"Hacksaw Ridge" Is A Return To Form From Mel Gibson, Showcasing The Bloodshed Of War

Rating: 9/10 (8 March 2017)

"Hacksaw Ridge" is directed by Mel Gibson and stars Andrew Garfield as Desmond Doss, an American Army solider in World War II who, for various reasons, believed that though the war was justified he could not kill anyone and saved 75 men behind enemy lines.
Mel Gibson returns to the director's chair for this film, and say what you want about him but he makes some damn good films. I was really excited for Hacksaw Ridge. Not only had I heard good things about it, but it won a couple of Oscars and Mel Gibson was directing. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see this one in the theaters but I wish I did.
"Hacksaw Ridge" is a return to form for Mel Gibson, showcasing the life of Desmond Doss and providing a glimpse of the horrors and bloodshed of war.
What really worked in this movie was the acting. I wasn't a huge fan of Garfield as Spider-Man but this guy proved me wrong. He did a very good job as Desmond Doss, portraying him in a way where I think only he could pull this off. Vince Vaughn surprisingly doesn't play his usual Vince Vaughn self. He is very effective as an army sergeant and has some good timing with his comedic lines.
When the battle happens, it's brutal and that's ways been something that Gibson has done very well with. We know that WWII was not pleasant, and this battle certainly wasn't pleasant. The thing I like about it is that it doesn't give you time to digest it all. It throws you into the battle, right in the heat of things, and you aren't able to catch your breath. From here on out the film is intense. The battle of Hacksaw Ridge has to be one of the most intense battles in cinematic history.
One flaw I was the pacing. It took half the movie to get to what we really wanted to see. I understand you are setting up backstory and characters, but there had to be more to the battle. The battle just kind of ends on a low note. It felt strange. It was almost like there was a complete section of the film of that was cut out.
Overall, very solid and I am going to give "Hacksaw Ridge" an 8.9/10