It was supposed to last 30 minutes. It ended up spanning two days.

The botched U.S. Special Forces raid on Mogadishu in 1993 is one of the biggest military blunders in recent history, but beyond a brief splash of coverage in the media many years ago, most Americans have forgotten all about it. They saw a news report about a disgraceful event in a distant land -- and most clicked over to watch something else. Some may recall an image of a dead American soldier being dragged through the street, but little else. The new film Black Hawk Down will surely change that.

Producer Jerry Bruckheimer, director Ridely Scott and screenwriter Ken Nolan, working from the book by Mark Bowden, painstakingly recreate the horrific event, moment-by-moment, in what is easily one of the most visceral and intense war movies ever made. Remember the first 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan? Well, imagine two-and-a-half hours of that. The movie is, to put it mildly, graphic (there's one battlefield surgery scene that's sure to have people running for the exits).

Those who can stomach the blood and guts will see the true story of the failed mission to capture two top lieutenants of Somali Warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid (Aidid was intercepting food shipments, and people were starving). About 100 soldiers were lowered down in helicopters or moved in by ground in humvees. The plan was for the raid to be lightning quick. But all did not go as planned. The resistance was heavier than expected. And the soldiers were, in the beginning, slow on the trigger due to the rules of engagement: they were not to fire unless fired upon first. That's just one high-minded policy that proved impractical on the battlefield.

But this movie isn't about politics. It's about getting shot at. It's about kids who otherwise would've been home watching Beavis and Butt-Head, suddenly having bullets fly past their head. Our men were the best trained and the best equipped, but due to our peace and prosperity -- most had never experienced an actual fight. The Somalis, on the other hand, had experienced nothing but war.

As in many war movies, the characters start to blend together once the action starts. In the fog of celluloid war, it can be hard to tell them apart. But early on, most of the cast gets one little moment or line of dialogue that provides a thumbnail sketch. There's the comedian, the new guy, the grizzled veteran, the tough-talking captain who makes football analogies -- all the familiar types are here. The closest thing to a lead character is Staff Sgt. Matt Eversmann, played by Josh Harnett, who shows a lot more acting potential than he did in Bruckheimer's Pearl Harbor. Others seem to be retreading over familiar ground. The always excellent Tom Sizemore shows up to play almost the exact same character he played in Private Ryan. The goofy looking Ewen Bremner shows up to play almost the exact same character he played in Pearl Harbor. And Bremner's Trainspotting co-star Ewan McGregor adopts a fine Yankee drawl to play a desk jockey who's suddenly thrust into combat. McGregor's character actually acts as a nice surrogate for the audience. As the trappings of combat are explained to him by the other soldiers -- they're explained to us (and at no point do you get the feeling he'll whip out a light saber). Jason Isaacs, who was so great in The Patriot, also gives a fine performance in a small role.

Far less well developed are the Somalis. Every time a bullet hits one of the American soldiers, the camera dwells on the moment. But dozens and dozens of Somalis are shown getting blown away, and their deaths are treated like little more than something from a videogame. It's one of the film's only flaws.

Other than that, Black Hawk Down pulls few punches when depicting the horror of war. It's not an easy film to sit through, but it's highly effective and you won't easily forget it. Bruckheimer has redeemed himself for the cornball crud that was Pearl Harbor. The difference between the two films, of course, is that Bruckheimer chose to work with a much more accomplished director in Ridley (Bruckheimer has often collaborated with Ridley's brother, Tony) Scott who again shows why he is one of the top filmmakers working today.
(c) Copyright 2002