Gibson delivers

Rating: 9/10 (9 November 2016)

I've always found Mel Gibson a reliable actor/director and this film just furthers my opinion of him. I'm not a fan of war movies. I think they're good, but except for some truly unique and unconventional war films, I don't regard them too highly. This true story film peaked my interests when I first saw the trailer for it and found out Gibson was directing it. I am glad to say that Gibson hasn't lost his touch for directing brilliant films since his last endeavor ten years ago with the absolutely awesome film, Apocalypto.
Hacksaw Ridge starts out with setting up characters and doesn't exactly throw you into the action, but gives you a brief glimpse of what is to come. We are introduced to Desmond Doss, played by Andrew Garfield, a man who's actions and thoughts have been affected by his family and God. I didn't think Andrew Garfield could lead a film like this but I have to say, he did really well, much better than expected, and I think he really captured the essence and character of the real life Desmond Doss. We're given his background, the major events that influenced him, his love life and the relationship he has with his family. The other most notable performance within this setup act of the film came from Hugo Weaving, who gave quite the performance of a veteran soldier, psychologically damaged and barely able to cope with normal life. It's quite emotional and is definitely a performance that stands out. Everyone really played their roles well, bringing the characters to life - I had no problems with the performances as they all felt authentic.
Doss eventually joins the army where his beliefs conflict with the teachings of the army, and obviously there are problems. Vince Vaughn was quite the entertaining character to watch, filling the role of a typical loud-mouthed, offensive Sergeant - and he really seemed to be enjoying the role which is great to see. We're introduced to the other members of the squad, each with their unique quirks and characteristics just like most other war films. As before, everyone acts their part well and performances are great.
Now we get to the war. This is a really vibrant film, filled with really bold splashes of colour, quite different to the expected cold steel filter you'd expect to see from a WW2 film. It really helps make the film visually stunning, especially with the action scenes. The lead-up to the actual battle is great. You see these fresh soldiers entering the battlefield with courage and arrogance, and it slowly dies as they see the trucks of dead bodies and blank looks of soldiers that had survived previous battles. It really helps show the trauma these men went through fighting the relentless and skilled Japanese army. The climb up the cliff face helps further build atmosphere and when finally on the battlefield, the tension is almost unbearable. Then the battle kicks off and boy does it kick off. This is where I say something controversial. The war scenes in this film, are equal to, if not better than the opening 20 minutes of Saving Private Ryan. It is loud, overwhelming, absolutely brutal (this is a Gibson film we're talking about), expertly shot and visually stunning. There are some shots in these battles that absolutely stunned me because of how well done they were. Everything from filming shootouts to brutal fist fights was expertly done, with such a fine attention to detail shown within each shot - it really hearkens back to the skill Gibson showed when he shot the huge battle scenes in Braveheart. It also shows how much of a hero Desmond Doss is, the situations he put himself in without a weapon to drag men off the battlefield - which adds another level of gore due to a lot of shots with legless or arm-less soldiers.
The film really portrays Doss as the hero he was, really showing his courage and bravery, driven by faith to do what he did. It's actually quite unbelievable, but when researched, is actually quite accurate to actual events - there's just a rearrangement of events and exclusion of others to create a more concise and focused war film about what I may think to be the greatest war hero the US army has ever had. This is undeniably a great story and I'm surprised it took this long for it to be picked up and made into a film. I'm glad that it was Gibson that did it because the man has a natural talent for showing mankind at its worst and its best at the same time.
Now, here's my one major gripe with the movie. It gets a little too preachy at times. By that, I mean you're gonna hear a lot about God in this movie. A lot. It makes sense due to the context of the time and the characters, but it feels a little forced at points in dialogue. Hearing the real life Doss at the end of the film proves he's very religious but it can feel a little overdone at points.
Overall, in a year of nothing, this is a brilliant film to hopefully start out a season of other great films. It's visually stunning, well performed and tells a great, unique, war story. Gibson has proved himself again and I look forward to his future projects. Check this out and give it the love it deserves.
8.5/10