A very unique war story

Rating: 7/10 (29 March 2018)

Based on a true story: Desmond Doss (played by Andrew Garfield) was an American pacifist who served as an unarmed medic on the battlefields during World War II. The film tells of his struggle to serve as he wanted to and his very unusual status as a war hero.
Doss's story as a conscientious objector is very unusual. In most cases, this situation was used to avoid military service entirely. In Doss' case, he truly wanted to serve but without holding or using a weapon. The uniqueness of this story goes further in the rare situation of a main character being ostracized due to faith (Doss was a Seventh-day Adventist) and principle. The story is further enhanced in its exploration of World War I veterans (here displayed by Desmond's father) who remain bitter from their war experiences and can't stand the idea of their sons going through the same hell.
Garfield does a fine job in displaying the naïveté and innocence of a rural Virginia boy with ideals that seem hopeless at first but who truly knows better by the end. Other stand-out performances include those of Hugo Weaving as Desmond's troubled father and Vince Vaughan as an over-the-top drill sergeant who's rather funny with his insults.
The battle scenes in Okinawa, Japan are very well orchestrated by director Mel Gibson. But sadly, these scenes are so long and frequent that their horror can end up numbing the audience who are well aware of the accuracy of such a tragic part of history - not only for that war but those that followed and those happening now.
"Hacksaw Ridge" is a fine war film with a very different twist on the meaning of heroism.