If you're looking for mindless escapism, don't see Black Hawk Down. You're going to be disappointed because it's anything but mindless, and anything but escapism.

But if you want to see real-life heroism and sacrifice portrayed in a realistic, intense and moving way, do not miss it! Run, do not walk, to the ticket office of your local movie house.

Based on the best-selling book of the same name by author Mark Bowden, Black Hawk Down is a moving, gripping film that recounts the ordeal under fire of American soldiers in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Oct. 3, 1993.

The mission was to capture key lieutenants of a major Somali warlord in an attempt to bring him to heel. The raid -- a lightning-quick daylight helicopter insertion of Rangers and Delta Force operators -- led to the biggest firefight involving U.S. troops since the Vietnam War. By the time it ended, 18 Army Rangers, Delta Force operators and flight crewmen from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment were killed and many others wounded. Television cameras shocked America when they recorded the bodies of some of the fallen Americans being dragged through the streets by jubilant Somalis.

Knowing how Hollywood has often negatively portrayed the U.S. Armed Forces since the days of the Vietnam War, I was initially dubious about seeing Black Hawk Down. But I went to an advance screening in mid-December and was unforgettably moved by the way it depicts the heroism and sacrifice of those brave soldiers.

I saw the movie three times in various pre-release screenings, and I was deeply moved each and every time. Black Hawk Down represents nothing less than a positive sea change in the way Hollywood depicts our Armed Forces.

More certainly could have been said in the movie about the way the Clinton Administration, including then-Defense Secretary Les Aspin, denied these brave men the tools -- Bradleys and AC-130 Spectre gunships -- they requested and needed for that mission. With those vital tools, the outcome undoubtedly would have been a lot different. But the movie has rekindled the debate over the way politicians left our troops to twist in the wind, and it's being voiced now on talk radio nationwide. More importantly, Black Hawk Down tells a compelling, true story about the heroism and sacrifice of our Rangers, Delta Force operators and 160th SOAR aviators.

Black Hawk Down is nothing less than a paean to those brave men. It is especially noteworthy that the movie's credits prominently list the names and ranks of those who died, and also note -- by name -- that two of the fallen were awarded posthumous Medals of Honor, the nation's highest valor award.

The movie carries an R rating due to violence and language, but these are appropriate and true to the subject. Yes, there is blood, sometimes lots of blood. But the movie isn't done as violence porn. War is a bloody, brutal business, and the movie depicts that honestly and fairly. And yes, there is swearing, sometimes lots of swearing. That's how it was in every battle I took part in, and I'm dead certain Somalia was no different. Men in combat are not choir boys, and colorful language is part of the battlefield.

My 18-year-old son, Charles, long has planned a military career and has hopes of becoming an Air Force pilot. Now a college freshman, he's been accepted at The Citadel and will transfer there in late August. I thought it was important that he understand that things sometimes go very wrong and ordinary people have to overcome extraordinary situations, so I wanted him to see the movie.

He was able to accompany me to my third viewing of Black Hawk Down held the night before its recent national release. Mark Bowden, the book's author, is a Loyola University alumnus, and the premiere was for their alumni association. He was there that evening, and so were several of the real-life Rangers and 10th Mountain Division soldiers who were participants in the battle. My son and I were privileged to be able to talk with them before the screening.

After the movie ended, the theater erupted with applause -- for the movie, for the men, for the fallen. My son sought out several of those veterans of the battle he'd talked with before the movie. "Thank God for people like you!" he said in a husky, emotion-filled voice.

I couldn't agree more.

Don Hirst is Executive Editor of SALUTE Magazine, a privately owned, nationally circulated publication distributed on military bases throughout the United States. A Vietnam veteran (two extended Army tours: 64-65, 67-68) who subsequently returned as a civilian correspondent (5-plus years there total), he's covered the military from the foxhole/cockpit level to the corridors of the Pentagon for almost 34 years. His numerous longstanding ties with the U.S. military include being an Honorary Life Member of the Special Forces Association and an Honorary Member of the 173rd Airborne Brigade.