...da der Sammelthread ja zum reinen Bond-Thread degeneriert ist, hier die Gelegenheit, den neuesten Streifen von Ridley Scott zu diskutieren - falls es jemanden überhaupt interessiert.
Gemessen an meinem Avatar mag es nicht überraschen, daß ich an der Thematik an sich nichts auszusetzen habe. Aber auch im Hinblick auf die sonst oft übertriebene Effekthascherei des Hollywood-Kinos mag ich diesmal nicht meckern. Natürlich sind ein paar kleinere Übertreibungen drin, alles in allem aber finde ich die Umsetzung der Reportage in den Film gelungen.
Die Diffamierung als "Metzelfilm" kann ich im Übrigen nicht nachvollziehen, soweit man bereit ist, sich überhaupt einen Film mit der Thematik "Orts- und Häuserkampf" anzusehen. Da sollte niemand überrascht sein, daß dann solche Szenen zu sehen sind. Man mag die Frage stellen, ob so ein Film denn überhaupt gedreht werden sollte, und hier kann ich nur sagen: Ja!
Weil nämlich die Fragen, die mit jeglichem Einsatz von Soldaten verbunden sind, in der Regel nicht bis zur letzten Konsequenz diskutiert werden. Ein solcher Film kann in mehrerlei Hinsicht nützlich sein - nicht nur, um die wenig tiefschürfende Erkenntnis zu festigen, daß "Krieg Scheiße" sei, sondern auch die Konsequenzen einer halbherzigen politischen Führung aufzuzeigen. Hätte man beispielsweise von vorneherein den Einsatz mit gepanzerten Fahrzeugen unterstützt, so bin ich fest davon überzeugt, daß es nicht ein Viertel der 1200 Toten gegeben hätte, wahrscheinlich noch erheblich weniger. Damit hat die von Wunschdenken geprägte und von wenig Sachkenntnis getrübte Führung der Regierung genau das herbeigeführt, was man eigentlich vermeiden wollte.
Die Katastrophe von Somalia ist im Grunde überhaupt nicht öffentlich diskutiert worden, dabei hätte es sehr nötig getan. Es ist gut, daß es diesen Film gibt, damit diejenigen, die die Augen nicht vor der Realität verschließen wollen, eine Chance bekommen, sich über den Verlauf dieses Einsatzes ein eigenes Urteil bilden können. Dabei kann der Film natürlich nicht so ausführlich sein wie das Buch, sondern bestenfalls für das Buch Interesse wecken.
Ein aufklärerisches Interesse kann ich allerdings bei Novalogic und ihrem neuesten Titel aus der "Delta Force"-Reihe nicht erkennen, daher halte ich es falsch, aus dem Thema ein Computerspiel zu machen. Die Thematik eignet sich nicht zu Unterhaltungszwecken, dann muß sie notwendigerweise historisch verfälschend werden. Es ist gut, daß neben Mark Bowden auch alle Mitglieder der damaligen Einsatzkräfte ihre Mitwirkung an der Entwicklung dieses Spiels abgelehnt haben.
Holla!
Ich lese aus Deiner Kritik heraus, dass der Film sich auch durchaus kritisch mit dem Einsatz (dem gesamten?) in Somalia auseinandersetzt. Das überrascht mich jetzt ein wenig, habe ich doch aus allen Ankündigungen gegenteiliges entnommen. Wenn dem so ist, könnte man sich diesen Streifen vielleicht doch anschauen. Die Somalia-Thematik ist mir deshalb ein Dorn im Auge gewesen, weil ich bisher der Auffassung war, dass sich Amerika in diesem Land damals sehr daneben benommen hat und andere Nationen (zB Deutschland) darunter zu leiden hatten...
mfg
Abdiel
Ich lese aus Deiner Kritik heraus, dass der Film sich auch durchaus kritisch mit dem Einsatz (dem gesamten?) in Somalia auseinandersetzt. Das überrascht mich jetzt ein wenig, habe ich doch aus allen Ankündigungen gegenteiliges entnommen. Wenn dem so ist, könnte man sich diesen Streifen vielleicht doch anschauen. Die Somalia-Thematik ist mir deshalb ein Dorn im Auge gewesen, weil ich bisher der Auffassung war, dass sich Amerika in diesem Land damals sehr daneben benommen hat und andere Nationen (zB Deutschland) darunter zu leiden hatten...
mfg
AbdielPeople may say I can't sing, but no one can ever say I didn't sing. (Florence Foster Jenkins)
Natürlich darf man nicht erwarten, daß in dem Film immer nur "Asche auf unser Haupt!" gerufen wird, und im Gegensatz zum Buch konzentriert sich der Film auf die US-Perspektive. Allerdings wird in der kurz gehaltenen Zusammenfassung der Vorgeschichte schon deutlich, wo ein Teil der Verantwortung für das Mißlingen des Einsatzes zu suchen ist.
Das Inferno selbst konzentriert sich notwendigerweise auf einen relativ kleinen Teil der Akteure. Ich hatte den Film in der Erwartung, daß er gar nicht mehr den Weg in die deutschen Kinos finden werde, von einem Freund auf CD bekommen. Auf Englisch war es nicht besonders einfach zu verfolgen, wie sich die taktische Lage entwickelt. Mit diesem Vorwissen bin ich dann aber nochmal in die Synchronfassung gegangen, wo es dann naturgemäß leichter fiel, das Geschehen auch im Zusammenhang zu sehen. Daher muß ich Ridley Scott das Kompliment machen, daß er, soweit es im Medium Film darstellbar ist, gute Arbeit geleistet hat.
Wenn man als Kritiker aber den Film nur einmal sieht und zudem womöglich eine vorgefaßt negative Meinung mitbringt, fällt es leicht, alles, was nicht ins Bild paßt, zu übersehen. Dann kann man den Film natürlich als eine Serie von mehr oder minder zusammenhanglosen Metzelszenen erleben.
Ganz gewiß ist der Film keine Jubelpropaganda für die US-amerikanischen Streitkräfte, wie es beispielsweise der unsägliche Werbefilm "Top Gun" ist (den sollte man in mehrfacher Hinsicht deutlich stärker beklagen). Natürlich fokussiert er sehr stark auf die amerikanische Perspektive. Das ist aber durchaus verständlich. Ich fand den Film aber auf seine Weise sehr ehrlich, denn die beteiligten Soldaten - die Frontschweine, wenn man so will - trifft ja nun wirklich keine Schuld am Desaster. Man mag über die Sinnhaftigkeit streiten, ob die Operation in Somalia insgesamt eine gute Idee war, oder ob der Einsatz, um den es im Film geht, zu diesem Zeitpunkt und mit dieser Zielsetzung vernünftig war. Die Wahlfreiheit über diese Entscheidungen hat der Soldat vor Ort aber gar nicht, er muß aus den verkorksten Befehlen irgendwie das Beste machen.
Hätte ich den Film genauso gedreht?
Vermutlich nicht. Aber ich finde, daß man den Film ohne weiteres so drehen und zeigen darf. Die Proteste von denen, die den Film entweder nicht genau genug angesehen haben oder denen der Mangel an einer klaren Botschaft (vorzugsweise die Verurteilung Amerikas) mißfällt, waren voraussehbar. Ich kann nur empfehlen, sich ein eigenes Urteil über die Qualität der verschiedenen Kritikermeinungen zu bilden.
Das Inferno selbst konzentriert sich notwendigerweise auf einen relativ kleinen Teil der Akteure. Ich hatte den Film in der Erwartung, daß er gar nicht mehr den Weg in die deutschen Kinos finden werde, von einem Freund auf CD bekommen. Auf Englisch war es nicht besonders einfach zu verfolgen, wie sich die taktische Lage entwickelt. Mit diesem Vorwissen bin ich dann aber nochmal in die Synchronfassung gegangen, wo es dann naturgemäß leichter fiel, das Geschehen auch im Zusammenhang zu sehen. Daher muß ich Ridley Scott das Kompliment machen, daß er, soweit es im Medium Film darstellbar ist, gute Arbeit geleistet hat.
Wenn man als Kritiker aber den Film nur einmal sieht und zudem womöglich eine vorgefaßt negative Meinung mitbringt, fällt es leicht, alles, was nicht ins Bild paßt, zu übersehen. Dann kann man den Film natürlich als eine Serie von mehr oder minder zusammenhanglosen Metzelszenen erleben.
Ganz gewiß ist der Film keine Jubelpropaganda für die US-amerikanischen Streitkräfte, wie es beispielsweise der unsägliche Werbefilm "Top Gun" ist (den sollte man in mehrfacher Hinsicht deutlich stärker beklagen). Natürlich fokussiert er sehr stark auf die amerikanische Perspektive. Das ist aber durchaus verständlich. Ich fand den Film aber auf seine Weise sehr ehrlich, denn die beteiligten Soldaten - die Frontschweine, wenn man so will - trifft ja nun wirklich keine Schuld am Desaster. Man mag über die Sinnhaftigkeit streiten, ob die Operation in Somalia insgesamt eine gute Idee war, oder ob der Einsatz, um den es im Film geht, zu diesem Zeitpunkt und mit dieser Zielsetzung vernünftig war. Die Wahlfreiheit über diese Entscheidungen hat der Soldat vor Ort aber gar nicht, er muß aus den verkorksten Befehlen irgendwie das Beste machen.
Hätte ich den Film genauso gedreht?
Vermutlich nicht. Aber ich finde, daß man den Film ohne weiteres so drehen und zeigen darf. Die Proteste von denen, die den Film entweder nicht genau genug angesehen haben oder denen der Mangel an einer klaren Botschaft (vorzugsweise die Verurteilung Amerikas) mißfällt, waren voraussehbar. Ich kann nur empfehlen, sich ein eigenes Urteil über die Qualität der verschiedenen Kritikermeinungen zu bilden.
-
-
Popski[PPA]
gerade reingestolpert
- Beiträge: 15
- Registriert:
- Wohnort: Stuttgart
Black Hawk Down: A Pilot's Account
Vielleicht interessiert es ja jemand
Thought you might enjoy reading this account of "Blackhawk Down". The
author was one of the Blackhawk pilots depicted in the movie Blackhawk Down.
During the last few days many pilots have come up to me and asked me
if I had seen the movie "Blackhawk Down." I don't mind talking about the
movie, and I welcome the opportunity to talk about the heroism and valor
of my friends. I just wanted to post some comments here about the
movie and my impressions. Also I wanted to try to answer some
frequently asked questions.
First of all, I and many of my friends that also flew on the mission
thought that the movie was excellent! It is technically accurate and it is
dramatically correct. In other words, the equipment, lingo and dialogue
are all right on. By dramatically correct, I mean that it very effectively
captured the emotions and tension that we all felt during the mission. It
did this without being a cartoon, (like TOP GUN) or being over the top,
(like FIREBIRDS). It's true that the screenwriters had to consolidate two
or three people into one, but this was necessary because otherwise
there would have been too many principal characters to keep track of.
Also in the actual mission we had nearly 20 aircraft in the air that day. In
the movie they had 4 Blackhawks and 4 "Little Birds". The unit could not
afford to commit the actual number to the filming of the movie. However,
through the magic of the cinema, they were able to give the impression
of the real number. Our force mixture was as follows:
Super 61 - Lead Blackhawk
Star 41-44 Little Bird Assault
Super 62 - Trail Blackhawk
These aircraft made up the assault force. Their mission was to go into
the buildings and capture the individuals who were the target of the day.
Super 61 was shotdown, killing both pilots. (They were CW4 Cliff Wolcott
and CW3 Donovan Briley. The three of us shared a room at the airfield.)
Star 41 landed at the crashsite and the pilot CW4 Keith Jones ran over
and dragged two survivors to his aircraft and took off for the hospital.
Keith re-enacted his actions in the movie. Super 62 was the Blackhawk
that put in the two Delta snipers, Sergeant First Class Randy Shughart
and Master Sergeant Gary Gordon. They were inserted at crashsite #2.
Shortly after Gary and Randy were put in Super 62 was struck in the
fuselage by an antitank rocket. The whole right side of the aircraft was
opened up and the sniper manning the right door gun had his leg blown
off. The aircraft was able to make it out of the battle area to the port
area where they made a controlled crash landing. (This is not depicted in
the movie.)
Next was the Ranger Blocking Force. This consisted of 4 Blackhawks:
Super 64 (CW3 Mike Durant, CW4 Ray Frank)
Super 65 (Me, Cpt Richard Williams)
Super 66 (CW3 Stan Wood, CW4 Gary Fuller)
Super 67 (CW3 Jeff Niklaus, CW2 Sam Shamp)
The mission of the blocking force was to be inserted at the four corners
of the objective building and to prevent any Somali reinforcements from
getting through. In the movie there is a brief overhead shot of the
assault. My aircraft is depicted in the lower left hand corner of the
screen. This is the only part of the film where I come close to being
mentioned. As the assault is completed, you hear the Blackhawks calling
out of the objective area. When you hear, "...Super 65 is out, going to
holding..." that's my big movie moment. There is also a quick shot of an
RPG being shot at a hovering Blackhawk. I did have one maybe two fired
at me, but I did not see them or the gunner. I only heard the explosions.
We were not able to return fire, although some of the other aircraft did.
Make no mistake. I am fully aware of my role in this mission. My job was
the same as the landing boat drivers in "Saving Private Ryan." Get the
troops in the right place in one piece. I am very proud of the fact that
my crew and I were able to do that. After having done this in Grenada,
Panama and Somalia, I can identify with the bombardiers of World War
Two. You have to ignore all of the chaos that is going on around and
completely concentrate on the tasks at hand. That is holding the aircraft
as steady as possible so the Rangers can slide down the ropes as quickly
and safely as possible.
Okay, Okay, enough about me. Super 64 was shot down also with an RPG
(Rocket Propelled Grenade). They tried to make it back to the airfield,
but their tail rotor gave way about a mile out of the objective area. They
went down in the worst part of bad guy territory. The dialogue for the
movie appears to have been taken from the mission tapes as it is exactly
as I remember it. (This was the hardest part of the movie for me to
watch). The actions on the ground are as described by Mike Durant, as
he was the only one from the crew to survive the crash and the gun
battle. It was here the Gary and Randy won their Posthumous Medals of
Honor.
Super 66 was called in at about 2000 hours to resupply the Rangers at
the objective area. Some of the Rangers were completely out of
ammunition and were fighting hand to hand with the Somali militia men.
(Also not depicted in the movie). Stan and Gary brought their aircraft in
so that they were hovering over the top of the Olympic Hotel with the
cargo doors hanging out over the front door. In this way they were able
to drop the ammo, water and medical supplies to the men inside. Stan's
left gunner fired 1600 rounds of minigun ammo in 30 seconds. He probably
killed between 8 to 12 Somali militia men. As Stan pulled out of the
objective area, he headed to the airfield because his right gunner had
been wounded, as had the two Rangers in the back who were throwing
out the supplies. Once he landed, he discovered that he'd been hit by
about 40-50 rounds and his transmission leaking oil like a sieve. Super 66
was done for the night.
The final group of aircraft were the 4 MH6 gunships, and the command
and control Blackhawk and the Search and Rescue 'Hawk'. They were
Barber 51-54 MH6's
Super 63 C&C
Super 68 SAR
In the movie, the gunships are shown making only one attack. In fact,
they were constantly engaged all night long. Each aircraft reloaded six
times. It is estimated that they fired between 70 and 80,000 rounds of
minigun ammo and fired a total 90 to 100 aerial rockets. They were the
only thing that kept the Somalis from overrunning the objective area. All
eight gunship pilots were awarded the Silver Star. Every one of them
deserved it!
Next is Super 68. The actions of this crew were very accurately
portrayed. The only difference was that they were actually hit in the
rotor blades by an RPG. This blew a semicircle out of the main rotor spar,
but the blade held together long enough for them to finish putting in the
medics and Rangers at the first crashsite. It was then that they headed
to the airfield. What they did not know, was that their main transmission
and engine oil cooler had been destroyed by the blast. As they headed to
the airfield all 7 gallons of oil from the main rotor gearbox, and all 7
quarts from each engine was pouring out. They got the aircraft on the
ground just as all oil pressures went to zero. They then shutdown, ran to
the spare aircraft and took off to rejoin the battle. They were in the air
just in time to affect the MEDEVAC of Super 62, which had landed at the
seaport. The pilots of this aircraft were CW3 Dan Jollota, and MAJ Herb
Rodriguez. Both men were later awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Major Rodriguez is retired from the Army now and he teaches middle
school with my wife in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Finally there is the Command and Controll Blackhawk, Super 63. In the
back of this aircraft was my battalion commander, LTC Matthews, and
the overall ground commander, LTC Harrell.
In the movie, there is a scene where the men on the ground were
begging for MEDEVAC. By this point in the battle we had 5 Blackhawks
out of action, either shot down or shot up so much they couldn't fly
anymore. Of the two assault force and four blocking force 'hawks', only
myself and Super 67 were left. I fully expected LTC Harrell to send us in
to try to get those men out. I jacked a round into the chamber of my
pistol and my M16. I knew that the only way to do was to hover with
one wheel balanced on the roof of the building. Then the Rangers would
be able to throw the wounded in. I knew that we were going to take a
lot of fire and I was trying to mentally prepare myself to do this while the
aircraft was getting hit. My friends had all gone in and taken their licks
and now I figured it was our turn. (Peer pressure is such a powerful tool
if used properly.) Quite frankly, I really thought that we were at best
going to get shot down, at worst I figured we were going to be killed.
The way I saw it we had already lost 5 aircraft, what was 2 more? I had
accepted this because at least when this was all over General Garrison
would be able to tell the families that we had tried everything to get
their sons,fathers or husbands out. We were even willing to send in our
last two helicopters. Fortunately for me LTC Harrell realized that the time
for helicopters had passed. The decision was made to get the tanks and
armored personnel carriers to punch through to the objective area. Once
again, the dialogue in the movie is verbatim. What you don't hear is me
breathing a sigh of relief! I remembered thinking that maybe I was going
to see the sunrise after all.
I guess I got a little carried away. I really didn't mean to write this
much.
People ask me if this movie has given me 'flashbacks'. I don't think you
can call them flashbacks if that day has never been out of my mind.
I hope that when you do see the movie it will fill you with pride and awe
for the Rangers that fought their hearts out that day. Believe me, they
are made of the same stuff as those kids at Normandy Beach. When 1LT
Tom DiTomasso, the Ranger platoon leader on my aircraft, told me that
we did a fantastic job, I couldn't imagine ever receiving higher praise
than that. I love my wife and children, but the greatest thing I've ever
done is to be a Nightstalker Pilot with Task Force Ranger on 3-4 Oct
1993.
Thank you for reading this. I look forward to answering any and all
questions anyone may have about the movie or the actual battle. I just
thought that this might fill in some of the blanks. Thank you again.
Popski[PPA]
Thought you might enjoy reading this account of "Blackhawk Down". The
author was one of the Blackhawk pilots depicted in the movie Blackhawk Down.
During the last few days many pilots have come up to me and asked me
if I had seen the movie "Blackhawk Down." I don't mind talking about the
movie, and I welcome the opportunity to talk about the heroism and valor
of my friends. I just wanted to post some comments here about the
movie and my impressions. Also I wanted to try to answer some
frequently asked questions.
First of all, I and many of my friends that also flew on the mission
thought that the movie was excellent! It is technically accurate and it is
dramatically correct. In other words, the equipment, lingo and dialogue
are all right on. By dramatically correct, I mean that it very effectively
captured the emotions and tension that we all felt during the mission. It
did this without being a cartoon, (like TOP GUN) or being over the top,
(like FIREBIRDS). It's true that the screenwriters had to consolidate two
or three people into one, but this was necessary because otherwise
there would have been too many principal characters to keep track of.
Also in the actual mission we had nearly 20 aircraft in the air that day. In
the movie they had 4 Blackhawks and 4 "Little Birds". The unit could not
afford to commit the actual number to the filming of the movie. However,
through the magic of the cinema, they were able to give the impression
of the real number. Our force mixture was as follows:
Super 61 - Lead Blackhawk
Star 41-44 Little Bird Assault
Super 62 - Trail Blackhawk
These aircraft made up the assault force. Their mission was to go into
the buildings and capture the individuals who were the target of the day.
Super 61 was shotdown, killing both pilots. (They were CW4 Cliff Wolcott
and CW3 Donovan Briley. The three of us shared a room at the airfield.)
Star 41 landed at the crashsite and the pilot CW4 Keith Jones ran over
and dragged two survivors to his aircraft and took off for the hospital.
Keith re-enacted his actions in the movie. Super 62 was the Blackhawk
that put in the two Delta snipers, Sergeant First Class Randy Shughart
and Master Sergeant Gary Gordon. They were inserted at crashsite #2.
Shortly after Gary and Randy were put in Super 62 was struck in the
fuselage by an antitank rocket. The whole right side of the aircraft was
opened up and the sniper manning the right door gun had his leg blown
off. The aircraft was able to make it out of the battle area to the port
area where they made a controlled crash landing. (This is not depicted in
the movie.)
Next was the Ranger Blocking Force. This consisted of 4 Blackhawks:
Super 64 (CW3 Mike Durant, CW4 Ray Frank)
Super 65 (Me, Cpt Richard Williams)
Super 66 (CW3 Stan Wood, CW4 Gary Fuller)
Super 67 (CW3 Jeff Niklaus, CW2 Sam Shamp)
The mission of the blocking force was to be inserted at the four corners
of the objective building and to prevent any Somali reinforcements from
getting through. In the movie there is a brief overhead shot of the
assault. My aircraft is depicted in the lower left hand corner of the
screen. This is the only part of the film where I come close to being
mentioned. As the assault is completed, you hear the Blackhawks calling
out of the objective area. When you hear, "...Super 65 is out, going to
holding..." that's my big movie moment. There is also a quick shot of an
RPG being shot at a hovering Blackhawk. I did have one maybe two fired
at me, but I did not see them or the gunner. I only heard the explosions.
We were not able to return fire, although some of the other aircraft did.
Make no mistake. I am fully aware of my role in this mission. My job was
the same as the landing boat drivers in "Saving Private Ryan." Get the
troops in the right place in one piece. I am very proud of the fact that
my crew and I were able to do that. After having done this in Grenada,
Panama and Somalia, I can identify with the bombardiers of World War
Two. You have to ignore all of the chaos that is going on around and
completely concentrate on the tasks at hand. That is holding the aircraft
as steady as possible so the Rangers can slide down the ropes as quickly
and safely as possible.
Okay, Okay, enough about me. Super 64 was shot down also with an RPG
(Rocket Propelled Grenade). They tried to make it back to the airfield,
but their tail rotor gave way about a mile out of the objective area. They
went down in the worst part of bad guy territory. The dialogue for the
movie appears to have been taken from the mission tapes as it is exactly
as I remember it. (This was the hardest part of the movie for me to
watch). The actions on the ground are as described by Mike Durant, as
he was the only one from the crew to survive the crash and the gun
battle. It was here the Gary and Randy won their Posthumous Medals of
Honor.
Super 66 was called in at about 2000 hours to resupply the Rangers at
the objective area. Some of the Rangers were completely out of
ammunition and were fighting hand to hand with the Somali militia men.
(Also not depicted in the movie). Stan and Gary brought their aircraft in
so that they were hovering over the top of the Olympic Hotel with the
cargo doors hanging out over the front door. In this way they were able
to drop the ammo, water and medical supplies to the men inside. Stan's
left gunner fired 1600 rounds of minigun ammo in 30 seconds. He probably
killed between 8 to 12 Somali militia men. As Stan pulled out of the
objective area, he headed to the airfield because his right gunner had
been wounded, as had the two Rangers in the back who were throwing
out the supplies. Once he landed, he discovered that he'd been hit by
about 40-50 rounds and his transmission leaking oil like a sieve. Super 66
was done for the night.
The final group of aircraft were the 4 MH6 gunships, and the command
and control Blackhawk and the Search and Rescue 'Hawk'. They were
Barber 51-54 MH6's
Super 63 C&C
Super 68 SAR
In the movie, the gunships are shown making only one attack. In fact,
they were constantly engaged all night long. Each aircraft reloaded six
times. It is estimated that they fired between 70 and 80,000 rounds of
minigun ammo and fired a total 90 to 100 aerial rockets. They were the
only thing that kept the Somalis from overrunning the objective area. All
eight gunship pilots were awarded the Silver Star. Every one of them
deserved it!
Next is Super 68. The actions of this crew were very accurately
portrayed. The only difference was that they were actually hit in the
rotor blades by an RPG. This blew a semicircle out of the main rotor spar,
but the blade held together long enough for them to finish putting in the
medics and Rangers at the first crashsite. It was then that they headed
to the airfield. What they did not know, was that their main transmission
and engine oil cooler had been destroyed by the blast. As they headed to
the airfield all 7 gallons of oil from the main rotor gearbox, and all 7
quarts from each engine was pouring out. They got the aircraft on the
ground just as all oil pressures went to zero. They then shutdown, ran to
the spare aircraft and took off to rejoin the battle. They were in the air
just in time to affect the MEDEVAC of Super 62, which had landed at the
seaport. The pilots of this aircraft were CW3 Dan Jollota, and MAJ Herb
Rodriguez. Both men were later awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Major Rodriguez is retired from the Army now and he teaches middle
school with my wife in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Finally there is the Command and Controll Blackhawk, Super 63. In the
back of this aircraft was my battalion commander, LTC Matthews, and
the overall ground commander, LTC Harrell.
In the movie, there is a scene where the men on the ground were
begging for MEDEVAC. By this point in the battle we had 5 Blackhawks
out of action, either shot down or shot up so much they couldn't fly
anymore. Of the two assault force and four blocking force 'hawks', only
myself and Super 67 were left. I fully expected LTC Harrell to send us in
to try to get those men out. I jacked a round into the chamber of my
pistol and my M16. I knew that the only way to do was to hover with
one wheel balanced on the roof of the building. Then the Rangers would
be able to throw the wounded in. I knew that we were going to take a
lot of fire and I was trying to mentally prepare myself to do this while the
aircraft was getting hit. My friends had all gone in and taken their licks
and now I figured it was our turn. (Peer pressure is such a powerful tool
if used properly.) Quite frankly, I really thought that we were at best
going to get shot down, at worst I figured we were going to be killed.
The way I saw it we had already lost 5 aircraft, what was 2 more? I had
accepted this because at least when this was all over General Garrison
would be able to tell the families that we had tried everything to get
their sons,fathers or husbands out. We were even willing to send in our
last two helicopters. Fortunately for me LTC Harrell realized that the time
for helicopters had passed. The decision was made to get the tanks and
armored personnel carriers to punch through to the objective area. Once
again, the dialogue in the movie is verbatim. What you don't hear is me
breathing a sigh of relief! I remembered thinking that maybe I was going
to see the sunrise after all.
I guess I got a little carried away. I really didn't mean to write this
much.
People ask me if this movie has given me 'flashbacks'. I don't think you
can call them flashbacks if that day has never been out of my mind.
I hope that when you do see the movie it will fill you with pride and awe
for the Rangers that fought their hearts out that day. Believe me, they
are made of the same stuff as those kids at Normandy Beach. When 1LT
Tom DiTomasso, the Ranger platoon leader on my aircraft, told me that
we did a fantastic job, I couldn't imagine ever receiving higher praise
than that. I love my wife and children, but the greatest thing I've ever
done is to be a Nightstalker Pilot with Task Force Ranger on 3-4 Oct
1993.
Thank you for reading this. I look forward to answering any and all
questions anyone may have about the movie or the actual battle. I just
thought that this might fill in some of the blanks. Thank you again.
Popski[PPA]
Popski[PPA]
"Join Popski's Private Army and Enjoy the War!"
Park Yunnie, ca 1942
"Join Popski's Private Army and Enjoy the War!"
Park Yunnie, ca 1942
und wie ich jetzt gerade geschlafen habe... 
BHD hat auf jedenfalls einen bleibenden eindruck hinterlassen. rückblickend betrachtet, wirkt der film etwas "inkonsistent". gerade die letzten szenen wirken so aufgesetzt ("bin ich ein kriegsjunkie?"), dass es schon fast weh tut - vor allem, nachdem man fast zwei stunden kämpfe hinter hinter sich hat.
es ist schwer zu beschreiben, aber scotts kriegsdarstellung ist beeindruckend und "fesselnd" - zumindest bin ich quasi die ganze zeit gebannt im sessel gehangen und habe mich eigentlich nur nach dem "warum?" gefragt.
als gesamtes gesehen ist der film (trotz 144min) überraschend schnell vorbei, während der gefecht kommt man kaum zu atem - gerade weil die entwicklung (wie ssnake schon sagte) der taktischen situation sehr gut verfolgt werden, ein punkt, der wesentlich zum "flair" des films beiträgt.
den film als kriegs-kritisch oä zu bezeichnen wäre imho falsch, am ehesten dürfte es noch "leicht pro-amerikanische aufarbeitung, aus der man eigene schüsse ziehen kann" treffen.. die abschreckende wirkung wird wohl nur bei denjenigen erzielt, die von haus aus eine etwas friedlichere natur besitzen bzw. bei denjenigen, die noch überhaupt keine vorstellung von "krieg" haben.
für die cs-generation allerdings sehe ich schwarz, wenn ich von den typen, die hinter uns gesessen sind, ausgehe. hilfe... (zitat: "boah, jetzt schaut euch die puffn an.", "0 taktik",..)
mfg
wulfman
BHD hat auf jedenfalls einen bleibenden eindruck hinterlassen. rückblickend betrachtet, wirkt der film etwas "inkonsistent". gerade die letzten szenen wirken so aufgesetzt ("bin ich ein kriegsjunkie?"), dass es schon fast weh tut - vor allem, nachdem man fast zwei stunden kämpfe hinter hinter sich hat.
es ist schwer zu beschreiben, aber scotts kriegsdarstellung ist beeindruckend und "fesselnd" - zumindest bin ich quasi die ganze zeit gebannt im sessel gehangen und habe mich eigentlich nur nach dem "warum?" gefragt.
als gesamtes gesehen ist der film (trotz 144min) überraschend schnell vorbei, während der gefecht kommt man kaum zu atem - gerade weil die entwicklung (wie ssnake schon sagte) der taktischen situation sehr gut verfolgt werden, ein punkt, der wesentlich zum "flair" des films beiträgt.
den film als kriegs-kritisch oä zu bezeichnen wäre imho falsch, am ehesten dürfte es noch "leicht pro-amerikanische aufarbeitung, aus der man eigene schüsse ziehen kann" treffen.. die abschreckende wirkung wird wohl nur bei denjenigen erzielt, die von haus aus eine etwas friedlichere natur besitzen bzw. bei denjenigen, die noch überhaupt keine vorstellung von "krieg" haben.
für die cs-generation allerdings sehe ich schwarz, wenn ich von den typen, die hinter uns gesessen sind, ausgehe. hilfe... (zitat: "boah, jetzt schaut euch die puffn an.", "0 taktik",..)
mfg
wulfman
Ich stimme dem zu: Mir ist auch nicht ganz klar, weshalb manche Kritiken behaupten, der Film verbreite eine extreme Anti-Kriegsstimmung. Ich finde, er funktioniert eigentlich genau wie jeder US-amerkanische Kriegsfilm: Er hinterfragt nicht die politischen Motive für den Krieg, stellt ihn komplett aus der Sicht der Amerikaner da und verwandelt eine Gruppe von Soldaten in Helden. Das ist jetzt nicht unbedingt schlecht oder unrealistisch - Helden werden in solchen Extrembedingungen geboren und deren Stories lassen sich natürlich schön erzählen.
Ich habe in dem Film nur einen Moment von Heldentum gesehen: Als die Jungs im Camp beschlossen haben, wieder 'reinzufahren. Der Rest war herausragende Tapferkeit, wenn auch in einer Situation, in der es kaum Alternativen gab.
Ich weiß nicht, ob man überhaupt zwischen "Kriegs-" und "Antikriegsfilmen" sinnvoll unterscheiden kann, wenn man mal von Propaganda-Machwerken wie "The Battle of the Green Berets/Die grünen Teufel vom Mekong", oder den berüchtigten Italienisch-Spanisch-Französischen "Kriegsaction"-Koproduktionen absieht.
Wenn "Kriegsfilm" Glorifizierung bedeutet und alles andere Antikriegsfilm ist, dann ist BHD ein Antikriegsfilm. Überzeugend fände ich so eine Charakerisierung aber nicht unbedingt.
Ich weiß nicht, ob man überhaupt zwischen "Kriegs-" und "Antikriegsfilmen" sinnvoll unterscheiden kann, wenn man mal von Propaganda-Machwerken wie "The Battle of the Green Berets/Die grünen Teufel vom Mekong", oder den berüchtigten Italienisch-Spanisch-Französischen "Kriegsaction"-Koproduktionen absieht.
Wenn "Kriegsfilm" Glorifizierung bedeutet und alles andere Antikriegsfilm ist, dann ist BHD ein Antikriegsfilm. Überzeugend fände ich so eine Charakerisierung aber nicht unbedingt.
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