Graphic, tense, real.

Rating: 10/10 (16 December 1999)

Saving Private Ryan (SPR) is a film like no other before it. For the first time ever the realism and gruesome detail of war is there for all who dare to face it. Starting on perhaps the most significant day in history, D-Day, it follows the story of Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) and his band of soldiers as they search for one James Ryan (Matt Damon), who has lost all three brothers and has been given a ticket home to be with his mother.
The soldiers sent to save Private Ryan question the motive of risking eight lives for one; a stranger, a faceless name for which few survive in trying to complete their mission to get Ryan home safely.
The footage is graphic. When the hatches on the landing boats open, bodies are literally torn apart by high calibre machine gun bullets. Booming explosions, agonizing screams, the whine of bullets richocheting. At the conclusion of the initial battle, all that remains is a sea of blood washing ashore. It is immersive and I for one was left speechless and literally shaking.
Some have criticised the acting, in particular the relative 'unknowns' in the supporting cast, but I believe such criticisms are harsh. The quality of the supporting cast, with Tom Sizemore and Ed Burns, plus a cameo by Ted Danson combined to make the acting quite good. Tom Hanks, as always, was Oscar-worthy, portraying the huge burden of an ordinary English teacher leading men into battle, knowing many men under his command will not be going home.
SPR is definitely the best 'war' film, and one of the best films period. The very least you should get out of Saving Private Ryan is an appreciation of war and what those men experienced in trying to protect the world's freedom. Lest We Forget.