Saving Private Ryan was the most honored film of 1998 and winner of five Academy Awards® Produced and directed by Stephen Spielberg (Vietnam Veteran).

Tom Hanks as Capt. John Miller
Matt Damon as Pvt. Ryan
Tom Sizemore as Sergeant Horvath

Saving Private Ryan (1998)

This is by far the best and most graphic war film to date. The movie opens with the invasion of Normandy, June 6th, 1944. The landing craft hits the beach and THE TROOP DOOR FALLS OPEN! The landing craft was directly in front of a German fortification manned by German machine gunners. The German fortifications open up with everything they have! The next ten minutes of the movie were so horrific & graphic that I sat there with a numb, sick feeling as people left the theater. If you've ever wanted to have some vague idea of what a war is like for a soldier, don't miss this movie. If you've ever wanted to have some vague idea of what Soldiers, sailors and airmen paid for our Freedom, don't miss this movie.

The First Ten Minutes

The first ten minutes of the movie are tough to view. If you are squeamish skip the initial invasion (10 minutes).
The rest of the movie is tolerable when compared to the initial shock of the intense invasion scene.

The Mission

Capt. John Miller (Tom Hanks) has a mission. The mission is simple, find and bring back Pvt. Ryan (Matt Damon) who was dropped behind enemy lines with the 101st Airborne. The reasoning behind this was also simple. His four other brothers had all been killed in action. The brass wanted to get him back home at all costs. It was already going to be tough enough to tell the Ryan parents that their four eldest sons had been killed in action. Capt. John Miller being an extremely competent officer in the elite U.S. Rangers was the first and obvious choice for this unique mission. His company of Rangers were squared away and battle hardened. His orders were to hand pick the men that he needed, find Pvt. Ryan and get him back to the rear area to be sent back home, A.S.A.P.!

The task of finding Pvt. Ryan gets a little complicated though. Capt. Miller discovers that the paratroopers were scattered to the four winds during the night drop. There are also several Pvt. Ryan’s. He eventually discovers that the company Ryan was in with had been cut to shreds when they dropped. Just when the mission seemed to be a complete waste of time, Capt. Miller came across a wounded soldier that knew where his Pvt. Ryan was, at least two days ago. Ryan’s company had been shot up in a bad DZ (Drop Zone). Pvt Ryan was not hit so he was picked up by another company from the Screaming Eagles that had orders to take and hold a key bridge. The area that Ryan was in was behind enemy lines and extremely dangerous! If Capt Miller and his men could just complete this mission and get Ryan back to the rear area, he and his men could go home and leave this damnable war behind.

When his men start dying in this search for one man, it turns into a moral dilemma for everyone involved. All this sacrifice for just one man. It's to late to turn back now!

Final Thoughts

Saving Private Ryan is with out a doubt the best war film ever put on a screen. Some say the plot could have been better but what sort of plot do you need to show the hell of a war? This is a movie with Oscar winning performances and which received some five Academy Awards®. War is in fact a living hell on earth and this film lets us have a glimpse through the door.


{Quotes from Saving Private Ryan}

Captain Miller: Caparzo, get that kid back up there!Private Caparzo: Captain, the decent thing to do would be take her over to the next town.
Captain Miller: We're not here to do the decent thing, we're here to follow f@cking orders!

Captain Miller: James I'm here to tell you your brothers were killed in combat. They're dead.
Private Ryan: Which one, sir?
Captain Miller: All of them.

[SSG. Horvath takes a round in the chest]
Captain Miller: Mike, are you alright?
SSG Horvath: I just got the wind knocked out of me. I'm fine!


[foot notes]
~ All the principal actors underwent several days of grueling army training - except for Matt Damon, who was spared so that the other actors would resent him, and would convey that resentment in their performances.

~ The idea of a sniper putting a bullet through another sniper's scope came from the true story of a Marine sniper in Vietnam called Carlos Hathcock who put a bullet through the scope of a Vietcong sniper who was stalking him.

Operation Over-Lord (D-DAY JUNE 6th, 1944)
• 13,000 aircraft
• 3,500 gliders
• 1,200 Battle ships
• 1,600 merchant ships
• 4,000 assault craft
• 3.5 million troops, soldiers, sailors and airmen

RUNTIME 1 hour 50 minutes
Rated [R]
Money Earned; $375 million

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Thanks for the read,

~Mac



Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Not suitable for Children of any age