Hacksaw Ridge A 2016 biographical war drama film about the World War II experiences of Desmond Doss, an American pacifist combat medic who was a Seventh-day Adventist Christian, refusing to carry or use a firearm or weapons of any kind. Doss became the first conscientious objector to be awarded the Medal of Honor, for service above and beyond the call of duty during the Battle of Okinawa.
The battle has been referred to as the "typhoon of steel" in English, and tetsu no ame ("rain of steel") in Japanese. The nicknames refer to the ferocity of the fighting. The battle was one of the bloodiest in the Pacific, with an estimated total of over 82,000 casualties on both sides. 149,425 Okinawans were killed, committed suicide or went missing, a significant proportion of the estimated pre-war 300,000 local population. Battle of Okinawa
The Medal of Honor The United States of America's highest military honor, awarded for personal acts of valor above and beyond the call of duty. The medal is awarded by the President of the United States to U.S. military personnel only. There are three versions of the medal, one for the Army, one for the Navy, and one for the Air Force.
Desmond Doss was drafted into the United States army in April 1942 Desmond Doss was drafted into the United States army in April 1942. He could have gotten a deferment, but he wanted to serve his country. Electing not to bear arms, he made his way into the army medical corps. During March 1944, he shipped for the Pacific Theater, first to Guam, then to the Philippines, and finally to partake in the allied invasion of Okinawa, an island 340 miles south of mainland Japan. "I felt like it was an honor to serve God and country," Desmond said. "We were fightin' for our religious liberty and freedom." - The Conscientious Objector Documentary
A defining moment in Desmond's life that perhaps helped to further shape his attitude toward guns and violence happened when he was a boy. His father and uncle were drunk and got into a fight (the movie implies the fight was between Desmond's father and mother). His father pulled a gun on his uncle but his mother stepped in. She called the police and told Desmond to hide the gun. After doing so, young Desmond returned just in time to see his father being loaded into a black police wagon in handcuffs. Desmond believed that his father would've killed his uncle (his mother's brother) if his mother hadn't stepped in. Desmond vowed that would be the last time he ever touched a gun. -The Conscientious Objector Documentary
Notice… no gun!!
Did they really use cargo nets to ascend the ridge? Yes, and medic Desmond Doss was one of the three men who volunteered to go up the ridge and hang the cargo nets (something not shown in the movie). They were the same cargo nets that the men had used to climb down from the army personnel carriers into the landing crafts that took them ashore. In the photo below, Desmond is seen standing on top of the ridge. The photo doesn't convey the sheer danger he was in up there. The photographer refused to get any closer for fear he would be hit by Japanese fire. -The Conscientious Objector Documentary