Black Hawk Down Review
by Laura Clifford (laura AT reelingreviews DOT com)January 21st, 2002
BLACK HAWK DOWN
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In 1993, the tactics of Somali warlords such as Mohamed Farrah Aidid to use hunger to gain power in their civil war had resulted in a famine that left 300,000 of their own people dead. U.S. troops in the country as part of a UN peace keeping mission witnessed Somali soldiers shooting civilians attempting to access UN relief packages pirated by Aidid. In an effort to break his stranglehold, a mission to capture his top two lieutenants at a meeting in the most hostile part of Mogadishu was launched on October 3, 1993. But the Delta Force and Ranger soldiers who go in for a quick hit in four Black Hawks and a convoy of Humvees are attacked by what appears to be the entire city and the 30 minute raid becomes an 16 hour rescue mission in director Ridley Scott's "Black Hawk Down."
As adapted from Mark Bowden's "Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War" by Ken Nolan, this 2 1/2 hour film doesn't attempt to explain the complexities of Somalia's conflict (although Razaaq Adoti, as downed Black Hawk pilot Mike Durant's (Ron Eldard) captor Firimbi, is given an expository speech). What it does is give the audience the perspective of the soldiers who went into hell that day.
Little time is spent laying background before the mission begins. Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann (Josh Hartnett, "Pearl Harbor")
is established as an idealistic young Ranger who empathizes with 'the skinnies,' as the soldiers refer to the Somalis, and views his mission as an effort to help an unfortunate country. When his commanding officer suffers an epileptic seizure, Eversmann is put in charge of one of the four 'chalks' who will arrive in Black Hawk helicopters and secure position. Ranger Spec. Grimes (Ewan McGregor, "Moulin Rouge!") is a desk jockey who moans
about his lack of action while taking pride in the great coffee making skill which has resulted. He'll be assigned to Eversmann and his first taste of armed conflict due to another man's injury. Eighteen year old new arrival Ranger Pvt. first Class Todd Blackburn (Orlando Bloom, "The Lord of the Rings")
is excited about a mission that will find him its first casualty. Ranger Capt.
Mike Steele (Jason Isaacs, "The Patriot") is parodied by his men for his by-the-book methods.
Scott begins to build tension as Maj. Gen. William F. Garrison (Sam Shepard, "Swordfish") briefs his men on what they need to accomplish and continues to escalate it as their local point man gets antsy about driving his taxi to its marker position. We witness soldiers leave supplies behind with dismay, convinced as they are that they'll be back within an hour. As the Black Hawks fly into the city, a young boy captures their passing on a cell phone, alerting interior Somali forces (since learned to have been trained and assisted by Osama Bin Laden's Al Qaeda network). For the next two
hours, we come to know these men who've vowed to leave no man (living or dead)
behind as they fight against unspeakable odds.
Ridley Scott's directorial achievement is nothing short of awesome. Black Hawks are shot out of the sky with grenade launchers and aerial shots make us, along with Garrison back at base camp, privy to the throngs of people converging on the crash sites. Ranger Lt. Col. Danny Mcknight (Tom Sizemore, "Saving Private Ryan") leads a humvee convoy towards a site amidst heavy fire ('Keep your foot on the gas!' he screams to his driver who's just been shot in the face) only to learn he was misdirected. He heads out again after delivering dead and wounded and getting the blood washed out of his humvees. Scott keeps us connected with the disconnected men on the ground as they inch toward each other in territory much like Vietnam where anyone, even women and children, could be the enemy.
Cinematographer Slawomir Idziak ("The Double Life of Veronique," "Blue") captures Scott's vision and production designer Arthur Max' ("Gladiator") rendering of Mogadishu in Morocco with breathtaking images from sweeping devastation to the point of view of an injured soldier beset by a hostile mob.
His tracking of the Rangers' run through the final 'Mogadishu Mile' behind a convoy too jammed with dead and injured to take them ironically recalls Ali's run through the streets of Zaire.
The large cast all serve Scott well, with Hartnett having the greatest character arc and Sizemore exemplifying the sheer determination of these men. As Delta Sgt. First Class Jeff Sanderson, William Fichtner exudes so much confidence, his presence offers the relief that everything will be OK. Johnny Strong ("The Fast and the Furious") is the embodiment of heroism as Congressional Medal Honoree Delta Sgt. First Class Randy Shughart who gave his life protecting a downed Black Hawk.
While Scott's final scene, where Eric Bana's ("Chopper") Delta Force Sgt. tells an astonished Eversmann why he's going back into Mogadishu once again plays a little stagey, his words are effective. "Black Hawk Down" is a harrowing experience and one of the year's best films.
A
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