From childhood movies had been my passion. I enjoy all the genres except the horror flicks. Nevertheless I try myself also watching the ghost infested movies. My point: I watch each and every genre in the movie world. However one section of the movies had a special attraction towards me – The War Movies.
I had a special fascination for such movies. The guns in different forms and shapes, the mighty and majestic ride of the tanks and the variety of bombs and the discipline of the uniformed soldiers had a special impact on me.
I still remember myself enjoying the old Tamil film RATHA THILAGAM, a movie that speaks about the Indo-China war. The legendary and irreplaceable Tamil cinema veteran Sivaji Ganesan played the main role essaying an Indian soldier at the war front with a great passion. Seeing him on the screen I wanted to go to the war front myself. I was by then hardly 12 years old.
Unfortunately for me there were very few war movies in Tamil, the only language known to me then. I was left wanting for more of it. But the Tamil filmdom could not quench my thirst. The passion, however, for the war movies remained smoldering within me. Later, in fact much later, I saw the Hollywood film PEARL HARBOUR. Since then I have watched it nearly ten times. By then I was also acquainted with English. Stung by PEARL HARBOUR, I was soon in a hunt for other war movies in other languages.
Lately I watched a film titled BLACK HAWK DOWN. I watched it and am still in a great shock.
The movie is set in Somalia. And the period is in the 1990s when Bill Clinton was the US president. Somalia was then controlled by a certain Mohammad Farah Aidid, who had absolutely no concern for the people. Even when the international communities sent the much needed food supply that would be claimed by Aidid. He wanted his countrymen to starve and kill themselves. That was his belief: killing people.
The US acting as the world policeman sends its own section of army and air force to right the situation. So on a particular day a small convoy of soldiers is sent to capture two of Aidid’s trusted aides. The convoy of soldiers would be assisted by air support (three big military helicopters and some small choppers). The big helicopters are black in colour and so are nicknamed as Black Hawks.
The mission starts and is expected to be completed within half an hour. What the Americans did not know was the real attacking capacity of the Somali militia. When they realize it was already too late. Two Black Hawks get hit and they crash. Then the same convoy of soldiers is reassigned to rescue the soldiers in the crashed choppers. They are also expected to bring the bodies of the dead soldiers. That is exactly the first rule of the operation: LEAVE NO MAN BEHIND.
The rescue operations, the encounter between the soldiers and the militia, and the struggle of the wounded men cover most of the time in the movie. Of course at last the US army gets back to their base safely. 19 US soldiers die in the operation.
This is the summary of the movie. But there are so many scenes that would tear your heart apart. War is really “shitty” and as you watch it you would realize the reason.
A Scene in the Film: An US soldier gets down from the armored vehicle and is on his way to take his position near a building. As he scurries forward he notices a severed white hand. He looks at it for a second and the next moment he collects it and deposits it in his ammunition bag. LEAVE NO MAN BEHIND.
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