Plot: What’s it about?
Through all the horrors of World War II, nothing compared to losing loved ones. Saving Private Ryan tells us the story of just that. The story of one soldier; Private James Ryan (Matt Damon) who, during the course of the war, has lost his three other brothers. A platoon, led by Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks), is sent into the depths of France to retrieve private Ryan and get him back to what’s left of his family safely. In a nutshell, that’s the summary of this movie. However, Stephen Spielberg movies are very rarely what they appear to be. They are so much more involved and make you look at things in a different light. While the sheer brutalitly of the graphic violence is sure to stun (and perhaps scare) some viewers, it’s not to be missed. Because for all it’s brutal bluntness, it’s an epoch war movie that really makes you think.
It’s not really known weather or not Spielberg was trying to comment on war as a whole (he certainly did that in “Schindler’s List”), or man’s ability to look past the big picture and look out for his fellow man…but both of these issues are tackled in very a very unique manner.
After all the platoon has been through, they consider the mission to be somewhat meaningless and somewhat of a joke, but soon find that war is war even if you’re in a peaceful village in the middle of France. After losing a few men to German snipers and such , they become bound and determined to find Ryan. All along, their “hatred” for him grows, as they now sort of blame him (and the mission) for the deaths of their fallen comrades. There are obsticles along the way, but they finally find him (by sheer luck) and they believe that their mission is complete. Wrong.
Ryan is very gung-ho, and while saddened at the news of his brother’s fates, wants to stay and help defend the last bridge in France (it was a very important strategically). This leads to a showdown between the Germans and the troops trying to defend their bridge. Hopelessly outnumbered and with all odds against them, the movie ends in what is sure to be one of the best war movies made.
A few other notes about “Saving Private Ryan”…the whole cast was sent to England to undergo basic training, all except Matt Damon (this was to get the actors to naturally “dislike” him), and all wanted to quit and go home after three days of this. All except Tom Hanks, who came out and gave the guys a pep talk, after which no one said a word and they finished their training without a hitch. Interesting…
Bottom line, Saving Private Ryan is a movie that you really should see. Not only is it well-made, has great acting and is superbly directed…but the subject matter ultimately has a very positive message and reminds us of how much we take our freedom for granted.
Video: How does it look?
The dual-layered 16:9 picture looks postively astounding! This was shot with the same effect as “Three Kings”, a kind of washed out look. Obbiously on purpose, to set the tone and mood for the picture. Still, every grain of sand is visible, colors are bright and the picture is crystal-clear.
Audio: How does it sound?
As if the Dolby Digital version wasn’t good enough, the DTS version sounds even better. I played a lot of the key sequences and compared and contrasted them with the Dolby Digital version. First, the opening scene: While the Dolby Digital version packs more of a “whallop”, the DTS does just the same thing. The one example would be the bullets, hitting the helmets of the soldiers. In the Dolby Digital version you can hear a few, but in this version you literally are “surrounded” with the sounds of war, this makes the whole experience all the better. I also compared the ending scene on the bridge. Right about when Hanks says “Angels on our shoulders…” is when the planes come in and start bombing. The initial effect is staggering, but where the effect takes it to a newer level is when the rear surrounds kick in. There’s almost a “thoomp” when they pass through the rear speakers. This would sound all the more powerful if you had a sub hooked up independently to your rear speakers (requires a lot of modification, but I hear it’s worth it). Overall, the DTS version sounds rich and very deep, a far cry from it’s “perfect” Dolby Digital counterpart.
The disc also contains a Dolby Surround track, just so you can see exactly how good the DTS sounds in compairson!
Supplements: What are the extras?
Production notes, cast bios, a trailer and couple of featurettes round out a great disc. A featurette is opened by Stephen Spielberg himself, where he discusses the importance of World War II and D-Day itself (very interesting) This is the only area that was lacking, but overall it was worth the price you pay. This is also a limited edition, so act fast!
