Saving Private Ryan

I’ll start off the review admitting that the ending missed it a little for me, didn’t love the deus ex machina in the end and the final shot of the American flag was pain inducing because of how cheesy it was. Though I felt Ryan debating himself even then was incredibly impactful, and the survivor’s guilt did hit. All that said, hard to give the rest anything but praise. That first half hour was one of the most impressive sequences I’ve seen in my entire life. And it was insanely brutal, and I think it showcases best arguably the best thing about this movie. The way that it shows war is unparalleled. The gore, the violence, the cruelty, all of which are at their highest at this scene and keep coming out throughout the entire movie. And this movie just has so many little nuances that show why Steven Spielberg is Steven Spielberg and why he won the Oscar. I also absolutely love this quiet before the storm moment before the ending, when everyone talks to each other before the nazi attack to the french music. Add that with the german soldier they ended up sparing, which ended up being a mistake, and you take all those things and you get this brilliant and hugely important piece with profound moral dilemmas and such a deep look into humanity, specifically at the darkest of times.