Robin
Well-known member
Title: Black Hawk Down “SuperBit” (DTS)
Year of Release: 2001
Film Studio: Columbia Pictures / Revolution Studios
Genre: Action / War
Ridley Scott made an astonishingly great war epic in “Black Hawk Down”. This film based on Mark Bowden’s fantastic book, had an excellent screenplay by Ken Nolan. Telling the true tale about bravery, camaraderie and the incredible realities of war. The story begins in 1993, as American Rangers along with Delta force soldiers are sent to Somalia to capture a ruthless warlord. The warlord is responsible for the starvation of hundreds of thousands of Somalis. The plan seems to be good initially, but goes tragically wrong when first one then two Black Hawk Helicopters go down and the mission changes to a rescue of our own solders trapped behind hostile territory in the Somali capital city of Mogadishu.
Ridley Scott takes us there through his always-excellent cinematography. And through some excellent casting of the main soldiers. Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Tom Sizemore, Eric Bana, William Fichtner, Ewen Bremner and Sam Shepard.
This was the first film, in which Josh Hartnett caught my attention. His performance as the platoon leader is outstanding, as he is real and yet human in the extreme fighting and battle scenes. He was totally believable to me. It was a moving role for this young very handsome man.
Tom Sizemore was his usual terrific war soldier. I’ve loved Tom Sizemore in everything I’ve seen him in from 'Heat' to 'Saving Private Ryan'. He does not disappoint here. One of my favorite scenes is where he is calmly shouting orders during a hail of bullets, with guys being shot and wounded all around him but he just gets back into his Hummer are away he goes. Sizemore has been involved an over abundance of sex, drugs and porno’s lately, but I hope he takes his good friend, Robert DeNiro’s advice and cleans-up his act. Sizemore is really a superb fine actor, he's just temporarily disconnected right now.
Eric Bana is intensely powerful as the Delta force captain. He knows and follows everything he should do as a soldier in the field. Bana makes you believe he has been a career soldier for his entire life. I can’t wait to see Bana’s performance in Munich over the Holidays.
Because the real city of Mogadishu continued to be a very dangerous place in 2001, when this film was made, Black Hawk Down was filmed in Morocco instead. Ridley Scott had been there before, as he shot ‘Gladiator’, there too. It took more than four months to transform Morocco into Mogadishu, which is interesting to note.
Black Hawk Down is an awesome vision of a modern war and all of its difficulties. I thought this film was one of Ridley Scott’s very best films. I love the sights and especially the sounds of the ‘SuperBit’, DTS sound of this film on DVD. In an action war film of this type you need full sound in all speakers for the dynamics to really make you jump out of your seat. Black Hawk Down in DTS provides all of that and more. This is yet another film that I want to own on Blue-Ray especially if even better sound is offered like DTS 7.1 or DTS 10.2… Well we will have to see what format is offered on Blue-Ray. Their are no special features other than the SuperBit DTS sound, which was what I want anyway quality sound and dynamic sound effects.
HT relaxed, comfortably surrounded in ML bliss, until next time let the movies turn you on…
Cheers
-Robin
Year of Release: 2001
Film Studio: Columbia Pictures / Revolution Studios
Genre: Action / War
Ridley Scott made an astonishingly great war epic in “Black Hawk Down”. This film based on Mark Bowden’s fantastic book, had an excellent screenplay by Ken Nolan. Telling the true tale about bravery, camaraderie and the incredible realities of war. The story begins in 1993, as American Rangers along with Delta force soldiers are sent to Somalia to capture a ruthless warlord. The warlord is responsible for the starvation of hundreds of thousands of Somalis. The plan seems to be good initially, but goes tragically wrong when first one then two Black Hawk Helicopters go down and the mission changes to a rescue of our own solders trapped behind hostile territory in the Somali capital city of Mogadishu.
Ridley Scott takes us there through his always-excellent cinematography. And through some excellent casting of the main soldiers. Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Tom Sizemore, Eric Bana, William Fichtner, Ewen Bremner and Sam Shepard.
This was the first film, in which Josh Hartnett caught my attention. His performance as the platoon leader is outstanding, as he is real and yet human in the extreme fighting and battle scenes. He was totally believable to me. It was a moving role for this young very handsome man.
Tom Sizemore was his usual terrific war soldier. I’ve loved Tom Sizemore in everything I’ve seen him in from 'Heat' to 'Saving Private Ryan'. He does not disappoint here. One of my favorite scenes is where he is calmly shouting orders during a hail of bullets, with guys being shot and wounded all around him but he just gets back into his Hummer are away he goes. Sizemore has been involved an over abundance of sex, drugs and porno’s lately, but I hope he takes his good friend, Robert DeNiro’s advice and cleans-up his act. Sizemore is really a superb fine actor, he's just temporarily disconnected right now.
Eric Bana is intensely powerful as the Delta force captain. He knows and follows everything he should do as a soldier in the field. Bana makes you believe he has been a career soldier for his entire life. I can’t wait to see Bana’s performance in Munich over the Holidays.
Because the real city of Mogadishu continued to be a very dangerous place in 2001, when this film was made, Black Hawk Down was filmed in Morocco instead. Ridley Scott had been there before, as he shot ‘Gladiator’, there too. It took more than four months to transform Morocco into Mogadishu, which is interesting to note.
Black Hawk Down is an awesome vision of a modern war and all of its difficulties. I thought this film was one of Ridley Scott’s very best films. I love the sights and especially the sounds of the ‘SuperBit’, DTS sound of this film on DVD.
In an action war film of this type you need full sound in all speakers for the dynamics to really make you jump out of your seat. Black Hawk Down in DTS provides all of that and more. This is yet another film that I want to own on Blue-Ray especially if even better sound is offered like DTS 7.1 or DTS 10.2… Well we will have to see what format is offered on Blue-Ray. Their are no special features other than the SuperBit DTS sound, which was what I want anyway quality sound and dynamic sound effects. HT relaxed, comfortably surrounded in ML bliss, until next time let the movies turn you on…Cheers
-Robin
