'Black Hawk' presents different side of war

Julien R. Fielding

"I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity."

- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Turn on CNN at any time and watch as religious and political clashes erupt into violence. How dictators, lustful for power and wealth, squeeze their people until bones crack and blood floods the land.

Children always pay the price. They are either caught in the crossfire or brainwashed into taking up arms. Rather than clutching a Teddy bear, we see them cradling an AK-47.

Misery, hopelessness and death always are the result.

As a major military force and "civilized" nation, we Americans believe we have something to offer these people.

But what happens when they don't want our help or our democracy?

"Black Hawk Down" confronts this timely issue. And the result is a grisly one.

Based on actual events, the film opens with images of rake-thin Somalis standing against a brutal and barren landscape. With civil war, cruel warlords and famine decimating these people, we immediately identify with the film's lead character Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann (Josh Hartnett.) Like him, we believe we can elevate this nation from barbarism and the people from their oppressive, hellish lives.

As part of the United Nations' peacekeeping mission in 1993, the group of Rangers and Delta Force soldiers stationed in Mogadishu, Somalia, are given a mission: to capture several top lieutenants of despotic leader, Mohamed Farrah Aidid. Following a tip, more than 100 soldiers - transported and assisted by four MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters - set about their task, safe in the belief they will be back in time for dinner.

But everything goes wrong.

The hostile city of about 1 million people turns against the soldiers. Armed with rocket launchers and automatic weapons, the angry citizens shoot down the helicopters, then turn their fury on the trapped soldiers. These men are hurled headlong into chaos, and discover they must wait 18 hours until a rescue convoy can retrieve them. This is war like you've never seen it.

What makes the film so disconcerting is its tone. This isn't a "raise the flag high and praise our boys" war film. It's much darker and infinitely more disturbing. This isn't the glory of war, it's the futility of it. No one wins. No one can.

And despite an incongruous ending, which studios probably had director Ridley Scott tack on, audiences will find little hope in it.

Why do these men, many only just out of puberty, risk their lives for people who speak a different language and maintain another culture and set of ideologies? Is it because they believe in the cause? Are they altruistic? If you believe war is fought for ideals, you'll emerge the theater a wiser person. It's for the man standing next to you, Sgt. First Class Norm "Hoot" Hooten (Eric Bana) says. Nothing more.

What makes "Black Hawk Down" even more like a punch to the sternum is its unrelenting violence. This is about as brutal as I've ever seen it: men blown apart, body parts carpeting a Hummer's interior, errant appendages, arterial veins shooting blood like a squashed ketchup bottle. It won't be long before you feel like you, too, are in Somalia, wondering what you've got yourself into.

Ken Nolan and Steven Zaillian adapt journalist Mark Bowden's tome "Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War," retaining its fast pace and sense of fear and confusion.

Editor Pietro Scalia ("Gladiator") keeps the action racing at break neck speed; you never once feel the film's 143 minutes.

Giving the film a stark photojournalist feel is Polish cinematographer Slavomir Idziak, whose most recent project was the Russell Crowe and Meg Ryan film "Proof of Life." ( Past projects include "Gattaca" and "Trois Coleurs: Bleu.") Idziak's use of light already has net him an American Film Institute nomination, something the Academy won't fail to notice.

Enhancing the film's emotionalism, too, is a Middle-Eastern flavored soundtrack courtesy of 12-year Scott collaborator, composer Hans Zimmer. Here the German makes fine use of a trio of vocalists: Baaba Maal (Senegalese), Rachid Taha (Algerian) and Lisa Gerrard (Australian). The opening track, "Hunger," is reminiscent of the Senegalese singer's work on Peter Gabriel's "Passion," the soundtrack for "The Last Temptation of Christ." This is Zimmer's best work and is a must buy for world music fans. Mel Wesson provides ambient music.

Although you probably won't get an acknowledging nod when mentioning the actors' names to Joe Public - it's a mix of American and British character actors - you couldn't find a more suitable ensemble.

Hartnett, who plays the lead, is a kind of modern day James Dean, only with considerably more films under his belt. This twentysomething actor started out in teen scream films, "Halloween: H20" and "The Faculty," then graduated to more adult fare. He caught critical favor with his portrayal in "The Virgin Suicides." He caught my eye last year as the pilot in "Pearl Harbor." He continues to impress with "Black Hawk."

Tom Sizemore bulldozes his way through the film, displaying his typical "can do" attitude. Shoot him; kill everyone around him, and he'll come back for more. William Fichtner, one of America's more diverse actors, is also up for anything as long as he can get where he's going and get things done. These are the soldiers of legend; men who dream of war and love being in the thick of it.

Sam Shepard gives Maj. Gen. Garrison a certain steeliness; so, even though he's screwing up, he's still determined to minimize the losses. With his thick Southern drawl and shaved head, Jason Isaacs ("The Patriot") is nearly unrecognizable as Capt. Mike Steele. Ewan McGregor takes a detour from indie and science fiction projects to portray Company Clerk John Grimes, the man, who because he can type, has so far avoided battle. And if you pay close attention, you'll even see "Lord of the Ring's'" Legolas (Orlando Bloom), but without long blond hair and a rapid firing bow. He's the unfortunate one who takes a spill out of a Black Hawk and ends up in traction.

If the fighting on the Moroccan set looks authentic, it's because Scott and producer Jerry Bruckheimer employed a Defense Department liaison officer and two former Army officers who had served as commanders in the failed Somalia mission. It's also reported that most of the military stunts in "Black Hawk Down" were performed by Army units.

The film is so realistic, in fact, that once the house lights came up, I felt exhausted, gutted, hopeless and traumatized. This isn't a film for anyone younger than 18, so leave the little ones at home.

After being in the moviemaking business for nearly 40 years, Scott has crafted a team of cinematic professionals - Scalia, Zimmer, production designer Arthur Max - around him that help consistently churn out quality projects. "Black Hawk Down" is a culmination of perfection.

It's not without problems, though. With this many characters, it's difficult to latch onto anyone, and faces and bald heads melt into the next. And the graphic nature of this film will be prohibitive for many people.

But if you want to see what war really is - then don't miss "Black Hawk Down." It reveals the kind of battle you rarely read about in the history books.

'Black Hawk' presents different side of war was originally published in Daily Nonpareil on 17 January, 2002. © Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil LLC