Watched it again yesterday in honor of D-Day, but two things occurred to me:
1) In the opening scene, an elderly James Ryan is seen walking to a specific grave. Is this intended to create ambiguity about the character's identity? Initially, without context, we don't know who the character is. Is it meant to suggest that the character could be either Private Ryan or Captain Miller, only revealing that it's Ryan when we see the aged Matt Damon standing over Tom Hanks' character's grave? Going into the film, was the audience aware that Matt Damon's character would survive the war (it is called "SAVING Private Ryan" after all)?
2) More of a confirmation: Steamboat Willie (the Nazi soldier they let go) and the soldier who killed Mellish are two different people, right? I always thought they were the same person. If they are different, they both fought in the same battle, and Upham eventually works up the courage to kill Willie. Do we ever find out what happens to Mellish's killer? Is he part of the group that Upham orders to leave after he kills Willie?
Keep this in mind that that unit was an elite fighting outfit that had seen the worst of the war on the Russian Front, where in such small-action encounters prisoners were not taken. In fact, on it's way to Normandy, "Das Reich" committed one of the more infamous massacres in the West at
Oradour-sur-Glane. They killed everyone in the town. This was commonplace in Russia, but not in the West.
Keep this in mind that that unit was an elite fighting outfit that had seen the worst of the war on the Russian Front, where in such small-action encounters prisoners were not taken. In fact, on it's way to Normandy, "Das Reich" committed one of the more infamous massacres in the West at
Oradour-sur-Glane. They killed everyone in the town. This was commonplace in Russia, but not in the West.
I was just throwing it out there, as you said elite SS weren't leaving armed enemy living to fight.
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
Ha - we don't need a dose of reality. Would make for a very short thread.
Like when that 500 lbs bomb from the P-51 blew the turret off the Tiger and it didn't instantly vaporize Capt Miller...
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
You'd hate to hear my wife and I try to introduce reality to TV on a nightly basis. LOL
BTW, I do think there are innumerable documented examples of soldiers letting the opponent just walk away... in all wars... and for different reasons.
Quote:
Because it's a movie. Simple as that. I don't think you can logically try to rationalize why he was left to live in a real life situation because it isn't.
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
Ha - we don't need a dose of reality. Would make for a very short thread.
Like when that 500 lbs bomb from the P-51 blew the turret off the Tiger and it didn't instantly vaporize Capt Miller...
You mean the Tiger without the frontal machine gunner?
Plus Upham pulled his hand away from trigger, as if to silently surrender.
Quote:
In comment 16532660 RC in MD said:
Quote:
Because it's a movie. Simple as that. I don't think you can logically try to rationalize why he was left to live in a real life situation because it isn't.
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
Ha - we don't need a dose of reality. Would make for a very short thread.
Like when that 500 lbs bomb from the P-51 blew the turret off the Tiger and it didn't instantly vaporize Capt Miller...
You mean the Tiger without the frontal machine gunner?
See, technical BS!
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
Quote:
Because it's a movie. Simple as that. I don't think you can logically try to rationalize why he was left to live in a real life situation because it isn't.
You guys are thinking too much into it. And besides the first 20 minutes of the movie, Saving Private Ryan is massively overrated.
You'd hate to hear my wife and I try to introduce reality to TV on a nightly basis. LOL
BTW, I do think there are innumerable documented examples of soldiers letting the opponent just walk away... in all wars... and for different reasons.
Oh for sure there have been many such instances in real life. And those, you can try to figure out why...because they're real life. But the only way we figure out why it happened in this movie is to ask the script writer...ha!