'Saving Private Ryan' by Steven Spielberg

'Saving Private Ryan' by Steven Spielberg

Saving Private Ryan is an epic war film directed by the world-renowned

Steven Spielberg. The movie received several awards including five

Academy Awards for best cinematography, best director, best effects,

best film editing and best sound, it also picked up other prestigious

awards. The first twenty-five minutes are a flashback to the storming

of Omaha Beach on D-Day. Through his unique uses of proxemics, camera

angles, costumes, special effects, editing, sound, colouring, props,

events and characters Spielberg has made a shockingly graphic and

unflattering war movie. During the visceral first twenty-five minutes

Spielberg does his best to de-glamorise and twist our opinions of war,

in order to shock us and make the whole experience realistic.

When the movie begins we see Private Ryan, years after D-Day, slowly

walking through the memorial graveyards, then the camera zooms in on

his eyes and we see the D-Day landing at Omaha Beach. In this battle

Spielberg makes it shocking by going into graphic detail of the

slaughter of thousands of soldiers. Throughout the battle we follow

Captain Miller as he storms the beach, Miller shows signs of extreme

courage and leadership qualities; for example when he drags a comrade

along the beach, leaving himself more exposed to enemy gunfire. When

we see this leader of men as nervous as everyone else, shown by his

shaky hand, it gives us a real insight into how terrifying the war

must have been. Thousands appear to be dying everywhere and a

significant sense of realism is accomplished.

Proxemics are an important way in which Spielberg sets the scene and

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... not worth dying for your country. On

D-Day the lighting is done to make the scene look dark and dismal, it

may be bright but it also is stormy overhead, which is quite fitting

for the situation. After the battle the sea is blood red, which helps

to emphasise how much killing and bloodshed has taken place. Also the

bodies that litter the beach are another effective method of shock

tactics.

In the battle the American soldier is presented as very clean cut and

well rounded for example none of them smoke and under the

circumstances they don’t swear very often. By making the American

soldiers out to be well behaved, do-gooders we become more engulfed in

the story as we want them to succeed in their conquest.

To conclude Spielberg has cleverly used cinematography, proxemics etc.

to make a realistic yet shocking movie.