Movie Minx

Starring: Tom Hanks, Matt Damon
Directed by: Steven Spielberg

Plot: Poor Mrs Ryan has lost a few sons in WW2 so a bunch of soldiers are sent into dangerous French territory to bring back her final surviving son, Private Ryan (Matt Damon).

But is it any good?

Well yes, and the first 20 minutes or so of Saving Private Ryan, when the US troops land on the beaches of Normandy get their heads blown off, will have you about ready to crap your pants. It’s arguably one of the most stunning scenes in film history. The thud of bullets, panicked rush of soldiers onto the shore, shaky hand-held camera, pools of blood and bodies forming on the sand… well, filmmaking doesn’t get more realistic or riveting than this. It might give some of us the slightest hint of what being in a war is like. Maybe.

Unfortunately, the film’s plot thereafter is hugely annoying. I don’t mean to sound unsympathetic to Mrs Ryan, who lost sons in the war. But it was a war! Were other units sent into enemy fire to bring home young boys so their mothers could stop worrying? (I read with horror that this was based on something that actually happened, so can’t blame Hollywood.) And although I loved The Bourne Identity and Supremacy, I hate Matt Damon’s character in this film. He’s whiny and annoying and doesn’t deserve all the effort and lives risked on his behalf.

So is it the greatest war movie ever made? No, in my opinion, but the opening scene alone makes it a strong contender. Many war veterans apparently broke down when watching that scene. Other than that, its refusal to glorify war and study it from the perspectives of ordinary men trying to survive make SPR a solid piece of cinema. But take out the beach scene and I doubt it would be in this Top 100 list.

My vote: 10/10 (first 20 minutes) and 6/10 (rest of the movie)
IMDb’s rating: 8.4/10

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