Sticking to his guns by refusing to carry them...

Rating: 9/10 (5 February 2017)

Patton said that no "bastard" ever won a war by dying for his country but by making the other poor, dumb bastard die. Well, that wraps it quite well, war is all about death, but to admit it is also to ignore that figures like Desmond Doss existed, and bringing his extraordinary story to the big screen is enough a reason to praise Mel Gibson.
And who would have thought that the 2017 line-up of Oscar-nominated directors would feature him? Oscar pundits expected many first-time nominees such as Chazelle, Jenkins, or Villeneneuve but if there ever was a spot to be occupied by a veteran, it belonged to either Scorsese or Eastwood. I'm glad Hollywood is a more forgiving place than we believed and that the members can see talent when it hit them in the face, to the point of rehabilitating "Mad Mel".
Because, there is no doubt that when you finish "Hacksaw Ridge", you know there's no director who depicts heart-pounding battle sequences and heart-breaking characters like he does. This is the stuff the Academy can't ignore because it has a superb (true) story, it is well acted and directed and has this 'heart' element that can wow any audience. Comparisons with "Saving Private Ryan" are inevitable, but I hold this film in higher consideration because Gibson already proved his talent when it came to handle battle sequences and violence in "Braveheart", three years before Spielberg.
But there is a more profound reason to admire "Hacksaw Ridge", while it portrays soldiers as heroes, it doesn't demonize the Japanese soldiers either, and we don't cheer at their demise. The movie is a humanistic masterpiece that transcends skin considerations, the fact that Doss also saves Japanese soldiers and that some can be seen committing acts of Bushido, prove that this is not a film about 'winning a war', but about not letting war defeat our humanity. Unfortunately, this aspect was overlooked, as marked by the seal of Gibson's infamy. Well, not only this is one hell of a film, but it is even better because you can tell it's from Gibson.
Desmond Doss was the conscience objector who saved more than seventy lives in one of Okinawa's bloodiest slaughters without ever carrying a rifle, which makes him a purely Gibsonian, so to speak, character, as a vulnerable man caught in existential conflicts but moving forward nonetheless, finding strength in a totally unshakable Christian faith. Maybe that's the sensitive nerve the movie hits, especially from a director whose Christianity was spoiled by a fallacious association with anti-Semitism. But the film isn't about Christian faith, but plain faith, and one driven by positive values. After all, even a non-religious person can admit that "Thou Shall Not Kill" is universally humanistic.
Desmond Doss belongs to that category of inspirational characters like Sir Thomas More or Frank Serpico; men who (maybe naively) believed in simple principles but never sold their soul out for the whole world, not even the call of duty. Doss refuses to carry a rifle, but not to go to the battle, as a medic, he won't kill people but save them. Andrew Garfield plays a character whose sweetness, sensibility and optimism contrast with the world he lives in, and he sort of gives you back a faith in humanity, severely undermined by this depressing year, and it tells you something about Gibson, he might seem to insist on violence, but it is always to emphasize the courage of the peaceful side.
Like War, "Hacksaw Ridge" reveals both the worst and the best of humanity. This is no nihilistic, apocalyptic movie, the horror in the war scenes is brutal and gory as you might expect and they certainly earned Gibson his directing nod, but overall, the film is about this humble, modest, slender, thin man who wasn't focused on the killing, but on the healing role he could play in the midst of this barbarity. Soldiers' goal is 'death to the enemy' but when they leave the battleground and there's no one to kill anymore, saving lives become the only possible option.
And this is the revelation, when Doss meets his destiny and transcends his condition, praying God, for nothing more than 'saving one more life', a powerful moment that echoes the 'I could have saved more' in "Schindler's List". It is quite an extraordinary achievement when the war scenes not only provide the most spectacular moments of the film, but also add to the depth of the characters, and the perception of Doss makes a 180° turn, as he goes from a coward to a living saint. The climax of the film is such a moving and emotional sequence that it redeems all the little flaws.
I wasn't that impressed by the beginning which was pretty sentimental, but I remember I had similar feelings with the first act of Oliver Stone's "Born on the Fourth of July". Still, the back story provided some interesting hints on Doss' pacifist nature, including the personality of Hugo Weaving as his father, a bitter and alcoholic Great War veteran who sealed Doss' defiance toward guns and Teresa Palmer, his understanding fiancée. And when the boot camp sequence kicks off, the film is enriched by the performances of Vince Vaughn as the sergeant, Luke Bracey and Sam Worthington, and then, the final act justifies why the film needed this seemingly conventional start.
Indeed, since when is conventionality a flaw when it comes to portray unconventional characters? Doss is perhaps one of the best revelations of 2016, if everyone respects the WW2 veterans for their courage, they'll admire Doss who made world a better place at a worst possible time. "Hacksaw Ridge" is the testament to a man's extraordinary moral integrity and the miracle he accomplished ... and a director's unique talent, finally rehabilitated. Maybe an even more impressive miracle.