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The Movie
I don't think anyone is going
to complain too much if I don't give an overly in-depth movie review of
Saving Private Ryan. The blockbuster motion picture, which
landed director Steven Spielberg has second Academy Award for Best Director,
opened in July of 1998 and almost immediately captured the public's attention
with its grisly, realistic presentation of the horrors of wartime. Gone was the
sanitized vision of battle we had seen countless times before in film after
film. The opening half-hour of Saving Private Ryan
told us exactly the type of film for which we
were in store. Bullets ripping through flesh, blood flowing in currents, limbs blown
off, lives snuffed out in split seconds, and wave after wave of young
men mowed down and butchered up as the events
of June 6, 1944 took place.
It's one of the most gripping
cinematic segments ever filmed: unbearable to watch, yet impossible to turn away
from. Furthermore, it raises the bar for everything in the film that succeeds
it, and for many it earmarks the biggest flaw in Saving Private Ryan.
The tale that it develops simply cannot compete with the spectacle and horror of
its opening salvo. The storming of the fortified beaches of Normandy is an
entropic nightmare, a vision of chaos and carnage in which Allied infantry
managed to not only maintain their sanity with the very real possibility of
being killed at a moment's notice, but also successfully break through enemy
lines and punch a major hole into Nazi-occupied France. The scene is as mammoth
as it is legendary, and in terms of sheer emotional potency and cinematic
prowess nothing else in Saving Private Ryan
can touch it.
That of course doesn't mean
that everything that follows after the 28-minute mark is exactly crap, does it?
The story of Captain Miller (Tom Hanks, in a beautifully mannered and subdued
performance) and his squad's trek behind enemy lines in order to locate Private
James Ryan (Matt Damon) is a heart-wrenching and compelling tale that succeeds
more as a result of its larger moments than its smaller ones. Each member of
Miller's squad has been accused of being little more than caricatures and ethnic
stereotypes: the tough-as-nails Sergeant Horvath (Tom Sizemore), the cynical and
smart-mouthed Irish Private Reiben (Edward Burns), the scared and green-gilled
Corporal Upham (Jeremy Davies), the tough-talking but soft-hearted Italian
Private Caparzo (Vin Diesel), the brash and sarcastic Jewish Private Mellish
(Adam Goldberg), the sensitive medic Private Wade (Giovanni Ribisi), and the
Bible verse-spoutin', Southern Private Jackson (Barry Pepper). I find that
Captain Miller and, to some degree, Corporal Upham register most strongly as
clearly defined and nuanced characters. The other characters are given very
little in terms of depth, but the actors portraying them do an excellent job in
endearing themselves to the viewer. I disagree with the assessment that they are
caricatures rather than characters; if the film took the time to develop each
soldier into fully fleshed-out three-dimensional characters, we'd end up with
Band of Brothers
,
and at slightly under three hours the filmmakers just
didn't have the time for that.
When I first came out of the
theater after a screening of Saving Private Ryan, I was convinced that
Spielberg had made an absolute masterpiece. After watching the film on DVD
nearly a year later, my enthusiasm was somewhat tempered but I still felt that
it was a great movie. Today, after seeing the film again for the first time in
years, I feel that Saving Private Ryan
is, if not an absolute masterpiece, an extremely powerful and moving
work that stands as one of the greatest war
films of this or any era.
The DVD
Video:
Saving Private Ryan
is presented in its original theatrical aspect ratio of
1.85:1, and has
been anamorphically enhanced for your widescreen-viewing enjoyment. Running an A-B comparison indicates to me
that this is the same, earlier transfer as the 1999 DVD
release. In and of itself, this is not a bad thing. There are
intentional aesthetic flourishes that give the entire transfer a grainy, overly-contrasted look, and
that delivery is beautifully rendered on this DVD. The movie often appears
almost bleached-out and colorless, with deep, rich blacks and a sharp, well-defined image.
There's a smudge of pixellation noise and some extremely minimal but noticeable edge-enhancement, but
overall this is a beautiful looking transfer.
Audio:
The audio is presented in
both French and English Dolby Digital 5.1 tracks. Sadly , the highly-acclaimed
DTS soundtrack from 1999 is not included on this disc. One wonders why,
given the highly-touted nature of this reissue, that one of the most celebrated
DVD soundtracks ever would not be included on this disc. Nonetheless, the Dolby
Digital mix does not disappoint. While not on the level of the DTS mix, the 5.1
experience here is simply outstanding (and is also apparently the same
soundtrack from the previous release.) The viewer is plunged into the heart of
battle from the get-go, with an aggressive, bombastic soundstage that earns its
stripes from frame one. There is serious expansion and depth to the field, with
magnificent image placement, directionality, and discrete
effects throughout. Surrounds are
used often and most efficaciously to generate a broad dispersion of the
audio, with booming LFE adding serious punch to the
mix's low end. Dialog levels seem warm, bright, and balanced, without clipping,
hiss, or distortion. As we've known for nearly five years, this is
an amazing soundtrack.
Extras:
Saving Private
Ryan comes with a host of Special Features, all contained on Disc Two.
First up is An Introduction to the Film (2:35), in which
director Steven Spielberg explains his earliest filmmaking experiences, which
were primarily comprised of World War II action films. His obsession with the
Second World War, as well as his father's service in the War as an Airman,
motivated him to explore this period and genre as a professional filmmaker. I
suppose we can forget 1941... most people have. Next up is
Looking Into the Past (4:41), in which Spielberg and
screenwriter Robert Rodat discuss the extensive research that went into the
creation of Saving Private Ryan, including the real-life stories of the
Niland and Sullivan brothers from which the story of the film heavily
draws.
Miller and His Platoon
(8:25) explores the relationship between Spielberg and Hanks, and how
their independent love of the material led to the development of Saving
Private Ryan. Both Hanks and Spielberg talk about each other (in rather
congratulatory terms) and discuss their mutual love and interest in the stories
revolving around World War II. It also features interview footage with other
cast members that made up Miller's platoon, including Ed Burns, Jeremy Davies,
Matt Damon, and Vin Diesel.
Boot Camp (7:38) looks
into how elements of realism were introduced into the film, courtesy of the
always-charismatic Ret. Captain Dale Dye (who also had a role in the film as a
War Department officer). Dye set up a boot camp for all of the main actors in
the film, in order to generate realistic sense of camaraderie and war-torn
wariness amongst the stars. All of the actors (including Hanks) took part in
this boot camp (save for Matt Damon; no diva antics here, he was kept apart in
order to generate actual resentment that translated well when the squad finally
met Private Ryan in the movie.)
Making Saving Private Ryan
(22:05) is the most substantial of all the featurettes included in this
DVD. Spielberg starts off the discussion with commentary about he didn't
want to create just another "War Is Hell" film, and the featurette
continues with a look at the creation of the film, from location
scouting to on-set direction to costuming.
Re-creating Omaha Beach (17:59) examines the
film's opening segment in detail, in which the filmmakers went out to recreate
with gritty realism the invasion of Normandy via the massive assault landing at
Omaha Beach. Historians, production designers, producers, and other cast/crew
members were interviewed for this segment, which is easily the most interesting
of all those included in this DVD.
Music and Sound
(16:00) heavily features legendary composer John Williams, in
which he discusses how the subject matter of the film influenced the creation of
the film's score, as well as how the numerous sound effects were researched and
created for the film. How does an empty cartridge sound when it pops out of an
M1 rifle? The sound effects crew had to find this out, as well as dozens of
other details. Finally,
Parting
Thoughts (3:44) wraps everything up nicely with some final reflections
on the project.
Final
Thoughts
Saving Private Ryan: D-Day 60th Anniversary
Commemorative Edition presents something of a dilemma to owners of the
earlier release. If you have the DTS disc, hang on to it: that soundtrack is not
included here. Also, the Into The Beach Special on the DD disc is also
not included on this disc. The transfer on this DVD is the same as the one
included on both previous editions. However, the 80-minutes of supplemental
material make this DVD a must-have for fans who yearn to discover more in-depth,
behind-the-scenes information about the movie. As it stands, I am going to give
this film a Highly Recommended
rating, especially for those who do not
have the earlier editions of the film. It's a great DVD set,
but without that incredible DTS track there is definitely something missing. (Please note: The acclaimed DTS track is included on the SPR disc in the World War II Collection DVD set, which also includes the documentaries Price For Peace and Shooting War. It's $50 retail, but you get two extra DVDs filled with documentaries and that awesome DTS soundtrack...) |
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