Man DownPush yourself out of a hovering Black Hawk helicopter, run through the streets of a foreign city, bullets whiz past your ears, bombs explode all around you, Debris is flying in all directions, and you have a job to do. In Black Hawk Down, director Ridley Scott mixes a wide variety of camera movements, camera angles, film speed, tone and music to immerse audiences in the heart of the fighting in Mogadishu, Somalia. Scott places the viewer in the shoes of members of Delta Force, ARMY Rangers, and many other military posts, allowing you to experience the nightmare these soldiers experience. William Arnold said: “Black Hawk Down is a terrific 'journey' film that – like Private Ryan – drops us right into the middle of a grueling combat situation and forces us to experience it for ourselves, as if we were one of the agitated participants” (par. 11). In the opening scene, "The Start", composer Hans Zimmer uses a style of ethnic music relevant to the African context and provokes a feeling of unease in the audience. The feeling of unease is pushed even further with the blue color tone which creates a dark and depressing atmosphere. The camera pans to a man mourning a lifeless body, then fades to a black screen, allowing the audience to realize the gravity of the situation. The superficial focus of the camera on the many people dying of starvation shows how Mohamed Farrah Aidid affects the population of Mogadishu, thus provoking greater sympathy from the viewer. The off-screen sound of a helicopter signifies that the U.S. military has come to help apprehend Aidid and restore peace to Somalia. Once the helicopter appears on screen, the tempo of the music increases and becomes similar to that of James Bond...... middle of paper...... Works Cited Arnold, William. "The fascinating 'Black Hawk Down' avoids war clichés, but loses its characters in the crossfire." January 18, 2002. SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER. .Black Hawk down. Real. Ridley Scoot. Revolution Studios and Jerry Bruckheimer Films, 2001, “Black Hawk Down.” Newsweek December 24, 2001: p42, 1/3p. Chabot, George. “Black Hawk Down: No One Is Left Behind.” » Épinions.com. January 19, 2002. <http://www.epinions.com/content_53396999812>.Coatney, Lou. “Black falcon shot down”. American Historical Review October 2002: 1338. Doherty, Tom. “New war films as moral rearmament: Black Hawk Down & We Were Soldiers.” Filmmaker Summer 2002: p4, 5p, 9bw. Academic Research Premier EBSCOhost. Mississippi College Lib., Clinton, MS. February 24, 2006. Matray, James I. “Black Hawk Down.” Journal of American History 89.3 (2002) : 1176 - 1177.