"Lord, please help me get one more."

Rating: 10/10 (5 November 2016)

"It was a scene straight out of hell. There is no other way to describe it." This quote from Higa Tomiko, a survivor of the Battle of Okinawa when she was seven years old, may be the best description one can take away from "Hacksaw Ridge", the most recent World War II film directed by Mel Gibson in a stunning return to prominence among his Hollywood peers. It tells the story of Private Desmond Doss, a conscientious objector who refused to handle a weapon, but felt it was his moral duty to serve his country in a time of war when many of his friends and neighbors opted to do the same. It's a story of perseverance, courage and sheer fortitude, and one bound to affect even the most hardened viewer.
In terms of battle imagery, this is probably the most relentless, bloody and vicious film yet, even more so than "Saving Private Ryan" or "Band of Brothers". The absolute carnage on display is not for the faint of heart, and there are more than one scene that come out of nowhere to jar the viewer upright in your seat. Director Gibson even utilizes the technique in a civilian scene when Desmond Doss and his brother wind up fighting each other as kids, and Desmond uses a brick to lay out his sibling in a frightening scene, one that establishes Doss's very first insights about the morality of taking a person's life.
I thought Andrew Garfield's portrayal of Desmond Doss was superb during the battle segment which dominated the latter part of the picture. Some of the boot camp scenes came across as somewhat unrealistic to me in as much as Doss seemed to defy his superiors with a smile on his face and sometimes without recrimination, although he did suffer the abuse of his fellow soldiers who thought he was a coward. Another element that seemed to defy logic was how the entire company of men from training wound up in Okinawa together, including the officers from boot camp. Not having been in the military, I don't know how that works, but it didn't seem that likely to me.
Generally, I have a problem with war films that introduce a romantic element, however Desmond's relationship with future wife Dorothy Schutte (Teresa Palmer) is handled with careful restraint. The interruption of Desmond's father (Hugo Weaving) at the military court martial proceedings was another one of those elements that seemed to defy credibility, so that's one I'll have to research.
Because of the film's central focus on Desmond Doss and his heroic actions at Hacksaw Ridge, one might be tempted to believe that this was the only battle he participated in. In fact, Doss also served in the Pacific Theater in the battle campaigns of Guam and Leyte Gulf, earning an entire host of citations for his bravery, including the Medal of Honor. Totally unexpected, but a very welcome conclusion to the picture had clips of the real life Desmond Doss speaking to his experience during the war prior to his death in 2006. Stills of the young Doss bear a remarkable likeness to the actor who portrayed him, thereby adding a further sense of realism to the story in retrospect. Over all, the movie is a remarkable tribute to a man who held a deep conviction and commitment to a higher power while stating "I figure I'll be savin' people, not killin'."