Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful and Powerful
Review: I have seen the film BLACK HAWK DOWN 3 times in theatres. I didn't think this flick was as good as SAVING PRIVATE RYAN, but I still give this film two thumbs up.
The combat scences are raw and intense. Ridley Scott did an excellent job in filming the scenes. Blood is plenty enough to fill a whole bath tub, but it is earned in a proud manner.
I enjoyed this film for it's raw and realistic sense of warfare. A description for this film is AWESOME
BY: A MOVIE KID FROM OHIO
Rating: 
Summary: **** HELL ON EARTH ****
Review: As everybody now knows, Black Hawk Down is the true story of the Battle of Mogadishu, which took place in October 1993, when an American elite force carried out their mission (to abduct two lieutenants of the notorious Somalian warlord Mohammad Aidid) and ended up in the longest post Vietnam land battle involving American soldiers. During this ferocious gun battle 18 American soldiers were killed and 73 injured, whilst over 500 Somali gunmen also lost their lives.Ridley Scott, hot off the heels of Gladiator, pulls no punches in his direction of this tragic fiasco, as he provides us with 135 minutes of ear shattering, stomach-churning, war is hell, all out action. There to the story is that American troops are on a peace-keeping mission trying to support the supply of food to the people of Somalia, who are being starved as a result of the local warlords commandeering all the Red Cross relief efforts. However, as is usually the case, their efforts are compromised by politics and they have to watch on helplessly as the Somalian guerrillas turn their guns own their own starving people. As a result, a plan is formulated by the army to enter the hostile capital of Mogidishu in broad daylight to abduct two of Mohammad Aidid's most senior aides. However, even before the mission can begin, the plan is hamstrung by Washington politicians who limit the mission's aerial support and firepower. And so the mission begins with the Delta Force and Rangers but everything starts to unravel when one of the helicopters involved in the mission, the said Black Hawk of the title, gets shot down in the middle of the city and the whole mission begins to tragically unravel. Ridley Scott and Jerry Bruckheimer have provided a 135 minute deafening assault on the senses. The cinematography by Slawomir Idziak is impeccable and in a strange way aesthetically pleasing and the cast, led by Josh Hartnett, Eric Bana (The Hulk) and Ewan McGregor, is perhaps implausibly good looking and McGregor's first attempt at an American accent is not altogether consistent or convincing. However, the aesthetic appeal of three of Hollywood's hottest young stars is balanced by the chunky Tom Sizemore and the so ugly (only a mother could love that face) Ewen Bremner of Trainspotting fame, who actually provides a stand out supporting performance and an American accent which impressively belies his Scottish roots. Also particularly impressive in another supporting performance is Jason Isaacs (Event Horizon, The Patriot) as Captain Mike Steele. One of the most refreshing but also most frustrating things about Black Hawk Down is its lack of political context. There is no explanation as to whose decision it was to limit the mission and no finger pointing at those that inevitably made the decision to pull out of Somalia. There is also very little background character development about any of the soldiers with perhaps the exception of Staff Sergeant Matt Eversmann (Josh Hartnett), who is presented as being somewhat pragmatic and anti-war. The movie does not follow the traditional formula of war movies that focuses upon ordinary men overcoming great odds through glorious sacrifice to triumph with flag-waving patriotism. Instead it focuses upon professional soldiers drawn together by a common aim to stay alive, free of the usual moral justifications of being a soldier in the first instance. It is neither anti-war, nor anti-army. It is about comradeship through necessity, kill or be killed and in Black Hawk Down there is plenty of both. Or as Eric Bana's character puts it "It's about the man next to you; that's all there is." Ultimately, whether you enjoy Black Hawk Down or not will depend on whether you like war movies and whether or not you like them to be gritty and realistic. Four stars ****
Rating:
Summary: War Documentary
Review: It is interesting to read some of the other reviews for this movie. Yes, it is a movie with little character development and dialogue. However, it is probably about as close to the real thing any movie has ever come before. Only a small part of our population has ever been in the military or know very much about it. The people in the military take their jobs seriously. They do what they are told and they watch out for each other. You see that in this movie. Black Hawk Down is a violent movie that leads you through the events of a mission gone bad. It shows the failure in leadership and lack of ability in making a good decision. This movie is a good movie to learn about what not to do in a crisis. Don't have your people drive through the worst part of the battle twice. Find other alternatives. Do the best you can. The people on the ground did just that, the best they could and heroes they all are. It is not for us to discuss whether they should have been there or not. Save that for the philosophy class. The actors in the movie did a great job portraying the different people. Overall, this is a pretty good movie. If you want to see what war is like, watch this movie. If you want character development and all that, then watch Titanic.
Rating: 
Summary: black hawk down
Review: i enjoyed this movie although i wouldent see it a secound time, this is one of those movies you don't reget seeing one time. but not on my list of collectables.
Rating:
Summary: War Porn, overcompensation for lack of a decent plot
Review: This one was hard core war porn- lots of violence surrounded by little or no plot to speak of. I suppose that's what real war stories are, but the movie left me cold and disturbed. I wouldn't really recommend this one, the pacing is erratic, the characters are fairly shallow and poorly developed, and the editing makes you nauseous. There are far better war flicks out there.
Rating:
Summary: Sad , Heroic ,and True!
Review: I must have watched this film at least 25 or 30 times ,and came away each time shaking my head in askance as to why we were there in the first place. The exploits of Task Force Ranger were detailed very well in the book ; the film , although very "heroic" really didn't own up to the fact that the whole operation was screwed up. Over 60% of the Rangers and Delta Force boys were either killed or wounded. That critical diatribe aside , I thought that the portrayal of the young Americans who fought the battle of Mogodishu was very good. Tom Sizemore always brings his character to life--this time LTC Danny McKnight. In fact Colonel McKnight was perhaps the most realistic senior officer involved in the battle ; he realized what a terrible risk was being taken by the senior brass to capture the warlord Mohammed Farah Aidid. The combat scenes that follow the landing of the Ranger chalks are pretty realistic ; the axiom that "no plan survives contact with the enemy" , the one the brass forgot , plays out before the viewer's eyes. Those who have never served in the military cannot understand that full auto fire can really do a number on the hearing as portrayed in the movie. This film shows the enormously destructive power of modern helicopters as well as their vulnerability to small arms ground fire... I guess I didn't really "enjoy" this film ; I found myself time-warped back 35 years to my time in the army , and found myself cursing the politicians who got us into this situation and the generals who did the planning(?!) for the operation. As a general comment on the film , it really is a must see. However the book is a must read if you watch the film. I rated the film only 3 stars because it didn't reveal to the audience the real magnitude of the tragedy to both sides. It is , however , a suitable tribute to the soldiers who served.
Rating: 
Summary: SO SO movie
Review: Well the movie follows the book, unfortunately the book is written Hollywood style. Many of us who were there saw read the book and laughed. The movie made us mad, and the fanfare wade us sick. Anybody who claims that this is the real deal, was either not there or was not involved with the battle. The story told is so flawed with innacurrate accounting that the make the QRF seem like the Keystone cops. It makes the Rangers seem like the poor overwhelmed troops, and the Somalis are not given full credit for the coordination of the attacks. Yes it did show the heroic efforts of the Rangers and Delta that were fighting in these horrific conditions, that is the only saving grace of this movie. The true story of what actually transpired still hasn't been told, and it never will be, because the true story is not a movie, nor a book anyone wants to read or watch. There were agregious errors made in the planning and execution of the mission. There were also a lot of missed opportunities that happened prior to this battle. But it is so so entertainment if you try not to take it seriously.
Rating: 
Summary: If i could offer a rating lower....
Review: People that view such blatantly jingoistic codswollop as entertainment are truly misguided. Is a thoroughly biased and unapologetic representation of the ugliness of conflict (especially on a continent like Africa) what could be considered a 'popcorn' film? Some might call it propaganda, especially considering the geopolitical (and socioeconomic) status of the world at present. Utter filth. Read up on a few alternate sources of history, open your eye's instead of watching something so easy to imbibe from the comfort of your armchair. Please. THE REPRESENTATION OF SUCH EVENTS SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED ENTERTAINMENT IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Welcome to Mogue ..... * Mogue??
Review: Wow, it seems that most of the movies that are debuting on the scene throughout North America carry the same theme. That idea being one of war; and by golly it isn't pretty. Out of the past 5 movies I have viewed in theatres, 3 of those involved hardcore gun battles. Pearl Harbour, Enemy of the Gates and now today's debut release of Black Hawk Down. So Tell Me Where We Are The movie begins in the year 1993, located in the capital of Somalia, Mogadishu. The film is based on a true event that occurred back in that year. The story revolves around a detailing description of a US Military adventure in Somalia. War is definitely hell as the film visually describes it. The leader of Somalia Mohamed Farah Aidid have been accused of harming innocent civilians and stealing the food that the United Nations has conveniently provided for the starving Somali citizens. Over 300,000 Somalians died of starvation as noted in the movie prologues credits. Two military teams from the US : Delta Force
Task Force Rangers .... have teamed up to rid the Taliban like militia groups surrounding the capital. The Americans in this film extremely underestimated the will power of the Somalians to fight back. After losing a man, the whole 11 hour mission turns into a half day of rescuing. Throughout the film, choppers go down, and the American Military motto "Nobody Gets Left Behind" seems like a bad decision as the movie progresses. The first injury leads to a huge string of bad luck that forces the Americans in and out of the town for 11 hours. The amount of bloody scenes throughout the movie are incredible. I almost turned my stomach on 5 separate occasions. If you have kids, now is not the time to use the power of adult accompaniment! The images of Somali lifestyle are extremely exaggerated as pictures of one of my friends vacation shows that it is not some sort of wasteland. Most people will agree with what they see in the film and build up that "hellhole" impression of Somalia, but not me. The first 40 minutes is preparation for the war; the remainder is a constant battle, gunshots every 4 seconds and that is a fact. We don't really get to learn about how the characters got into the army; who they interact well with; etc. Come to think of it, after all the complaints of Pearl Harbour and its run-on plot, this seemed like the most sufficient way to narrate the film. Final Thoughts on Black Hawk Down Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Tom Sizemore, Sam Shepherd and Ewen Bremner and some characters we can remember from Pearl Harbour fill the movies cast. The movie directed by Ridley Scott is a somewhat accurate picture of the events that occured back 8 years ago and rates a 7 with me. The action scenes I believed were pretty good, yet at some times were very repetitive and trailed too much. The acting was pretty good considering each actor was portraying themselves as an action figure. Dialogue seemed to not matter in this one. I finally saw a new release on the first day and would recommend this film to anyone who has a good stomach. Wait 30 minutes after eating to go in the water; wait 4 hours to watch this movie after eating dinner! * The Mogue is what the two US forces called Mogadishu!
Rating:
Summary: I Almost Reenlisted
Review: I awaited the theatrical release of this film with great anxiety. Mark Bowden's book was a carefully composed and scrupulously researched account of a battle that few others had bothered to think so carefully about. A few months out from my own long-awaited discharge from the Army into a world that was suddenly, obscenely blooming flags-flags pinned to pastel blazer lapel pins; flags flying from the antennae of SUVS shuttling the idle middle class to and from driving ranges and hair appointments; flags rudely painted above promises to "kick Osama's... across the tailgates of dented trucks driven by able-bodied young men-I was disoriented and bitter and terrified for the treatment Hollywood had waiting for the men involved in that battle, but I couldn't bring myself to look away. I went and saw the film.
In some ways, I wasn't disappointed. The audience snickered through almost the entire film. They snickered at what they took to be the slapstick of going deaf in a firefight; of not being able to recall what you were waiting for, where you were supposed to be. People whispered to each other that they never would have made this or that or the other mistake. It was all I could do to avoid turning on the whole theatre.
The performances are solid; there are only a few odd notes that only a veteran would pick out, and even those may have their narrative justifications.(But why is General Garrison wearing aviator sunglasses INSIDE the JOC? Does he wear them just so he can remove them for emphasis?)
There are other more awkward moments when there are attempts to illustrate with very broad strokes the tension between the Delta operators and the Ranger captain; but this is the only film I've ever seen in which I have recognized my Army.
Ridley Scott takes only a little over two hours to tell us not only about the battle, but also about the composition of the modern Army, the nature of soldiering and of the will to fight. The only cliches in this film are the ones that are, in the end, true. When the first round is fired politics "goes right out the window". The only reason to fight is "the other guys right there next to you". The mouthpiece for these truisms is the character Norm Hooten, played very well by Eric Bana. Bana's performance is so good that at times he seems more like a soldier awkwardly cast in a film than an actor struggling to appear a soldier.
There are some inaccuracies and omissions and downright fictions in the film, but none of that detracts from its value as a rendering of war. The firefight is so well-executed I almost couldn't sit through it even the second time around without ducking for cover. This is the most accurate portrayal of combat in film yet. Bullets riddle the air, and still you climb up onto the .50 cal. Walls become your enemy, sturdy rock cover shatters in your face, people don't drop after one two or even three shots, and you can only see in one direction. Simple stuff, but rarely understood by filmmakers.
The DVD is of very good quality and includes a behind the scenes feature. It's a little shocking to find so many of the soldiers were played by British and Oceanic actors, but they did fine jobs. It was a little irritating to listen to Jerry Bruckheimer riff on soldiering, or to Josh Hartnett explaining that his character is better educated than a typical Ranger, but the rest of the interviews justify themselves.
There's no reason not to see this film, and if you buy films, add this one to your collection. It is one of a kind, and at the very least maybe you'll never pay to see Mel Gibson play an American soldier again.
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