Review of Black Hawk Down (2001) by Stuart K — 27 Jan 2012

After the Oscar success of Gladiator (2000) and the lacklustre Hannibal (2001), Ridley Scott was offered this true life war drama from producer Jerry Bruckheimer. The result is one of the most engaging and gripping war films of recent times, and it's set in a country whose countries have since been overlooked by the international community.

Somalia 1993, and civil war has brought the country to it's knees for years, and UN Peacekeepers have had their work cut out for years in this difficult, unforgiving land. The army have sent elite teams to go out and capture Mohammed Farrah Aidid, the self-proclaimed president of Somalia.

The operation, led by Sgt. Matthew Eversmann (Josh Hartnett) happens on the afternoon of October 3rd 1993, it should have gone to plan, but it all goes arwy when Pfc. Todd Blackburn (Orlando Bloom) falls from one of the helicopters, Sgt.

Dominick Pilla (Danny Hoch) is shot and killed, and a helicopter piloted by CWO Michael Durant (Ron Eldard) is shot down into the city of Mogadishu, and it becomes a tale of survival for the men under fire from Farrah Aidid's men, and how they get out of there.

It's a gripping film, well made with a bleached colour palate, but Scott puts the view up close in the action of the Battle of Mogadishu, alot of explosions and casualties happen over the course of 2 hours, but it's a good history lesson, with an amazing cast including Ewan McGregor, Eric Bana, Tom Sizemore, Jason Isaacs, Tom Hardy, Jeremy Pivan, Ewen Bremner, Hugh Dancy, Ioan Gruffudd, William Fitchner and Sam Shepard.