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"War Is Still Hell" |
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Directed by Ridley Scott
- Written by Mark
Bowden, Ken Nolan
Starring Josh Hartnett,
Ewan McGregor, Ron
Eldard, Tom Sizemore,
Eric Bana
Distributed by Columbia -
2001 - 144mins - Rated R |
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Leave no man behind. |
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"Black
Hawk Down" is a technical wonder. Everything from the camera work to
the editing to the sound is brilliantly done and Ridley Scott (a
personal favorite of mine) is in total control. It's unfortunate that
it hits the same wall most war movies hit: the characters are flat and
rather boring.
Rather than let this problem ride, the script makes the mistake of
trying to force these boring characters on us by giving them
stereotypical character traits. Honestly, we do not care, and once the
helmets are on, we cannot tell the difference.
Aside from that, the story of a team of American soldiers under fire
in Somalia is exciting and at times, breathtaking. The action is
intense, and the realism is about as real as you can get (I credit
Scott).
Worth watching once, but for the repeat viewings you'll want to hit
fastforward |
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© Written by Jacob Hall -
Email
Me! |
TC Candler's Comment
n/a
Richard Propes' Comment
In the spectrum of "war"
themed movies, this is certainly admirable for
not being a glossy, "rah rah" film. This film
has a realistic feel to it, with director Ridley
Scott obviously making a great effort to create
a film that captures a feeling of combat. The
cast, including Josh Hartnett, Eric Bana, Tom
Sizemore, Ewan McGregor and Sam Shepard all
perform admirably. I couldn't escape the feeling
this film was a bit too propaganda oriented at
times, plus I wanted a bit more character
development. The lack of character development,
in a certain way, enhanced the "war" feeling of
the film. These were all "soldiers" of the US
military...not individuals, but one military
force. Yet, from a theatrical perspective, this
also meant I wasn't as invested in their lives.
This film also features amazing cinematography
with some of the most realistic "war" footage
you could ask for...not quite a perfect film,
but definitely a film worth seeing. It's
definitely not for the squeamish or faint of
heart
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