Great movies can still have flaws, when they’re small and inconsequential and not enough to ruin it that is. But enough weak spots certainly can, which is why critics should be more specific when assessing a film’s strengths and weaknesses. With BLACK HAWK DOWN, the first hour is particularly weak. Ridley Scott’s direction isn’t very centered and there’s no solid rhythm to cling to. With so many characters too (all similar in appearance for obvious reasons), it’s nearly impossible to figure out who’s who. Unfortunately, it’s a mistake that Scott typically makes (WHITE SQUALL). But once the first Black Hawk goes down, everything clicks. And the struggle of all involved to survive will have you enthralled right till the end.
Before my final paragraph, I do have one aside. British actors have always been unparalleled in their skill, I think most would agree. But as spectacular as their range is, I have noticed one character type that they can’t quite grasp. For some reason, they have trouble playing American Southerners. Something about the drawl in the speech maybe, I don’t know. Whatever it is, they can’t quite do it. In BLACK HAWK DOWN, a few excellent British actors tried valiantly to maintain it, but would always slip back into their native tongue. Regardless though, the performances are good, I just found this little factoid (IMHO) interesting.
On the whole, it’s difficult to discern whether there was more of an overall point here, besides it being a soldier’s story. A number of relevant facts were left out that are really pertinent. For example, since our overall Intelligence was lacking, we were not aware that Warlords had missiles and missile launchers, which is why some soldiers were depicted as overconfident. This small fact though is crucial in understanding why some did what they did. But like so many stories of this kind, it’s impossible not to be moved by the triumph and tragedy. To me, there’s a lesson that will hopefully be learnt. And in the future, we can only hope that some media outlets, if not all, won’t gloss over tragedies like this just to protect some people’s butts.
