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Black Hawk Down (2001)
Starring Josh Hartnett, Ewan McGregor, Eric Bana, and Tom Sizemore. Cinematography by Slavomir Idziak. Editing by Pietro Scalia. Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Ridley Scott. Written by Ken Nolan. Directed by Ridley Scott.
Years of oppression under the brutal warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid had left Somalia and its citizens struggling to survive. In an effort to pull the rug out from under Aidid, American soldiers stationed near Mogadishu were ordered to capture key leaders of his group. The supposedly simple operation goes horribly wrong when two Black Hawk helicopters are shot down into the streets. Extracting the stranded soldiers proves to be harder than anticipated and an extended firefight breaks out, resulting in the most brutal and deadly battle for the US military since Vietnam.
Journalist and author Mark Bowden first started researching the story for Black Hawk Down almost three years after the tragic incident occurred. He initially intended to publish the material as a novel, but was persuaded by Max King, his editor at The Philadelphia Inquirer, to release it as a series of articles in the aforementioned newspaper. Bowden’s report of what befell on October 3, 1993 was eventually printed over twenty-nine installments on the pages of The Inquirer and on their website as well. This “limited release” of sorts gave Bowden a unique opportunity to listen to reader criticism and refine his story accordingly, making it more detailed and accurate for its impending book release. His novel Black Hawk Down was eventually released in 1999 to rave reviews. It went on to spend fourteen weeks on top of the bestsellers list. Purchasing its movie rights was suggested to producer Jerry Bruckheimer by Simon West who initially intended to direct the film himself. But West soon removed himself from the project to film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (he remains credited on Black Hawk Down as an executive producer). Needing a director, Bruckheimer decided to contact Ridley Scott, an old friend from his early days in advertising, and offer him the job. After reading Bowden’s book, Scott was intrigued with its cinematic possibilities and signed on as Bruckheimer’s director.
The next challenge of Black Hawk Down was translating sixteen brutal hours of combat into two and a half hours of film. The script went through many drafts and revisions, including one written by Bowden himself, but ultimately the final credit was given to Ken Nolan; a professional screenwriter who had yet to see any of his work make it to a screen. While Scott wrapped up post-production on Hannibal, pre-production and location scouting was already underway for Black Hawk Down. And in typical Bruckheimer fashion, no expense was spared. Blocks of Moroccan neighborhoods were remade and remodeled to visually recreate the streets of Mogadishu. The streets were then filled with soldiers, extras, gunfire, and explosions on an absolutely unbelievable scale. The tremendous investment paid off and Black Hawk Down ended up being one of the highest grossing and most respected movies of the year. Ridley Scott had outdone himself once again with one of the finest films of his career.
Budget: $90,000,000
Total US Gross: $108,638,745
Genre: War
Runtime: 144 Minutes
US Release Date: 12/18/01
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Awards: Academy Awards: Won for best sound and best editing. Nominated for best cinematography and best director. Directors Guild of America: Nominated for the Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures. Writers Guild of America: Nominated for Best Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published.
Tagline: Leave No Man Behind.
Quote: “Once that first bullet goes past your head, politics and all that shit just goes right out the window.”
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