Saving Private Ryan

There are two main things that I am reminded of whenever I see Saving Private Ryan.  First off, like the rest of my family, I remember that my grandfather was part of the invasion of Normandy.  To imagine my own grandfather among the bullets, blood, death and gore shown in this gritty take on the reality of war here is a bit disturbing.  Then I am reminded of the men who did not make it off the beach, the family trees that had an entire branch severed off on the battlefield.  Papa may not have realized it that day, but it was not only his life he fought for, but that of his entire future family. Saving Private Ryan is a rare kind of war movie that not only thanks our greatest generation for the sacrifices they made for us, but remembers their hardships and those who fell.

The film begins with an old war veteran and his family visiting the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial.  With his children and grandchildren relaxed and taking pictures, he walks ahead, trying to hide a mix of determination and anxiety on his face, but in front of cross bearing a familiar name, he falls to his knees.  Then we’re taken back to the war.

It is the second scene in the film, the landing on Omaha beach scene, that everyone remembers best about Saving Private Ryan.  Unlike the old war films that inspired men to go off to war, Spielberg does not spare us any of the horrors of war.  The first time I saw this, I was honestly shocked and sickened.  I was only a teenager, and there were young men, just like my grandfather once was, not much older than myself, preparing for battle one moment and blown to pieces the next.  Everything is so intensely gory and realistic the ideas of war being glorious were completely shattered for me.

The camera’s point of view, at times, puts the audience in the soldier’s perspective.  We are brought along as they move out of the boats, under the water, muffling the sound, and towards the beach.  Now and then a quick splatter of gore hits the camera lens.  When finally on the beach, there are a few shots where Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) takes a moment and just looks around at everything happening.  The sound is replaced with a white noise so that we focus on the terrible things we see.  A man’s pack explodes, setting the men around him on fire.  A man picks up his own arm, another cowers trying to shield himself.  Men run out of a boat in flames.  As bombs explode in the water, Miller is showered in bloody water.  The invasion scene alone could have been an Oscar worthy short, it’s an amazing film experience, where the volume must be cranked up for the best effect.

The meat of the film takes place after the invasion, where Miller is given the mission to find a young Private, James Francis Ryan (Matt Damon), and send him home.  Miller and a seven other men risk their own lives trekking through France, pretty much looking for a needle in a haystack.

But why would eight men risk their lives for one private?  When a woman in The War Department offices realizes that a mother is about to receive three separate letters informing her that three of her sons have been killed in action, she takes notice.  She realizes that there is a fourth son who parachuted in somewhere in northern France.  It’s a wonderful thing to think about people caring enough to take notice and act quickly to save the young Ryan before his family tree is completely chopped down by this war.  But we soon see that saving Ryan’s life comes with the price of others.

Saving Private Ryan is not for any squeamish viewers, nor would I say it’s a perfect fit for your ultra patriotic ‘ooh-rah’ crowd.  This is not a war film where we celebrate victory or enjoy watching Germans get kicked down a peg.  By watching Saving Private Ryan, we are supposed to find new understanding of the hardships that our greatest generation faced, especially the fallen we never knew.

“He better be worth it.  He better go home and cure a disease, or invent a longer-lasting light bulb.”

The Best Years of Our Lives

It was 1946 and the men were returning home from the war.  To some extent, they were expected to just come home and return to their former lives as if nothing happened in between.  But the world and every man has changed, some more than others.  The challenge of coping with their new world or new lifestyle can be just as heroic as the battles they have just returned from.  The Best Years of our Lives tells the story of three different men as they return to their hometown.

Fred (Dana Andrews) is a young man who married his girlfriend quickly just before he left for war.  His job was to drop bombs, he was good enough to receive medals for it, but now that he is back home he has no real job skills and finds himself back working at the same pharmacy before he left.  It seems that his wife was more in love with his money and uniform than him and they both begin to think about other people.

Al (Fredric March) is a middle-aged man who returns home to his children suddenly grown.  While he brings his teenage son a sword and flag from Japan, the boy is quite intelligent and asking questions about the effects of radiation on the Japanese.  His daughter Peggy (Teresa Wright) is old enough to go out on the town with her parents and be the designated driver.  At his old job at the bank, Al realizes he isn’t the stingy bank man he once was and approves loans that get him in trouble.

Lastly, young Homer, played by real life amputee WWII veteran Harold Russell, has lost both his hands in the war.  While he has already informed his family of his condition, seeing it in person is still a heartbreaking experience.  Throughout the film, Homer is constantly trying to prove his worth and abilities, showing that his hooks can do anything hands can.  His little sister and her playmates find Homer and his hooks fascinating, this just infuriates him and makes him feel less confident.

Homer’s girl next door girlfriend, Wilma (Cathy O’Donnell), still loves him, but poor Homer is afraid to ask her to marry him.  He does not want to tie her down into his crippled lifestyle.  The scene where Homer shows Wilma how he has to take his hooks off every night is especially moving.  Once his hooks are off, he is completely helpless.  Men returning from war are supposed to be a strong and capable, to show that level of vulnerability is such a high level of honest bravery.  To thank Russell for sharing his condition and bringing an understanding of other amputee veterans, the Academy awarded him an honorary Oscar for his role.

I completely understand why The Best Years of Our Lives won for Best Picture.  This was the story of the nation’s lives at the time.  A film illustrating the hardships of coming home in an honest way was exactly what the people of 1946 needed to understand each other and know they are not alone.  Unfortunately for today’s average viewer, it can miss its mark and comes off as melodramatic.  If you want to appreciate this movie, think about how the WWII generation was affected by this film.  Perhaps watching it with a grandparent would be a good idea.

“He used to read me lectures on the curse of drink, now it’s different.  I’m a veteran.”

Scent of a Woman

Have you ever been at a nice family dinner and one of the elder men at the table starts to tell old war tales, or long stories from the past and they just start to get a little…out of hand?  You know, their children try to clear their throat to quiet them and finally their wives flat out tell them that no one wants to hear that story.  I love those stories.  I love the way old men tell those stories and try to give away wit, wisdom and advice.  I could listen to old men ramble all Thanksgiving weekend.  Maybe that’s why Scent of a Woman struck such a deep chord within me.  Part of me wanted to be in Charlie’s shoes, tagging along for a weekend adventure in New York with a conniving old blind war veteran.

Charlie (Chris O’Donnell) is one of the few honest, hardworking young men at his prep school.  When he witnesses a prank, he’s suddenly left with the dilemma of squealing on his friends and getting a free ride to Harvard or face expulsion.  He has until Monday to make his decision.  While most of his classmates are there on their father’s money, Charlie’s family is in Oregon and he’s on the east coast all alone on a scholarship.  Being expelled would ruin his chances of getting into a good college.  During vacations, he can’t afford to go skiing in Switzerland with his friends, Charlie has to find work just to pay for the plane ride back to Oregon for Christmas break.

That is why he takes a job over Thanksgiving weekend to watch retired blind veteran Lieutenant Colonel Frank Slade (Al Pacino).  Frank is menacing at first, so rude and coarse to Charlie that he nearly backs out of the job.  But Frank’s daughter reassures him that it’ll be easy; just sit and watch tv and make sure Frank doesn’t drink too much.

But Frank has the whole weekend planned out with limousines, plane tickets to New York, a nice hotel room and everything.  It’s Charlie’s job to watch him, so he’s going to have to do it all over New York.  When Frank reveals his whole plan, including a loaded 45 and only one returning plane ticket, Charlie has the weight of two moral dilemmas.

I believe that this is Al Pacino’s greatest role, and completely deserving of his Oscar win.  I absolutely love the way Pacino can make Frank sound like a lovestruck poet one second and then and then completely vulgar the next.  “Hoo-wah!” is the perfect word to describe him.  You never know what he’s going to say or do, you might hate him for it or suddenly love him all over again.  By the end of the weekend, you don’t want to see him go.

One of my favorite scenes in this film is when Frank is driving a Ferrari.  Yes, remember, he’s blind.  Charlie lets him take the wheel, thinking he’ll just drive nice and slow through the back streets of New York, but Frank has got to make that engine purr.  Suddenly, Charlie has to tell Frank when to turn between the brick buildings.  The whole scene is hysterical and heart racing.  It only gets better when Frank is pulled over for speeding.

This movie is great because it shows an appreciation for elders.  Too many times we just put them in a home or the refinished garage behind the house and forget about them.  Nobody lives a long life and just wants to be put aside, they want to go out and be a part of life, have some adventures, dance the tango with beautiful women and be heard.  The best part is, when you show them respect and dignity they’ll return the favor when you need it most.  Scent of a Woman is my pick for 1992.  Hoo-wah!

“The day we stop lookin’, Charlie, is the day we die.”