Saving Private Ryan
After seeing Steven Spielberg's movie, "Saving Private Ryan," there's only one thing I have said to myself, that this is definitely a "must see" movie for all. From the beginning to the end, I have seen no movie that could compare to the elements that "Saving Private Ryan" had presented to its viewers.
Steven Spielberg once again achieved his mastery in film making with his presentation of "Saving Private Ryan." It's another one big and true achievement after his previous film masterpiece "Schindler's List."
Saving Private Ryan" is a movie that displays the guts and glory of soldiers who are willing to die for their country. It is a movie that exhibits bravery, passion, and all the realities of war. Even in the very beginning, the film didn't fail to touch a portion of the viewer's heart with the American Flag waving in the wind, a sequence bestowing patriotic sentiments…...
Saving Private Ryan" and "Casualties of ar" -- a Contrast of Two ars
In our nation's history, there are no two more different wars than orld ar II and Vietnam. Our memories of orld ar II seem to be full of heroes, and the enemy was clearly evil. Heroes acted honorably and vanquished the enemy. It was easy to determine who won and lost a battle -- and the war. Our Vietnam experience is not so clear-cut. The heroes were not those who won battles, but informed on fellow soldiers about atrocities. ars are never clean, but Vietnam was a particularly dirty little war.
Saving Private Ryan is a 1998 film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Robert Rodat, dealing with the orld ar II Battle of Normandy. The film is particularly notable for the intensity of the scenes in its first twenty minutes or so, which depict the Omaha…...
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What Saving Private Ryan does extremely well, is show the world the harsh reality of war without pulling any punches. The story is told with competency and due reverence from all perspectives of the characters involved. It is an uncommon and intriguing drama, but it serves as an excuse to describe a setting, rather than the other way around. The story manages to move us through all sorts of different landscapes and scenarios, giving us an unforgettable glimpse of a world unknown to most of us, and terrifying to those who are familiar with it from personal experience.
Casualties of War is a 1989 movie about the Vietnam War, starring Michael J. Fox and Sean Penn, directed by Brian De Palma. The film is about how normal moral behavior is discarded during war times and shows it in the extreme when soldiers become savages who can dehumanize innocent by-standers. It is also about personal responsibility for maintaining that morality in extreme conditions. "It is built on a true story, and shows what a war can do with young people, when they are put under hard pressure."
American History Through Film
It is often agreed upon that there are different categories of history: the history that happened, the history created by historians and the history that people believe. Since the early 1920s, the American film industry has attempted to recreate history using films and television programs that aim to pass specific messages to viewers. War is often a fascinating subject for most filmmakers as it gives them an avenue to express their opinions and pursue various agendas. This text examines three different war films: the Green Berets, Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down. It also analyses specific scenes pertaining to their realism and entertainment value.
The Green Berets
The Green Berets is a controversial Vietnam War film by John Wayne which was released in 1968. This was at the height of the South East Asian conflict and America was losing the war, amidst the outcry of anti-war movements requesting…...
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Of the three movies, the Green Berets lacks realism and is the most historically inaccurate. In an attempt to win over the hearts and minds of the American public, in support of war, it makes blatant use of propaganda, coming off as enflaming and arrogant. This results in a glamorization of the war where the Vietnamese are dehumanized in an effort to portray America as the hero. In contrast, Saving Private Ryan and Black Hawk Down are keen on giving us a realistic impression of what it feels like to be in the middle of a war. Spielberg's movie did the best in terms of creating memorable scenes for the viewer, the battle on the bridge and the Omaha sequence, which are emphasized by the timelessness of the visual effects in the film. Moving cameras create exhilarating scenes; hand held cameras use jerky movements, achieving a high level of realism. The attention to gory detail is also unmatched as seen by the splashes of water and blood onto the lenses in the middle of the battle. Its historical accuracy is also on point. Black Hawk Down, unlike the other two, is deemed racist - as evidenced by forces referring to Somalis as 'Skinnies'. Unlike Wayne's film, which is a good representation of the book, Scott loses some important aspects in the transition from book to film. America's vision of the world and the high regard for U.S. Forces is what made the situation difficult, not a failed mission. Compared to Saving Private Ryan, however, the color and lighting is not to perfection and does not bring out the crisp atmosphere of Mogadishu. The movie is successful in giving us the experience of what being in a battlefield is like.
Conclusion
After a comparison of the three movies, Black Hawk Down is in a league of its own. Mark Bowden conducted extensive research when writing the book and was part of the film production, which makes the film an accurate representation of the events that took place from 3-4 October 1993 and at the same time honors the memories of the comrades. The confidence and dedication of the soldiers, the frustrated leaders and emotions on the field are also captured accurately. The actors fit well into their roles. The visuals and camerawork are amazing. In my opinion, Black Hawk Down comes through as being the best in eliciting sympathy and creating a realistic impression of a historical event.
Film Technique of 'Saving Private Ryan'
Saving Private Ryan by Steven Spielberg opens with a sequence that, to some degree, complies with "war drama" conventions. ut the movie also possesses innovative elements, challenging the characteristic heroic notion of war. The director employs micro techniques like handheld camera use as well as other techniques that correspond to the documentary genre (e.g., on-location filming) for creating an intense feeling (realistic), making the war appear awfully shocking; the conveyance is a negative representation of war (Andrews).
Amplified diegetic sounds communicate the immensely ghastly reality of the D-day clash. Loud crashing waves reflect soldiers' vulnerable position as they face the brutal and violent nature of war. Loud marching-beats help portray war as an unnatural occurrence in society, as it indicates the natural order of things has suffered from Nazi indoctrination, making of a dominating and regimented man, rather than as a free and peaceful being. Hence,…...
Therefore, while the film depicts one of the most important elements of the war, it also symbolizes the personalities and strength of the men who fought in the war, and so, it is the epitome of a war film. It recognizes the individual and group effort that led to victory, and shows that even the most average men can be carried to greatness by the situation and necessity.
The film also recognizes the difficulties of war, and the seemingly senseless ways people kill each other in war. All of the men who died in this film, both German and American, died to save one man, who did not want to leave his unit. "Saving Private Ryan" is a graphic film, but it only shows a few of the many horrors of war. Watching it, the viewer gets an excellent idea of what the fighting forces endured during World War II....
This section has incredible sound editing with the camera bobbing up and down out of the water and the sound going from muffled to vibrant. Spielberg then gets to the beach and goes back and forth between individual shots of one or two men, and then wider shots of the full scope of the battle. This gives the view the sense of the personal and the large-scale event. Hanks' character finally gets to shelter on the beach and the sound goes quiet as he is shell shocked; this technique of low sound and slow motion creates the feeling of disorientation for the audience. Moving up the beach, the camera is hand-held so the shots are tight and shaky with the people cut off at the sides of the frame. This technique makes the action seem more intimate and gives a real sense of what the action was like on…...
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References
Entertainment Weekly, EW.com. (21 January, 1994). Making History. Retrieved from:
Representations of War in the Longest Day and Saving Private Ryan
Hollywood's depictions and interpretations of the events that transpired on D-Day have long captured the attention of audiences worldwide. Though Hollywood depictions of the events that occurred prior, during, and after the invasion of Normandy may vary, they still aim to convey a similar message, one that assures the evil forces in the world will be overthrown and the world will be a much safer place. The Longest Day and Saving Private Ryan aim to present the events that lead up to the invasion of Normandy on D-Day in an artistic and creative fashion while attempting to maintain an air of realism. The approaches taken to depict the invasion of Normandy in The Longest Day and Saving Private Ryan are a positive contribution to the combat film genre. Though creative licenses were taken in each film, the manner in…...
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Bibliography
Beevor, Anthony. D-Day: The Battle for Normandy. New York: Viking Penguin, 2009.
Churchill, Ron. "Saving Private Ryan" a real life drama." UB Reporter 30, no. 2 (September
Tim O' rien, Wilfred Owen & "Saving Private Ryan"
The theme of disillusionment in war as reflected in the works of Tim O'rien, Wilfred Owen, and the film "Saving Private Ryan"
More than being a mirror of everyday life, literature has also been a venue for expressing messages that are political in nature. This was evident in literary works that address humanity's experiences in different world wars soon after the 20th century had emerged. With the declaration of the first, then eventually the second, world wars, human, particularly American, society had also been involved in the Cold War. This long history of wars fought by the Americans may have shown the patriotism and courage of its people, but praise and glorification of the war was given in the midst of numerous criticisms from the civil society. Criticisms against war efforts were expressed by the civil society because they were the ones who…...
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Bibliography
O'Brien, T. (1990). The Things They Carried. NY: Broadway Books.
soldiers who fought in World War II and Vietnam. The writer illustrates many of the differences as well as similarities in the two war soldiers and uses movies and book sot underscore the point. There were four sources used to complete this paper.
The life of soldiers during times of combat has often been compared. It seems that many people believe all experiences of war are identical and if a soldier is in one war, then his experiences were identical to the experiences of a soldier in a different war. At first glance there is some merit to this mind set. Many experiences are the same without regard to the war in question. Soldiers who have to kill, and those who go through boot camp have similar training. While there are many similarities in the soldiers of war and their experiences there are also many differences. These differences are founded…...
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References
O'Brien, Tim (1999). If I Die in a Combat Zone: Box Me Up and Ship Me Home
Cornlius Ryan, one of the finest writers of the history of World War II, was born in Dublin in 192. He worked as a correspondent from 1941 to 1945 and covered stories of the battles in Europe for Reuters and the London Daily Telegraph and in the final months of the Pacific campaign.
The first book written, published in 1959, was The Longest Day, that sold four million copies in twenty -seven editions and later in 1962 a film was made on it. However, it is said that The Longest Day was originally published in 1959 and since then it ahs reprinted several times.
Furthermore, another book was published in 1966 The Last Battle, while in 1974, he finished his third book A Bridge Too Far, though at the same time he was undergoing treatment for cancer that killed him in 1976.
Moreover, he was the author was a native of Ireland…...
Old Breed
In real war, soldiers have been ripped from their families, surviving, sometimes barely, in foreign surroundings. The author of With the Old Breed repeatedly states he "just wanted to survive," (p. 186), which underscores the fact that cinematic versions of war often overplay the elements of honor and pride and downplay the more real, mundane, everyday feelings and experiences. In fact, Sledge notes that he did not want to be "burdened with responsibility" of being a commanding officer. It was better to be a mortarman, because then just surviving would be a victory. Therefore, the "real war" was the reality on the ground, and according to E.B. Sledge, it was "terribly depressing," (p. 180). This paper will demonstrate that the "real war" is to be found in the often mundane and "depressing" experiences of its soldiers, and will also discuss the counterpoint of idealized heroism.
eal war is a multisensory…...
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References
Sledge, E.B. With the Old Breed. Random House, 2007.
Spielberg, S. Saving Private Ryan. Feature Film, 1998.
For Private Witt, the idea is found in another world. For Sgt. Welsh, no idea exists -- and he tries to get Private Witt to see as much.
Yet, Malick's point is that such a world does exist. In fact, he begins the film with the prayerful chants of the islanders, and rolls credits to the same chant. At one point, one of the soldiers (Dale) sits in the pouring rain, clinging to himself before hurling his collection of Japanese molars away. Malick plays the hauntingly beautiful score by Charles Ives, "The Unanswered Question," to underscore the sense of spiritual desolation in Dale's horrific hobby.
The acting in the film is another point of interest. Malick's characters are not so much scripted as they are caught on film: each actor essentially is playing himself. Jim Caviezel is Private Witt. Sean Penn is Sgt. Welsh. What Malick undertook to do with the…...
The 101st Division has also supported humanitarian relief efforts in Rwanda and Somalia, and have been deployed as peacekeepers to Haiti and Bosnia (101st).
As part of the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Operation Iraqi Freedom, the Screaming Eagles were deployed once again to Iraq (101st). "The division was in V Corps, providing support to the 3rd Infantry Division by clearing Iraqi strong-points which that division had bypassed" (101st). Using the city of Mosul as their primary base of operations, they then went on to become part of the occupation forces in Iraq before being withdrawn in 2004 for rest and refit (101st). The existing infantry brigades, artillery brigade, and aviation brigades were transformed as part of the Army's modular transformation, with the addition of re-activating a new 4th Brigade Combat Team, called Currahee, and its subordinate units to form a 6-7 major units division, one of the Army's largest (101st).
life of a World War II veteran. Specifically it will contain the biography of Paratrooper Francis L. Sampson during World War II. Father Francis L. Sampson was an ordained Catholic priest, a paratrooper, an Army chaplain, and rose through the ranks to become a Major General during his Army service. During World War II, he served as a paratrooper, was taken prisoner by the Germans, and became the eventual inspiration for a blockbuster movie.
Francis L. Sampson was born in Cherokee, Iowa on February 29, 1919. He graduated from Notre Dame University in 1937, and entered St. Paul's Seminary located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where he studied to be a Catholic priest. He was ordained as a priest in 1941, and worked as a priest briefly until 1942, when he enlisted in the U.S. Army as a chaplain. By 1943 he had completed Army chaplain school and joined the 501st…...
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References
"The Greatest War Film Ever." The Mirror (London, England) 25 July 1998: 26.
Hourihan, William J. "A Paratrooper Chaplain." USArmy.mil. 1997. 20 April 2005.
Face-off, 1997 -- John Travolta and Nicholas Cage helped create Woo's first real Hollywood blockbuster on the third try.
Mission Impossible 2, 2000 -- Tom Cruise. Pure, unadulterated action and thrills in true Woo style.
Windtalkers, 2002 -- discussed earlier. Critically excellent. Not a big box-office hit.
Red Cliff, 2009 -- his first movie back in Hong Kong after a long stay in Hollywood. Critically, perhaps his best effort ever (Yahoo).
Impact on Asian Cinema
To say that John Woo has had massive influence on Asian filmmaking would be appropriate. His thought-provoking style of making action films with a lot of blood, and yet containing them in a movie that projects humanity, chivalry, and sensitivity was unknown.
He brought dramatic, yet "poetic" action to action films and moral expression to filmmaking in Asia. The meticulous and disciplined narrative style of a Woo movie set a tone for those who…...
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Bibliography
Ebiri, B. "John Woo on Red Cliff, on Returning to Asia, and Why He's Not a Hustler." 20 November 2009. Nymag.com. 14 December 2009 .
hkfilm.net. "John Woo and the Art of the Action Movie." n.d. hkfilm.net. 14 December 2009 .
msn.com. "John Woo: Biography." 2009. msn.com. 14 December 2009 .
reporters, Tribune. "John Woo." 2009. Chicago Tribune. 14 December 2009 .
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