The Sum of all Fears
Jack Ryan's back
Starring Ben Affleck, Morgan Freeman, James Cromwell, Bridget Moynahan and Liev Schreiber. Rated M.
Reviewer :: The Big Irish Git

Following the untimely death of Russian President Zorkin, a replacement is sworn in with some haste. Virtually unknown to the West, new President Alexander Nemerov is a cause for some concern in the top political and intelligence circles in Washington.
A young political analyst/historian, Jack Ryan is called on to offer expert advice on the man he studied and wrote a university thesis on just two years previously.

Black Hawk Down
In the thick of the action
Columbia Tristar, Rated MA. 144 minutes
Reviewer :: Pte Simone Heyer

It’s probably safe to say that most of the ADF has seen Black Hawk Down. So my task is not so much to outline the story but to let you know that it’s now available for video rental and for sale in video/DVD outlets.

• Read the review for your chance to win one of three fantastic Black Hawk Down giveaway packs.

Desert Skies
Gulf air combat
By Michael T. Gregory. Softcover, 466pp. Publisher: Xlibris Corporation. Available from Amazon.com for US$18.
Reviewer :: Capt Jason Logue

Desert Skies is quite surprising in that it is not purely a story of modern helicopter warfare, instead it is a story of devoted leadership set within an attack helicopter unit deployed to the Gulf War.
The book tells of the fine line between being one of the boys or being in command, demanding respect or earning respect and, most importantly, that fear of failing subordinates is (and should be) the driving factor behind leading troops.

Sickening, disturbing but still compelling

Documentary: Cutting Edge: Human Bombers.
Tuesday, October 1, at 8.30pm on SBS.
Reviewer: Ben Caddaye

In one scene from Human Bombers, a grim one-hour documentary on SBS, a mother shows her young children a video of her husband’s suicide bomb attack in the Middle East.
“I must say that it affects me,” the mother says of the footage. “But I like to watch it.”
Human Bombers focuses on this macabre culture of martyrdom, where people who blow up themselves (and many others) with powerful explosives are revered and destined for “paradise”.
It takes us back to one of the first suicide bomb attacks of note, in which the United States embassy in Beirut was destroyed in 1983, resulting in the US’s withdrawal from Lebanon.
The documentary then takes an extremely graphic and disturbing look at the rise of suicide bomb attacks in countries such as Iran, Israel and Sri Lanka, putting the microscope on groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas and the Tamil Tigers.
Human Bombers is shocking, powerful television and certainly not for the squeamish.

No small potatoes for these chappies

Documentary: Small Potatoes.
Starts Thursday, October 3, at 9pm on ABC TV.
Reviewer: Ben Caddaye

Some excellent British comedies have hit the small screen this year courtesy of ABC TV.
Sitcoms such as Black Books, The Book Club and Kumars at No.42 have been a few of the best, and the ABC’s latest offering, beginning next month, looks to be of a similar calibre.
Small Potatoes reunites writers and producers Richard Pinto and Sharat Sardana, the same team that brought us the hilarious and extremely popular Kumars at No.42.
Sanjeev Bhaskar, the star of Kumars, also plays a prominent role in this promising comedy.
A six-part series, Small Potatoes tells the story of the underachievers Ed, Rick (Bhaskar), Benett and Juliet.
Ed works in a video store, Rick in his father’s pharmacy, Juliet in a photographic studio and Benett is unemployed.
All four are waiting for their lives to happen, but in the meantime, all lead a tedious, trivial existence.
Ed, Rick and Benett in particular are sad cases and spend most of their time (unsuccessfully) chasing members of the opposite sex.
After catching just a glimpse of what this series has to offer, viewers can expect big things from Small Potatoes. Check it out.