Wow! Lots to say.....

Rating: 10/10 (29 December 1998)

I may be going against the grain here, but, if you haven't seen it yet then let me give you some advice.... don't!
It is a really well made movie, the storyline, the actors, the effects, the music, all are excellent... the highest quality... if this movie doesn't win a clutch of Oscars then there is something seriously wrong with Hollywood.
So after all of this why would I recommend NOT going to see it? Because I think that this movie is the most psychologically disturbing and shocking movie I have ever seen in my life on this planet. I read the revues about the realism of the war scenes and thought what the hell it can't be any worse than "Platoon" or "Full Metal Jacket", I'll give it a try... bad lapse of judgement.
The movie is three hours long, and after maybe the first ten minutes I wanted to leave... but the thought was that sooner or later this assault on the senses must let-up... you wait and you wait and you wait, and it doesn't! The realism, the emotions, the atmosphere of war, are all there for the three full hours. Even in the quiet, I can't use the word peaceful, moments of the movie there are still the oppressive feelings of the expectation that this certainly can not last... and it doesn't. These moments are played to the best effects of the greatest suspense movies.
My friend and I left the cinema after the final credits, we couldn't say anything....
I don't know whether to think of Mr. Spielberg as the greatest movie maker on the face of this planet... or the most irresponsible manufacturer of shock horror movies ever... but this is really not the correct way to put it because, shocking it was without a shadow of a doubt, but, horror it most definitely was not... If you watched all of the news, or documentaries, that were ever made about the scenes and effects of war it would not be one percent of the preparation required to watch this movie.
Anyone who sees this movie can not fail to be affected by it... consequently I tend to ere on the side of Mr Spielberg being a little irresponsible. War is a fact of human life, we can never escape some peoples urge to kill each other... but why show it so graphically on the large screen? At some point in the future, although I hope it never happens, some of our offspring will have to go-out and fight a war for us... why do we have to be shown what they will face?
As you can see... I was just a tad affected by this film. But what can I say, Mr Spielberg has outdone Mr Cameron yet again... although my feeling is that this movie will not get the recognition of "Titanic" for three reasons: there is no love story, there is no Di-caprio or Winslet... and America does not come out of this movie with the flag of rationality and reason flying high... more like at half mast with no breeze...