Great action, but where's the movie?

Rating: 7/10 (3 December 1998)

I was 100% gripped by this movie all the way through. Total action, great and disturbing scenes of violence on a level of realism never before reached. This movie DID entertain me and was shocking. But as an actual movie it does fall down.
For a start, nothing actually happens plot-wise. The confrontation between Hanks and Private Ryan when they finally meet is pure Hollywood rubbish. This movies tries to be realistic but the illusion goes at parts like that. On the same subject, people get mown down left, right and centre...yet our core heroes have bullets bouncing around their feet and seem immune.
However these flaws are no less than you'd find in any other movie so I think it is a victim of its own success. Because the action and gore is so realistic and gripping you expect too much from the rest of the movie.
One other thing in its favour was that it wasn't *too* over-the-top with American schmaltz...however it was there a tad.
God bless America!