I don't really have much patience
for political correctness, and I'm not one who sees racism
everywhere. It means something, then, when I say that “Black Hawk
Down” may be the most racist movie I have ever seen. The movie is
decently-filmed, frenetic war-porn, but the constant barrage of
menacing, black faces charging at the white protagonists eventually
takes on the feel of a video game for white supremacists.
“Black Hawk Down” is based on
America's adventures in Somalia, in 1993. As clan warlords tore
Somalia apart, American troops joined a multinational force of
“peacekeepers.” During an operation to capture a some
high-ranking militia leaders, everything went to shit, and American
troops encountered more resistance than expected. Two helicopters
were shot down, and the efforts to rescue those crews extended the
short mission into a vicious overnight battle. The mission succeeded
in its objectives, but 18 American soldiers died, with 73 wounded.
At the time, this was America's bloodiest battle since Vietnam.
That we considered this a major defeat
is a testament to our arrogance, considering that Somali casualties
ran in the thousands. During this operation, American soldiers drove
right into the middle of an enemy stronghold to take their leaders
captive. The idea that we could do this without taking some
casualties is pure hubris. Does “Black Hawk Down” do anything to
correct that hubris? Not really. The movie simply revels in the
violence, celebrating the individual heroism of the American
soldiers, while treating the hateful, unexplained enemy as faceless
avatars to be slaughtered. I have no problem with the film
acknowledging each American death, but meanwhile,Somalis are being
killed by the hundreds. I was curious why, after seeing their
comrades mowed down by superior firepower, those Somalis kept
charging in to kill and be killed. Instead of exploring their
motivations, the movie gives us the captured arms dealer Atto (George
Harris) another menacing black man, who smugly smokes cigars in
American detention while lecturing General Garrison (Sam Shepard)
that “This is our war, not yours.”
I don't call this movie racist simply
because it depicts a black enemy. I also find it amazing that in
this large, ensemble cast, there is only one black soldier (Gabriel
Casseus), and his role is a minor one. The U.S army is 20-30% black,
and yet out of the 20-or-so soldier characters whose faces we see
more than once in this film, only one is black, and his is barely a
speaking role. To quote everyone on social media, “I'm just
sayin'.”
Even though we won the Battle of
Mogadishu, it killed America's appetite for intervention in Somalia.
Bill Clinton pulled our troops out of the country afterward, leaving
it to chaos. It simply became clear that there was no way for us to
win there. The only thing Somalis wanted to do more than kill each
other was kill outsiders. There was an important lesson there about
the limits of military power, but “Black Hawk Down” skips right
over any opportunity to explore that lesson.
Technically, “Black Hawk Down” is
awesome. Director Ridley Scott captures the chaos of battle, and
keeps you on the edge of your seat the entire time. He also honors
the sacrifices of some very brave American soldiers. It's a shame he
didn't do it with a better, more thoughtful film.
2 stars out of 5
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