Saving Private Ryan
💯100%
War is hell. There’s no other way to put it. That is showcased brilliantly and realistically in Saving Private Ryan. It’s extremely loud, intense, violent, and tragic, as all war movies should be. Like 1917, it really puts you in the battles, whereas this movies doesn’t do it with groundbreaking cinematography, but with realistic shaky cam and fantastic sound effects. The first 30 minutes are gut wrenching and pretty hard to get through. Seeing the events of D-Day on film is horrific and completely tragic. I looked up D-Day veterans thoughts on this movie and they all said this was the most realistic war sequence ever put to film, and they’re probably not wrong. The inherent gore just in that opening sequence is a lot to handle on its own, and it’s just immensely heartbreaking. It also sets a lot of things up that we see with the characters later on.
The journey that this squad goes on to find and rescue a certain soldier for his family is really simple, but includes a ton of steps and a lot of setbacks. The cast is also another great one. You have Tom Hanks being phenomenal (as always) as Captain John Miller, Matt Damon gives a great supporting role as Private Ryan, Giovanni Ribisi, Adam Goldberg, Tom Sizemore, Edward Burns, Barry Pepper, and Jeremy Davies all give amazing supporting performances. This movie also has a pre-fame Vin Diesel. This whole crew is just amazing to watch, especially in the battles scenes, and the traveling scenes, as you see their brotherhood and how they make fun of each other and whenever any of them die you’re devastated as they are because you genuinely like and care for that character.
The editing, visual and sound effects, and the cinematography all enhance this movie’s sense of (again) realism. You feel each moment because you feel like you’re actually there. Stephen Spielberg’s direction is fantastic here this is easily the best work I’ve seen from him. He sets a perfectly intense but brotherly tone to this film and it works perfectly. There are actually some pretty funny moments of camaraderie here and there whenever the action slows down. The score is also fantastic, but that’s no surprise because it was written by John Williams.
This is easily the best war movie I’ve seen yet and my new runner up for my favorite Spielberg film. It’s intense, realistic, the cast and the pacing are incredible, and it’s full of emotion. There are few movies that have made me cry, but this managed to do so, and I highly suggest you watch this if you haven’t already.
🔜The Godfather♻️