If you wanted to host a drinking game at Black Hawk Down, every time a new familiar face showed up, you’d probably end up in the ER before the 60-minute mark. The War film from Gladiator director Ridley Scott bursting with stars and character actors. Tonight you can watch the martial work on TV (but preferably without alcohol).
Ewan McGregor, Josh Hartnett and more star in the war film
In Black Hawk Down, the Battle of Mogadishu is filmed from an American point of view. In 1993, UN and US troops want to take action against the Somali militia leader Mohammed Farah Aidid. Special units are to arrest two of his advisors in the capital Mogadishu. The mission succeeds at first, but the convoy comes under fire. Two Black Hawk helicopters crash in the middle of the city. The surviving soldiers are on their ownsurrounded by armed enemies and civilians drawn into the conflict.
Universal
Black Hawk Down
18 American soldiers died in the unsuccessful operation, numerous civilians lost their lives. For the most part, the city’s residents remain a menacing, faceless mass in the film. The Focus is on the intervening soldiers. Each individual was therefore tactically cast with a memorable actor. Some of them were already famous then, others became later. The cast of the war film reads impressive. The felt thousand stars include:
Why Black Hawk Down is so controversial and worth watching
This character focus offered cause for criticism when it first appeared. At the Guardian and in other media, the Condemned portrayal of the Somali mob as racist, while others complained that the film downplayed or ignored the importance of other nations’ UN troops (via BBC). (Even a cast member called the film propaganda.)
If you watch Black Hawk Down, he dominates Impression of an American disasterwhose political motivation remains just as nebulous as the background to the situation in Somalia.
Universal
Josh Hartnett in Black Hawk Down
But this weakness can also be interpreted as a strength. Black Hawk Down certainly does not offer a nuanced examination of US interventions after Vietnam, but draws a kind of self-portrait. Ridley Scott directs the operation as catastrophe of overconfidence, bathes dying in the rich colors and slow motion of an action film, creating his take on a nation’s military self-image. As such, Black Hawk Down is extremely disturbing and intriguing, especially given that the film premiered days after the supposedly victorious 2001 invasion of Afghanistan.
Here’s how to watch Black Hawk Down
Black Hawk Down is out this Friday, August 25th from 10:30 p.m. on 3Sat, which means without advertising. If you can’t turn it on that late, it’s a good idea Streaming service Netflix as an alternative. With a subscription you can watch the film.
The theatrical version of Black Hawk Down is 144 minutes long, and one was released in 2006 Extended version with a running time of 152 minutes. However, this does not make any serious changes to the film, but instead integrates some scenes that were previously found among the extras of various home cinema editions.