Incredible

Rating: 10/10 (1 October 1998)

Profoundly powerful. This film is just that. When you see this film you'll realise that Schindler's List was just a warm up exercise for Spielberg. Everything is just incredible. The acting is just one intense ensemble effort (Tom Hanks and Tom Sizemore are assured of Oscar nominations), the direction is stunning (the graining in the film, the lack of sickly sentimentality, an unbiased view of the Germans, the handheld photography, visceral but vital violence, the silent moments in which Tom Hanks blocks out all noise in the heat of battle etc.etc.etc.) There are countless reasons to see this film and they are all as important as each other. I saw this movie last week and I'm still lying awake thinking about it and what the real war heroes went through. True, I cried at Titanic but it pales into insignificance when compared to the sheer brilliance of this film and the emotional hell you experience whilst watching it. Guilt, horror, awe. Private Ryan will almost certainly clean up at the Oscars but this won't be enough. It should win every single award going and then some. Maybe then people will stop wasting their money on Godzillas and Armageddons and begin to make more movies like this.