Phenomenal Movie With Brilliant Performances and Incredible Directing

Rating: 9/10 (11 November 2016)

This is a phenomenal movie. Say what you will about Mel Gibson as a person, but he is a magnificent director. He navigates this complex and difficult story with ease, knowing the perfect ratio of character-driven moments to war-filled madness. The different aesthetic choices he made, in terms of the tone of the film and his approach to the different aspects of the movie, continue to prove his ability as a director. I'll get more into the war scenes later, but the way he chooses to showcase these sequences is masterful. Sure, we get tons of gory and bloody violence, but never does it feel glorified or for entertainment. It is purely to show the horrors of war and the madness that ensues on the battlefield, and Gibson walked that line perfectly. He also does fantastic things with the character of Desmond Doss, and how he uses other people's reactions to him to tell Desmond's story for him. Gibson easily could have had Desmond give us long, exposition-filled speeches about why he chooses not to kill, and we do get a couple of those, but only when they are absolutely necessary. Instead, Gibson utilizes supporting characters and the environment to paint the picture of why Desmond won't kill. It's a perfect example of show not tell, and I think it ultimately shows Gibson's mastery as a director...