Saving Private Ryan
4/4
Starring: Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Jeremy Davies, Adam Goldberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Matt Damon, Vin Diesel
Rated R for Intense Prolonged Realistically Graphic Sequences of War Violence, and for Language
Action movies, especially war movies, typically told stories of grandeur and heroism. "The Longest Day," "Braveheart," "Gone with the Wind," the list goes on. While it's not true that "Saving Private Ryan" was the first film to show the ugly side of war (movies like "Platoon" and "Full Metal Jacket" beat it to the punch), it was the film that changed the face of war films forever.
"Saving Private Ryan" is a gut punch that will leave everyone who views it reeling. It takes no prisoners and does not sugarcoat anything. In an act that is as much balls as it is wisdom, director Steven Spielberg spares us nothing. War is shown to be a place for heroes, yes, but not in the usual sense. Scenes with John Wayne saying "Follow me, men!" as he runs over the hill, blowing Nazis away and emerging without a sweat have no place here. Spielberg shows war for what it really is: violent, bloody and cruel.
Apart from a brief sequence, that in conjunction with another brief scene, book ends the film, "Saving Private Ryan" goes into its most harrowing sequence. The rest of the film is masterful, but the first half hour is the one that everyone remembers. Spielberg takes us right into the heart of the bloody chaos of the D-Day invasion. It's as graphic and terrifying as any war movie I've ever seen. He uses every tool he can think of to get the point across: shaking the camera, color desaturation, varying film speeds, and more. We see, in full graphic glory, the price men have paid for our freedom. Bullets tear through bodies as if they were tissue paper, men drown trying to make it to the beach, people who were alive one moment are dead the next, and in one particularly disturbing subplot, medics fight to save a man whose entrails have spilled out of his body beside him.
After that, the film shifts gears. Apart from a few isolated incidents, this is a relatively action free zone. Here is where the meat of the film is. Spielberg knows all the war movie cliches and deconstructs them one by one. The "win at all costs" mentality, the colorful comrades, the melodrama...it's all here, but it's filtered through reality. Spielberg turns them all over on their heads. War is not pretty; it is dehumanizing and crushing to the soul.
The story is relatively simple. A soldier's three brothers were killed, and the generals think that the right thing to do is to have someone retrieve him and bring him home to soothe his devastated mother. It's sound logic, but at what cost. It's easy for someone like General Marshall (Harve Presnell) to send a squad of men to do this when he's in the US in an air conditioned room. But on the front lines, it's a whole different story. The soldiers, especially Private Reiben (Burns), question the logic of this mission, but as their captain, John Miller (Hanks), says, they have orders and they have to follow them.
As powerful and disturbing as the film is, there is some gallows humor in this film. Quite a bit actually, and some of it is pretty funny (although no one is going to classify this as a comedy even in a small way). Ryan's story about his brothers caused me to laugh out loud. It increases the realism in two ways: one, it shows that the men are trying to stay sane in any way they can, and two, once the comic bits are over, they illustrate a greater truth and understanding of their situation. It's a delicate balance, and Spielberg nails it.
The performances are top-notch. This isn't a showcase for actors, and the cast understands that. Tom Hanks is the biggest name in the cast, but he doesn't do any showboating. He understands that this story and its themes are the focus of the film, and he underplays the role as only a professional can. Edward Burns, who had made a name for himself after the indie hit "The Brothers McMullen" and his studio-funded follow-up "She's the One," is terrific as the cynical and disagreeable Reiben. Reiben is a troublemaker, but we understand his position fully. Jeremy Davies is brilliant as Upham, the linguist who has never seen battle. Miller is the main character, but it is through his eyes that we see the story. Giovanni Ribisi, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg and Vin Diesel round out the squad, and all of them do excellent work. Matt Damon is also good as Ryan, who has suddenly received the shock of his life and has to decide whether to take the easy way out or do his duty. Brief appearances and cameos are plentiful but not ostentatious. Paul Giamatti, Ted Danson, Dennis Farina, Nathan Fillon, Leland Orser, and Bryan Cranston all make appearances.
Without a doubt, "Saving Private Ryan" is among an elite crowd of films (despite a few minor blemishes here and there, such as some moments that are a little overly dramatic. This is particularly true of John Williams score). It's certainly one of the best war films ever made, if not the best.
Starring: Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Jeremy Davies, Adam Goldberg, Giovanni Ribisi, Matt Damon, Vin Diesel
Rated R for Intense Prolonged Realistically Graphic Sequences of War Violence, and for Language
Action movies, especially war movies, typically told stories of grandeur and heroism. "The Longest Day," "Braveheart," "Gone with the Wind," the list goes on. While it's not true that "Saving Private Ryan" was the first film to show the ugly side of war (movies like "Platoon" and "Full Metal Jacket" beat it to the punch), it was the film that changed the face of war films forever.
"Saving Private Ryan" is a gut punch that will leave everyone who views it reeling. It takes no prisoners and does not sugarcoat anything. In an act that is as much balls as it is wisdom, director Steven Spielberg spares us nothing. War is shown to be a place for heroes, yes, but not in the usual sense. Scenes with John Wayne saying "Follow me, men!" as he runs over the hill, blowing Nazis away and emerging without a sweat have no place here. Spielberg shows war for what it really is: violent, bloody and cruel.
Apart from a brief sequence, that in conjunction with another brief scene, book ends the film, "Saving Private Ryan" goes into its most harrowing sequence. The rest of the film is masterful, but the first half hour is the one that everyone remembers. Spielberg takes us right into the heart of the bloody chaos of the D-Day invasion. It's as graphic and terrifying as any war movie I've ever seen. He uses every tool he can think of to get the point across: shaking the camera, color desaturation, varying film speeds, and more. We see, in full graphic glory, the price men have paid for our freedom. Bullets tear through bodies as if they were tissue paper, men drown trying to make it to the beach, people who were alive one moment are dead the next, and in one particularly disturbing subplot, medics fight to save a man whose entrails have spilled out of his body beside him.
After that, the film shifts gears. Apart from a few isolated incidents, this is a relatively action free zone. Here is where the meat of the film is. Spielberg knows all the war movie cliches and deconstructs them one by one. The "win at all costs" mentality, the colorful comrades, the melodrama...it's all here, but it's filtered through reality. Spielberg turns them all over on their heads. War is not pretty; it is dehumanizing and crushing to the soul.
The story is relatively simple. A soldier's three brothers were killed, and the generals think that the right thing to do is to have someone retrieve him and bring him home to soothe his devastated mother. It's sound logic, but at what cost. It's easy for someone like General Marshall (Harve Presnell) to send a squad of men to do this when he's in the US in an air conditioned room. But on the front lines, it's a whole different story. The soldiers, especially Private Reiben (Burns), question the logic of this mission, but as their captain, John Miller (Hanks), says, they have orders and they have to follow them.
As powerful and disturbing as the film is, there is some gallows humor in this film. Quite a bit actually, and some of it is pretty funny (although no one is going to classify this as a comedy even in a small way). Ryan's story about his brothers caused me to laugh out loud. It increases the realism in two ways: one, it shows that the men are trying to stay sane in any way they can, and two, once the comic bits are over, they illustrate a greater truth and understanding of their situation. It's a delicate balance, and Spielberg nails it.
The performances are top-notch. This isn't a showcase for actors, and the cast understands that. Tom Hanks is the biggest name in the cast, but he doesn't do any showboating. He understands that this story and its themes are the focus of the film, and he underplays the role as only a professional can. Edward Burns, who had made a name for himself after the indie hit "The Brothers McMullen" and his studio-funded follow-up "She's the One," is terrific as the cynical and disagreeable Reiben. Reiben is a troublemaker, but we understand his position fully. Jeremy Davies is brilliant as Upham, the linguist who has never seen battle. Miller is the main character, but it is through his eyes that we see the story. Giovanni Ribisi, Barry Pepper, Adam Goldberg and Vin Diesel round out the squad, and all of them do excellent work. Matt Damon is also good as Ryan, who has suddenly received the shock of his life and has to decide whether to take the easy way out or do his duty. Brief appearances and cameos are plentiful but not ostentatious. Paul Giamatti, Ted Danson, Dennis Farina, Nathan Fillon, Leland Orser, and Bryan Cranston all make appearances.
Without a doubt, "Saving Private Ryan" is among an elite crowd of films (despite a few minor blemishes here and there, such as some moments that are a little overly dramatic. This is particularly true of John Williams score). It's certainly one of the best war films ever made, if not the best.
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