Grow Up!

Rating: Null/10 (27 April 2000)

For all those people from Great Britain blasting films such as `U-571' and `Saving Private Ryan,' I have two words for you-- GROW UP! "Saving Private Ryan" and "U-571" make no claim whatsoever to your comments that "America won the war single-handedly." Give me a break! "U-571" is clearly a fictional story based on an idea that was inspired by your countrymen's heroism in obtaining a real decoder. "U-571" is simply a "good yarn." As for "Saving Private Ryan," it is clearly an American Film that chose to look at ONE story among millions that all WWII veterans (American, British, French, German, Italian, Russian, Japanese, etc.) could share with us. In your opinion, should Steven Spielberg be REQUIRED to choose a story with a British framework when he chooses to make a war-film? Do you honestly think FOR EVEN A SECOND that by making this film, Spielberg intended to downplay all the pain, suffering, and sacrifice that Great Britain had to endure during this war? If you do, then you're a fool. And anybody (British or American) that walks into a film starring Hollywood's finest and expects complete historical accuracy needs to get their head examined. And while I'm on that thought, perhaps you should contact David Lean or Sir Richard Attenborough, and ask them if any artistic license was taken when making "Lawrence of Arabia" or "A Bridge Too Far," respectively.

Perhaps you should be complaining to the British film industry about their lack of WWII films that focus on your countrymen's stories. As far as I'm concerned, it's not Hollywood's responsibility to release films that tell the truth, whole truth, and nothing but the truth. In fact, it's not even the British film industry's responsibility to do so. If you want historical accuracy, READ A BOOK OR WATCH A DOCUMENTARY! DUH!