TEARS OF THE SUN
Released: March 7, 2003
Director Antoine Fuqua (fook-wah) made his name early on as a music video director. His first feature movie was the decent 1998 Chow Yun-Fat vehicle "The Replacement Killers". He later gained critical praise and Oscar's powerful influence with "Training Day" in 2001. Now, in 2003, Fuqua has delivered what can be described as a movie taking the best parts of "Black Hawk Down" and "Three Kings" and making something good out of it as well. Bruce Willis plays a Special-Ops commander who leads his team into the jungle of Nigeria to rescue a doctor played by Monica Belluci who will only go with them if they agree to rescue 70 refugees too. Like the despair of "Black Hawk Down" exhibited, so too does "Tears Of The Sun" display hope, like in "Three Kings". The action is paired with thoughtfulness and is carried off by Willis exceptionally well. A lesser actor would likely not have been able to carry off this role and Willis shows us he's able to do pretty much anything he sets his mind to. Also starring Cole Hauser, Fionnula Flanagan and Tom Skerritt (in a rather thankless role as the Willis character's Navy Seal Captain).
121 Minutes
Columbia/Sony