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Various | A Discussion of Saving Private Ryan Various contributors H-PCAACA with H-NET An Internet Discussion of Saving Private Ryan Editor's Note: The movie Saving Private Ryan," directed by Steven Speilberg, is drawing rave reviews from film critics, WW II veterans, and audiences nationwide. Film & History, in conjunction with the Popular Culture/ American Culture Discussion Lists (H-PCAACA with H-NET), has re-published some thoughtful postings concerning the movie, intended to stimulate debate among academics, students, veterans, and movie fans as to the impact of Steven Speilberg's recent film. To see the original postings, call up the Film & History web site. Seeking Private Ryan-and the experience ofwar. 72 I Film & History Regular Feature | Film Reviews Richard Jensen I'd rate it as a 3-star feature, primarily because of the breathtaking scenes ofsoldiers getting eviscerated at Normandy. The main attraction is advanced technology that shows bodies exploding in ways never before seen on the screen. (What is actually happening is explained later in technical terms by Captain Miller.) The ending combat is a standard , highly unrealistic battle scene with dumb Germans. The melodrama that consumes most of the show is not inspired at all. It's not at all realistic: for example, while I'm sure the costumes and machines are EXACTLY correct, the dialogue is all wrong. GI's had a special masculine F-Language that does not appear in this movie. [The ONLY war movie that comes close in terms oflanguage is Heartbreak Ridge (1986), starring Clint Eastwood.] Ryan's drama is simply a rehash of the "dirty dozen" style ... only instead of blowing up a bridge or an entire mountain, the goal is trivial and unrealistic. The most powerful war movies, in my opinion , are the psychological explorations made in the dozen years after the war: consider Mr. Roberts (19S5). rjensen@uic.edu Sue Bridwell Beckham I too saw Saving Private Ryan out ofnecessity. As a teacher ofMass Communication and film, I felt I had to see it to speak first hand ofit. I am very sorry I had to. I was bored; the gore was just another step in high tech gore presentation begun my much better films such as Catcii 22. It was laid on so thick, I became numb. I loved the "caper scenes" near the end because, unfortunately, I got hooked —but I hate when the struggle for human life and self-respect is reduced to "caper." Most of all, I thought we had passed the era when war was glorified. I'm very sorry that the maker of Schindlern List (a great film) and Amistad (a worthy film despite it's flaws) chose to make the first war glorifying film in decades. The influence of his expert film making, his substitution of technical excellence for true provocativeness, and his stepping up the violence quotient will have unwelcome effects on "entertainment " audiences —but worse still, the film will inspire a new spate of male bonding through war films and of one guy outdoing the other with realistic guts. Beckhams@uwstout.edu Solomon Davidoff Before I make any comments on this film and it is impact, I must preface my remarks with a spoiler alert. I will refer to aspects of the film that may impair the "movie-going experience" for others, so ifyou do not like to see a film if you have heard about it, please be aware of this, and read it later. I must also note that I am one of those types of movie viewers myself, and so I have not read any previous commentary . This piece is written two days after having seen the film. Please excuse any unintended repetition of previous discussion. I watched "Saving Private Ryan" through necessity , rather than choice. Keep in mind, I am a comedy person and unashamed of it, and normally have to be dragged kicking and screaming to view a dramatic piece. But I'm doing research into the representation ofJewish people in American film, and I had heard about a scene where one of the troopers, who is Jewish, waves his dog tags in front of a march of POWs chanting "Juden, Juden ... " So seeing...

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