‘Saving Private Ryan’ The Greatest War Film of All Time? Perhaps.
A Film Review.
*SPOILER ALERT*
Ever since I was eight years old I knew I wanted to do one of two things with my life. I was either going to be an actor and make films or join the military.
This early recognition of purpose had everything to do with the film we’re about to review.
Since its debut in 1998; ‘Saving Private Ryan’ has been hailed by critics and audiences alike. But I’ll take it a step further to calling it the greatest war film of all time.
When considering the masterful work of filmmakers such as Stanley Kubrick, Francis Ford Coppola or Oliver Stone regarding their respective films, ‘Full Metal Jacket’, ‘Apocalypse Now’ and ‘Platoon’; One can truly begin to comprehend the full weight of that claim and perhaps still — its validity.
In this review we’ll be breaking down the fundamental elements that makes Steven Spielberg’s war epic such a triumph. These include a look at:
- Story & Screenplay.
- Cinematography.
- Performances.
- Directing.
- Music & Sound Design.
STORY & SCREENPLAY
In the film we follow U.S. Capt. John H. Miller (Tom Hanks) as he leads a small recovery unit on a mission within Nazi occupied France in order to locate Pvt. James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon), who’s three brothers were killed in combat, and send him home.
Inspired by the incredible true story of the Niland brothers, Robert Rodat’s ambitious screenplay became the perfect template for the self-proclaimed history buffs, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg to begin their years-long collaboration with.
From the very onset of the film, we brace ourselves as we’re introduced to much of the principal cast via the famed Normandy beach landings of June 6, 1944.
For nearly 30 minutes, Spielberg’s filmmaking prowess is on full display as he takes us yard by yard alongside thousands of U.S. troops up the beachhead through a hell scape of German machine gun fire and pre-sited obstacles.
It’s in this sequence alone where the pace is set for the rest of the film and where we become acutely aware of the horrors of combat during the Second World War in a showcase never-before captured on film.
Following D-Day and orders from top brass, Capt. Miller takes a small detachment from his rifle company and begins a days-long search of the countryside in occupied France with the hopes of finding Pvt. Ryan at his last known location.
What ensues is a reflective journey for each man of Miller’s unit bringing them closing to answering the fundamental question — ‘why we fight?’
“The film ultimately is about one’s duty and the morality of war”, says Rodat during a recent Q&A.
The answers, of course, differ for each solider and becomes an essential tool for coping when their unit begins to suffer tragic losses.
It isn’t until after the final battle sequence in the film’s climatic third act, where a fatally wounded Miller pulls Ryan in close and whispers “Earn this.”
A simple yet profound statement symbolizing the sacrifices made, not only to find Pvt. Ryan, but to get him home alive.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
It would indeed be criminal not to acknowledge the brilliant approach to cinematography in this film helmed by none other than Oscar winning, Polish cinematographer Janusz Kaminski.
‘Saving Private Ryan’ marks the fourth collaboration between Kaminski and Spielberg.
Their vision included a “documentary style” / handheld approach to filming the majority of the battle sequences along with a reduction of roughly 60% of the color during principal photography and during the processing the negatives in post.
“In the whole course of the movie, there’s virtually not a single shot that has blue sky. I’m going for this kind of burnout, very desaturated, very blurry sky.”
At the request of Kaminski, Panavision prepared a certain set of lenses which were stripped of protective coating typically preventing excess light from bouncing. This creates a far more diffused image which can be prone to flares. The desired effect is a softer image without losing focus.
In addition to this, the camera shutter speed hardly went above 45 degrees which mimicked 8mm and 16mm newsreel cameras of the 1940s.
PERFORMANCES
Two-time Academy Award-winner Tom Hanks leads a stellar cast including the late Tom Sizemore, Giovanni Ribisi, Edward Burns, Adam Goldberg, Barry Pepper, Jeremy Davis, Vin Diesel and Matt Damon.
Each actor delivers a career-defining performance here. The clarity, vision and imagination each bring to their respective characters when engaging with one another creates a bond which the audience quickly beings to empathize with.
Noteworthy supporting performances include Paul Giamatti, Ted Danson and the late Dennis Farina and Harve Presnell.
Senior Military Advisor, Capt. Dale Dye, USMC (Ret) was charged with immersing the company in a week long boot camp which saw the actors through weapons training, field survival tactics and regular combat drills.
Barry Pepper recounts a statement made by Dale Dye during their time in his care —
“I want you all to bring honor to the fraternity of men that died for your freedom.”
Armed with their bootcamp experience, the cast could more readily perform under a rigorous two month shooting schedule and understand, if only slightly, the hardships men and women face in the military.
DIRECTING
The son of a World War II veteran, Steven Spielberg had long romanticized the war and the “greatest generation” with film fare such as ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’, ‘1941’ and ‘Empire of the Sun’.
But with ’Schindler’s List’ in 1993, Spielberg drastically changes tones in order to accurately and faithfully pay homage to history in a manner yet to be seen in his filmography.
That approach certainly holds true for ‘Saving Private Ryan’; A story which demands historical accuracy and in which Spielberg religiously adheres to.
He emulates his idols in this respect. Famed Hollywood filmmakers such as William Wyler, John Houston, George Stevens and John Ford. All men who answered the call to serve their country during World War II and who were responsible for capturing some of the war’s most iconic images.
His approach mirrored their own. In close collaboration with his director of photography, Janusz Kaminski, the pair adopted a similar shooting strategy —
“We both knew early on that we did not want this to look like a technicolor extravaganza about World War II. We wanted it to look very much like color newsreel footage from the 1940s.”
Through this approach, Spielberg and company were able to organically navigate a custom built French village in Hatfield, England helmed by Set Designer, Tom Sanders and achieved certain shots the way combat cameramen would have.
MUSIC & SOUND DESIGN
Utilizing the immense talents of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, longtime Spielberg collaborator and legendary film composer, John Williams set out to create the emotional score for film.
“‘The Hymn to the Fallen’ was kind of a set piece that seemed to be required. One felt like we needed a kind of requiem for the people lost in the film.”
Williams found no better way to satisfy that need than with a harmonious marriage of chorus and orchestra. The results are a breathtaking display of talent and an emotional bedrock for the film’s more reflective moments.
It is perhaps though, in the absence of music, where the film engages the audience the most viscerally.
It was with great relief for Sound Designer Gary Rydstrom to hear that Spielberg and Williams were intending to keep music almost completely out of the major battle sequences.
Rydstrom was tasked with delivering a fresh sound FX library for the near 30 min opening invasion sequence along with the subsequent battle scenes.
“It struck me how much sound was part of their [veterans] memory…One veteran told me that the allied soldiers were on to the fact that the Germans would listen for the distinctive ping of the empty cartridge as it would pop up out of the M-1 rifle..So an allied soldier would eject an empty cartridge in order to draw a German from hiding and shoot.”
An example of how a sound effect that is not-so-horrific can be used for a horrific sound effect; the bullets underwater during the opening D-Day invasion sequence are actually recordings of a fishing line being ripped off the surface of a river. Rydstrom was able to repurpose the effect from a previous film, ‘A River Runs Through It’.
AWARDS & PARTING THOUGHTS
‘Saving Private Ryan’ undoubtedly remains one of the most faithful depictions of warfare in the history of cinema. The unwavering attention to historical accuracy across all art departments would pay off in spades during the 71st Academy Awards.
The film was nominated for 11 Oscars including nominations for Best Actor (Tom Hanks), Best Original Score (John Williams) and Best Original Screenplay (Robert Rodat).
Steven Spielberg took home his second Oscar for Best Director, Janusz Kaminski for Best Cinematography and Gary Rydstrom won for Best Sound Mixing and Sound Editing.
In the end, I ultimately chose to pursue a career in the performing arts — if only to try and move audiences as profoundly as this film still moves me today.
So what do you think? Is ‘Saving Private Ryan’ the greatest war film of all time? Let me know which film you think holds the title in the comments below.
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Thanks for reading!
