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BLACK HAWK DOWN - LONDON PREMIERE
While glittery blockbuster premieres are synonymous with beautifully tailored gowns and dazzling jewellery, last nights Black Hawk Down premiere (17 January) was surprisingly easy on the lip gloss. The films exclusively male cast having thankfully shed the films army-issue haircuts were all charm and smiles as they gathered at Londons Empire Leicester Square cinema to open Ridley Scotts latest masterpiece.
Based on the gruelling battle that followed a military operation in Somalia back in 1993, the film depicts the longest sustained ground battle since the Vietnam War. When two US Black Hawk helicopters are shot down, the US Rangers - true to their motto to leave no man behind - go head to head with thousands of Somali troops in a bid to bring home their fallen comrades. The film features some of the most visceral and horrifically realistic warfare ever depicted on screen and, for the first time since the opening 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan, gives viewers a real look at what actual war must be like.
I think its the most accurate depiction of modern-day warfare theres been, Ewan McGregor told Empire Online. I dont think theres been any other film that touches it on this kind of level. I mean Three Kings was brilliant but it was behind the lines, this is a story about the battle, thats all its about. You get about twenty minutes of finding out who people are and then the war kicks off and the end of the film is when it finishes.
McGregor plays a desk clerk who gets his first real taste of action when hes dropped into the melting pot and must fight for his life in the warzone of downtown Mogadishu. It was very intense shooting the film. They had long takes and so many cameras out there, they just stuck them all over the place. Theyd call Action! and youd manage to run from this street round to the next street with all this blowing up around you. It was quite full-on.
Joining McGregor were co-stars Josh Hartnett, Jason Isaacs, Ewan Bremner, Matthew Marsden and others, including Lord of The Rings elven hero, Orlando Bloom, who was also keen to point out that the shoot was no walk in the park. It was pretty gruelling and I didnt do as much of the running around as a lot of the boys cause Im the first man down. The film was more reacting than acting, you didnt even have to act like you were getting shot because you were often getting paintballs fired all around you. But it was fantastic, I used to run around with toy machine guns, wearing all that combat gear and suddenly Im being paid for it.
Director Ridley Scott himself was also in attendance accompanied by producer Jerry Bruckheimer, whose latest war film is a long way from the sappy sentiment of Pearl Harbor. When you read the battle in the book this film was based on, you get such a sense of the desperation, the power and the terror and I think that comes across in the film. Its an event that many people dont know about, Its something that many people died for and people should know about it.
A Few Good Men
While glittery blockbuster premieres are synonymous with beautifully tailored gowns and dazzling jewellery, last nights Black Hawk Down premiere (17 January) was surprisingly easy on the lip gloss. The films exclusively male cast having thankfully shed the films army-issue haircuts were all charm and smiles as they gathered at Londons Empire Leicester Square cinema to open Ridley Scotts latest masterpiece.
Based on the gruelling battle that followed a military operation in Somalia back in 1993, the film depicts the longest sustained ground battle since the Vietnam War. When two US Black Hawk helicopters are shot down, the US Rangers - true to their motto to leave no man behind - go head to head with thousands of Somali troops in a bid to bring home their fallen comrades. The film features some of the most visceral and horrifically realistic warfare ever depicted on screen and, for the first time since the opening 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan, gives viewers a real look at what actual war must be like.
I think its the most accurate depiction of modern-day warfare theres been, Ewan McGregor told Empire Online. I dont think theres been any other film that touches it on this kind of level. I mean Three Kings was brilliant but it was behind the lines, this is a story about the battle, thats all its about. You get about twenty minutes of finding out who people are and then the war kicks off and the end of the film is when it finishes.
McGregor plays a desk clerk who gets his first real taste of action when hes dropped into the melting pot and must fight for his life in the warzone of downtown Mogadishu. It was very intense shooting the film. They had long takes and so many cameras out there, they just stuck them all over the place. Theyd call Action! and youd manage to run from this street round to the next street with all this blowing up around you. It was quite full-on.
Joining McGregor were co-stars Josh Hartnett, Jason Isaacs, Ewan Bremner, Matthew Marsden and others, including Lord of The Rings elven hero, Orlando Bloom, who was also keen to point out that the shoot was no walk in the park. It was pretty gruelling and I didnt do as much of the running around as a lot of the boys cause Im the first man down. The film was more reacting than acting, you didnt even have to act like you were getting shot because you were often getting paintballs fired all around you. But it was fantastic, I used to run around with toy machine guns, wearing all that combat gear and suddenly Im being paid for it.
Director Ridley Scott himself was also in attendance accompanied by producer Jerry Bruckheimer, whose latest war film is a long way from the sappy sentiment of Pearl Harbor. When you read the battle in the book this film was based on, you get such a sense of the desperation, the power and the terror and I think that comes across in the film. Its an event that many people dont know about, Its something that many people died for and people should know about it.
Empire Online, and Associated Press
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