Saving Private Ryan (1998)

User Rating:

8.5/10   

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writer (WGA):

Robert Rodat (written by)

Release Date:

24 July 1998 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Drama | War

Tagline:

In the Last Great Invasion of the Last Great War, The Greatest Danger for Eight Men was Saving... One.

Plot:

Following the Normandy Landings, a group of US soldiers go behind enemy lines to retrieve a paratrooper whose brothers have been killed in action.

Plot Keywords:

Invasion | General | Normandy | Soldier | Army

Awards:

Won 5 Oscars. Another 52 wins & 53 nominations

US Showtimes:

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Cast

Tom Hanks	...	Capt. John H. Miller
Tom Sizemore	...	Sgt. Mike Horvath
Edward Burns	...	Pvt. Richard Reiben
Barry Pepper	...	Pvt. Daniel Jackson
Adam Goldberg	...	Pvt. Stanley Mellish
Vin Diesel	...	Pvt. Adrian Caparzo
Giovanni Ribisi	...	T-5 Medic Irwin Wade
Jeremy Davies	...	Cpl. Timothy P. Upham
Matt Damon	...	Pvt. James Francis Ryan
Ted Danson	...	Capt. Fred Hamill
Paul Giamatti	...	Sgt. Hill
Dennis Farina	...	Lt. Col. Anderson
Joerg Stadler	...	Steamboat Willie
Max Martini	...	Cpl. Henderson (as Maximilian Martini)
Dylan Bruno	...	Toynbe

MPAA:

Rated R for intense prolonged realistically graphic sequences of war violence, and for language.

Runtime:

170 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | French | German | Czech

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

USA:R (certificate #35942) | Taiwan:GP | Malaysia:18SG (DVD release) | Malaysia:(Banned) (theatrical) | Philippines:PG-13 | Brazil:14 | USA:TV-MA (TV rating) | India:A | Argentina:16 | Australia:MA (re-rating on appeal) | Australia:R (original rating) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Alberta/Ontario) | Canada:14 (Nova Scotia) | Canada:18A (British Columbia) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Chile:14 | Denmark:15 | Finland:K-14 (re-rating) | Finland:K-16 (original rating) | France:U | Germany:16 (bw) | Hong Kong:IIB | Iceland:16 | Ireland:15 | Israel:PG | Italy:VM14 | Mexico:B | Netherlands:16 | New Zealand:R15 | Norway:18 | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating on appeal) | Singapore:R(A) (original rating) | South Korea:15 | Spain:13 | Sweden:15 | Switzerland:16 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15 | Singapore:M18 (DVD rating)

Filming Locations:

Calvados, France

Company:

Amblin Entertainment

Trivia:

The opening and closing of the film features a US flag backlit by the sun. This is exactly the same as a shot in Leni Riefenstahl's Tag der Freiheit - Unsere Wehrmacht (1935). In that film, a Nazi flag gently sways in the wind, with the sun shining through it from behind, rendering the flag somewhat translucent.

Goofs:

Factual errors: After the horrific D-Day scene, when Captain Miller gets his mission some days later, a panorama of the seascape shows no ships in view. The area ought to have been teeming with ships bringing more units to the front, supplying those already present, and protecting the supply line.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Ryan's son: [running to comfort his father] Dad?
[flashback to D-Day]
LCVP pilot: Clear the ramp! Thirty seconds. God be with ya!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in The Mangler 2 (2001) (V)

Soundtrack:

Solitude

This is one of the greatest movies ever made.

To think that this movie did not win Best Picture is a crime. Director Steven Spielberg uses all of his talent and resources to give to the world the greatest war film ever made.

Though it's true that this is not the type of movie you want to sit down with the family and eat popcorn, the emotional drive of the picture, the story's poignant messages, and the fantastic acting of the cast draws you into a world that is both dangerous and unpredictable.

Spielberg is able to take you into action and make you feel as if you are a participant in the movie and not just a viewer. This is Tom Hanks' best movie he ever did. Forget his performances in Philadelphia and Forrest Gump (though they were also good); he should have received another Oscar for the role of Capt. John Miller, a leader who must act strong in front of his men, but must also hide his emotions from them. It would have been well-deserved if he won again.

I give this movie my highest recommendation. Saving Private Ryan is a movie that makes you realize how life is precious and how honor and duty, though they are deep philosophical concepts that are praised in war, can put you in jeopardy of losing your life for something you may not believe in.