Black Hawk Down

Als düsterer Actionfilm mit einem Kriegsthema... warum nicht... Er hat alle Attribute guter Action - Schwung, Spannung, Dramatik und naturalistische Direktheit. Ähnlich wie die, Den Soldat James Ryan schmückte. Glücklicherweise fehlt es ihm jedoch an einem starken agitatorischen Geist, obwohl der Film auch in Bezug auf seine Ideen sehr schematisch und pathetisch ist. Angesichts der wunderbar fesselnden Atmosphäre des heißen Mogadischu und der guten schauspielerischen Leistungen (vor allem von Eric Bana und Ewan McGregor) ist dieser Film jedoch ein klassisches "Must-see" für Fans amerikanischer Filme. Hinzu kommen der hervorragende Soundtrack von Hans Zimmer, die großartige Kameraführung und Ridley Scott, der Actionszenen beherrscht wie kaum ein anderer. Einziger Kritikpunkt ist das bereits erwähnte Klischee des Denkens und die gelegentliche Verwirrung... aber als düsterer Actionfilm mit einem Kriegsthema... warum nicht... das ist alles, wonach ich suchen würde. (16.04.2005)

Es ist nur ein Actionfilm, es ist aber ein genial gedrehter und geschnittener Film mit einem fantastischen Ton. Das intensivste Ton-Kinoerlebnis. Besser als Spielbergs Krieg der Welten. (03.03.2007)

After a bit of a boring beginning comes the director's exhibition. Bloody, raw, gritty carnage, filmed so impressively that you have to wonder how the hell does Scott do that. Too bad about the missed Oscar nomination, Scott really deserved it. It should also be appreciated that this film does not expose the viewer the same hyper-patriotic horror as at the ending of Saving Private Ryan. After the formally perfect, but plot-wise stupid Gladiator, Ridley again fixed his reputation with me. (20.07.2002)

By the time the ink was barely dry on my ID and I had successfully passed my high school entrance exams, I headed to the movie theater to see a war movie by Ridley Scott, the filmmaker who had conveyed the unadulterated terror of my encounter with a slimy alien on TV a few weeks earlier. And it was... impressive! That was when I put down my books and fell in love with the big screen. I also took advantage of the advent of computers and my connections to people with high-speed internet to start devouring movies. In a big way. Black Hawk Down was one of them. I must have watched it 20 times at home back then. Now, about ten years later, I've come back to it and nothing has changed. Actually, it's all been amplified for me. The underlying idea of the pointlessness of the war is really flimsy, but that wasn't the point. This film is unique within its genre. In terms of creative skill in conveying a war battle, Scott and his entire crew were able to achieve the best possible outcomes: Idziak's handheld camera in the streets, the wide-angle camera units on hovering helicopters, the sound design sending the clatter of machine guns through the living room, and the rhythmic editing setting the pace along with Zimmer's roaring music. Every bolt and every nut is tightened to its fullest. I understand the competition at the time, but the fact that the film only took home two statuettes in the technical categories at the Oscars is mind-boggling. But prizes be damned. I have not the slightest doubt that when it comes to what I’ve written above, the film will continue to astonish well beyond the next decade. There's nothing to overcome here. (31.10.2014)

A very well made borefest. There are moments when Black Hawk Down is a very intense portrayal of the hell of war, but as the minutes went by, the constant shooting (together with the alternating heroic or terrified speeches) began to bore me and by the end I was watching it with only one eye. It was too descriptive for my taste, I prefer more narrative movies. (04.06.2010)