Great movie with one major flaw - Steven Spielberg

Rating: 8/10 (13 September 1999)

When will Steven Spielberg learn to trust his own talent as a filmmaker? Why has he managed to ruin the endings of his two best films? The "stones on the grave" scene at the end of Schindler's List and the "Ryan as old man" scene at the beginning AND end of Saving Private Ryan were gratuitous and totally unecessary. It's like he said, "OK. I've made a three hour movie showing in explicit detail how awful racial hatred and/or was is. But, just in case there's one idiot in that theatre that has missed the point, I'll end it with a sappy ending to make sure everybody's crying." This is the Penny Marshall influence on Spielberg's directing.
Without the unecessary scenes, Schindler's List and Saving Private Ryan may both have merited 10's in my book. With the scenes, they are a 9 and an 8, respectively. Steven, bubby, just tell your story. Leave the moralizing and tear-jerking to lesser filmmakers. Give the audience a little credit.