Black Hawk Down

I saw Black Hawk Down this weekend.  It isn't one of those movies you can wait to see on video, it demands the true Theatre experience to really hit you with the full impact of the movie.

And what an impact it was.  This is the first movie that could actually cause Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in a person.  Yes, the movie was gory, and normally that doesn't bother me.  But the level of realism attained in this movie was what really drove it home, it wasn't cheesy cartoon-like violence, those wounds seemed real, and the knowledge that the movie is based on actual events makes it seem real to the viewer.

I was literally horrified, it's a terrifying experience to watch the planned raid by the American soldiers go so disasterously wrong.  This isn't a cheesy patriotic film, it's not about moral superiority, or great leadership.  It's a illustration of Murphy's Law, and it's worth $6.50 and 2.5 hours of your time.

I don't pretend to be a serious movie critic, however, so I'll link to my favorite critic, Roger Ebert, and his review of the film.