dberman-2 Reviews

Black Hawk Down (2001)

one of the best ACCURATE war movies

[9/10 · 3 March 2005]

Unlike most of the war movies of our time, Black Hawk Down sticks to the facts about what happened in Mogadishu and doesn't romanticize the story. To support this observation, the viewer will notice that there is not really one main character. This shows that the film focuses more on what happened in Somalia instead of on the characters personality and/or struggles. Another important aspect of the film that makes it so great is the cinematography. Not only was the setting of the film accurate to the real thing, but the way that the movie was filmed is great because it seems like someone is running along the battle scene getting everything on tape. In addition, the film contains small aspects that one may not notice that are important to the situation in Mogadishu. For instance, the bullet shells that fell from the firing helicopter fell into one of the soldiers' vests, and he scrambled to get it out because of how hot it was. This small detail makes the movie that much more realistic. To conclude, Black Hawk Down is a great movie that is both an eye opener that sticks to the facts as well as a quality film. I recommend this movie to any war-film fan, as well as anyone that likes watching movies in general.

The Killing Fields (1984)

Great illustration of the tragedy in Cambodia

[26 January 2005]

"The Killing Fields" was a great illustration of most of the violent happenings committed by the Khmer Rouge. The story was very intriguing to see the difference in the cultures that existed in Cambodia. I also think that his movie was very good because unlike other "war" movies, this film focused more on the effects of the conflict on the people of the country. The relationship between Sydnee and Dith Pran was very moving because of how close they were to each other. This movie is probably one of the best to see what happened between Khmer Rouge and the people of Cambodia because it illustrates the situation as accurately as possible, while also building up the story that took place.

Missing (1982)

CAUTION: THIS REVIEW REVEALS THE ENDING

[28 September 2004]

"The Missing" is a unique film in the way that it portrays the events that occurred in Chile. There were no unnecessary scenes and no unrealistic drama, the film got right to the point. The beginning excellently illustrates the situation in Chile as well as the personalities of the characters. What is most interesting in this movie is how real the interactions between the different people feel to the viewer. The relationship between Lemmon and Spacek (father and daughter-in-law)is at first hostile because of the current case of the missing Charles Horman. It is obvious to the audience that both the father and daughter-in-law have a hard time getting along because of their different perspectives. What struck me as the most interesting and the best part of the film was the ending. The way that the story line stresses upon the struggles of Lemmon and Spacek in the search for their missing son/husband, and then ends in their discovery of the unknown and illegal killing of Charles is a halting and realistic ending to the movie that would normally not be seen in most American films. Overall, I enjoyed this "The Missing" and would recommend it to anyone.