The Essentials-#58
Saving Private Ryan
I apologize for being absent from my blog for so
long. I think you all will understand that we had a nice three day weekend.
Even though I write on this blog for free and absolutely nothing but passion
drives this blog, even I like a little vacation time. My girlfriend and I went
back to my hometown and visited with my parents. It was good time to just chill
and not do anything important for a few days. But now it is time to get back at
it, as I am behind on my two weekly columns. I think it is quite fitting that I
close this Memorial Day weekend with a review of the classic war movie, “Saving
Private Ryan.”
I am seen quite a few war movies in my life,
American history, world history, you name it. That is what happens when your
father is a history buff; you become something of a history buff yourself. I am
still awaiting my teaching license for the state of Illinois, and once I get
it, I will be certified to teach American and world history to grades 5 through
12. Some people like to say that history means nothing and we could wipe it
entirely from our education curriculum and nothing would change. I wholeheartedly
disagree, history is important. I could write all night long discussing the
merits of knowing history, but I promise to be brief. We wouldn’t know where we
came from and we wouldn’t know how to shape this modern world without history.
That is the biggest merit I could give without completely boring my audience.
So by being a big history guy myself, I love it when Hollywood can blend a
history lesson with entertainment. Such is the case with “Saving Private Ryan.”
On Wednesday, during the latest entry of “Who Played
It Best?” I was discussing how Hollywood is notorious for releasing to movies,
within months of each other, with the exact same premise. In 1998, both Steven
Spielberg and Terrance Malick released two epic movies set during World War II.
Both films featured ensembles featuring outstanding casts, both a murky
cinematography that really enriched the visuals and each film told potent
stories. Out of the two WWII films to come out that year, my personal favorite
was Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan.” “Saving Private Ryan” is a grand
highlight in Steven Spielberg’s career, coming from the guy that gave us “E.T.”
and “Jaws” and “Jurassic Park,” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “Schindler’s
List” and “Minority Report” and “Indiana Jones” and “The Color Purple” and “The
Adventures of Tintin” and “Amistad” and “Catch Me If You Can” and “Lincoln,”
that says something. That really, truly says something. Steven Spielberg will
go down in cinematic history as one of our greatest storytellers and he created
a intoxicating experience with “Saving Private Ryan.”
“Saving Private Ryan” is not the typical World War
II movie. Heck, it is not the typical war genre movie. That is as clear as day,
especially within the opening moments of the film, the audience can definitely
see how original and different Spielberg wanted to be. The film opens with the
invasion of Normandy during D-Day, the big operation that won us the victory in
Europe. We focus on Captain John H. Miller (Tom Hanks) and he prepares his men
to rush the beach. Already, there is scenery that captivates us right from the
beginning. The booming of the bombs, the splashing of the ocean water, the
nervousness of the soldiers, the sea-sickness, it all draws us in right away
and that is all before the bullets start flying toward the soldiers.
The D-Day invasion that Steven Spielberg created is
a massive achievement all by itself. Yes, it is bloody and gory, but what would
you expect from an accurate depiction of the Normandy invasion. It is clear
that Steven Spielberg was not doing anything by half-measures when he chose to
direct this movie. The invasion is tense, confusing, woozy, and quite
harrowing. Not only is it a masterful way to open a war movie, but it captures
the nightmare of war. Though so many lost their lives in the invasion, Miller
and his men are successful. As the camera pans at all of the dead soldiers on
the beach, it focuses on one dead man in particular, a man with the last name
of Ryan.
The commanding group in charge of the American
military catches wind that the Ryan family lost three of their four boys within
something like two weeks and that the mother will be receiving all three
telegrams on the same day. They also discover that the fourth boy may still be
alive, and they send out a mission to rescue him and bring him home. The
mission is given to Miller and he puts together a team that includes Sergeant
Mike Horvath (Tom Sizemore), Private Reiben (Edward Burns), Private Jackson
(Berry Pepper), Private Mellish (Adam Goldberg), Private Caparzo (Vin Diesel),
Technician Irvin Wade (Giovanni Ribisi) and Technician Timothy Upham (Jeremy
Davies). Together, they go as far behind enemy lines to find Private Ryan (Matt
Damon) and bring him back home.
The genius behind “Saving Private Ryan” is how well
this group of actors gel together. These are not actors reciting lines; these
are actors who become a group of men that have been to Hell and back together.
The way the group jokes, the way they have conversation and the way they argue
with each other all feels natural and real. It is truly defining work for
everybody that goes on the mission. What really seals the deal for me is the
work done by Tom Hanks, Tom Sizemore and Edward Burns. They are the three that
really drive the group and their chemistry is undeniable. Hanks proves why he
is one of the best actors in the history of the business, creating a somber yet
sincere performance as the group’s leader. Tom Sizemore, who has been missing
from film for way too long now, proves why he was the go-to guy for these roles
in the 1990’s. How he never won an award for anything is astounding. Then there
is Edward Burns, in some cases he is my favorite performance in the whole film.
He’s one of the few in the group that doesn’t fully understand nor believe in
the mission, but how he has so much respect for his brothers-in-arms and how
willfully goes on the mission anyway is pitch-perfect. It’s a wonderful
performance, easily one of the best of the whole decade. There are great actors
all throughout the movie that make a brief but inspiring footnote in the film.
These are not just quick cameos,
everybody means something, whether its Ted Danson, or Paul Giamatti, or Denis
Farina, or Bryan Cranston, or Nathan Fillion, or Leland Orser, they are all important
to the journey to Ryan.
How Steven Spielberg captures war on film is the
main reason to see the movie. How he captured the dirtiness of war, the stench,
the confusion, the horror of it all is completely shocking. I believe his movie
will go down as one of the most accurate and rousing visions of war in the
medium. He also successfully captures how these men were affected by the war
and how almost none of them came back themselves afterward, not only that but
Spielberg captures how our nation changed as a result of the war. The film is
packed with symbolism, packed with realism, but it also inspired hope. It tells
that even though WWII was dark, there was still hope; hope that one small
mission could bring good back in the world. I think that is why the film is so
important and so worth your time. If you don’t know what to watch as this
Memorial Day weekend comes to a close, consider this gracious experience.
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