawk helicopters are felled by grenade launchers by the forces in Mogidishu. The Delta Force soldiers and the Army Rangers are in for the fight of their lives getting out of Mogidishu with their hostages and their lives. This movie features excellent special effects as well as very realistic combat scenes. The action in the movie is realistic and very exciting.The scenes of battle are very realistic. An excellent movie that you shouldn't miss.
Rating: Summary: very real Review: if you dislike blood, and couldnt be around a real surgery, dont go. In my time as a pre-med student, I have never seen anything to compare. It is extreemely realistic, in terms of the violence and results. It outstrips movies like saving private ryan in terms of realism, and does it without any dificulty. I think that this is a movie that should be seen by any person advocating war, at any time or for any reason. This movie is valuble because it is so objective. It does not glorify war, but neither does it demonify it. It just shows it, good and bad, need and death. Dont watch this if all you want is entertainment. If this is entertaining to you, you really have some issues that I urge you to deal with through therapy or something in that arena. its not a special effects movie, though it has those. it is an educational experience. It is as close to being in war as you can get without actually going. And it is based on the true events, which makes it that much more real.
Rating: Summary: Black Hawk Dowhnaahh, what movie? what classic? which war? Review: British director Ridley Scott showed us a real depiction of modern warfare where the americans are true heroes. With a great photographer that captures the beauty of (Morocko... uhum, I mean) Mogadishu and the essence of combat (Hooten taking the turret of a humvee to blast down the rooftop-hiding-somalis in fine Rambo fashion). He also had a great editor and composer (poor Pietro Scalia and Hans Zimmer not getting the proper time because they had to put this piece of waste together for the Academy Awards where it won 2 oscars, could you believe that?) and not to forget about the writer of the screenplay Ken Nolan (Thanks Ken for being spineless). The cast is great with Josh Hartnett as Sergeant Matt Eversmann(he's the new Tom Cruise) leading the heavies including Tom Sizemore as Lieutenant Danny McKnight (walking along the battlefield with bullets hiting everything else except him), Eric Bana as (John "Mace" Macejunas no I mean) Norm "Hoot(?)" Hooten and Sam Sheperd as General Garrison. All three have some great scenes like when Garrison interrogates mr. Atto. Atto: "What do you think this is, the K.O Corall?" Garrison: "It was the O.K Corall." (Yeah, hu, hu, the sorry [man] didn't even know that it was called the O.K instead of K.O and that Garrison didn't come from Arkansas but Texas.) Or the ending scene when Hartnett takes farewell of Smith. Eversmann: "A friend asked me when we were shipping out. Why do you go and fight somebody elses war? You think you're heroes or something? I didn't know what to say at the time but I would say no. No way in hell. Nobody asks to be a hero. It just turns out that way sometimes." (Now answer the first question) But my favourite scenes include aussie Eric Bana as Norm Hooten. Hoot: "When I come back home people ask me. Why do you do it Hoot? Are you some kind of warjunkie and I won't say a goddamn word. Because they don't understand. It's about the guys next to you, that's all it is." ... Eversmann: "Can I come with you?" Hoot: "No. I work better alone." (What happened to the guys next to you?) I think this movie only comes out with one good line and that is once again: Norm Hooten. Norm "Hoot" Hooten "When that first bullet flies past your head, politics goes right out the window."
Rating: Summary: Black Hawk Down- An american classic Review: This is how to do an adaptation of Mark Bowdens excellent book. Bowden started to write a script and some of the scenes he wrote is still in the movie. But it's Jerry Bruckheimer that we should thank for this piece of american cinema. After such a fantastic movie like "Top Gun" that really showed us how american fighter pilots kicked russian [butt] during the cold war. Now he put up money for a two and a half hour movie that accuratelly shows how Rangers and Deltas was sent to Mogadishu Somalia during 1993 to put a stop to that no good warlord Mohammed Farrah Aidid. They were going in to capture some of Aidids top men when the operation went bad. First young rookie Blackburn fell from a helicopter and then a Black Hawk got hit and went down. The americans were ready to pull out because their mission was over and now had to go back in to save the crew of the downed Black Hawk. Ridley Scott puts us right into the battle carnage with the most realistic violence ever seen on film. One of the best scenes is when Delta Operator Daniel Bush wounded from the first helicopter crash takes out a number of somali militia by himself with bullets riping into the ground and his arms and legs while RPG's fly through the air just missing him. The other one is when the pilot of the second crashed Black Hawk is attacked by dozens of somalis and despite his broken legs he picks up an H&K Mp5 in one hand and put eight of them. Not to forget the heroism of Delta snipers Gary Gordon and Randy Shughart when they went in to save him and end up fighting a whole mob of somalis increasing the bodycount. In a horrible scene Shughart is murdered by the evil somalis. After this they go after the pilot who is now out of bullets and faces certain death. In the end, "nineteen americans lost their lives and thousand somalis got killed" (but they had it coming messing with the great UNITED STATES of AMERICA, and the somalis are scum anyway so who cares right?). In the end with all the support this movie got we can expect it to become a true american classic.
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