 Director: Steven Spielberg

RL I can analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of a film (how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced and developed.

How often do you watch war films? Is this a genre that you prefer? Why or why not? Do you predict you will like the movie? Explain.

Saving Private Ryan, published in 1998, is a novel by Max Allan Collins based on the screenplay by Robert Rodat.

 Opening with the Allied invasion of Normandy on June , members of the 2nd Ranger Battalion under Cpt. Miller fight ashore to secure a beachhead. Amidst the fighting, two brothers are killed in action. Earlier in New Guinea, a third brother is KIA. Their mother, Mrs. Ryan, is to receive all three of the grave telegrams on the same day. The United States Army Chief of Staff, George C. Marshall, is given an opportunity to alleviate some of her grief when he learns of a fourth brother, Private James Ryan, and decides to send out 8 men (Cpt. Miller and select members from 2nd Rangers) to find him and bring him back home to his mother(Imdb).

 The story is set in the Europe of  The Nazis are still advancing across Western Europe, subjugating cities and entire nations.  Faced with the distinct possibility of defeat, the Allied powers plan the greatest invasion in history – a crushing blow that they hope will hold up the German attack and force them into retreat.  On June 6th 1944, D-Day, 3000 landing craft, 2500 other ships and 500 naval vessels left England for the French coast. 13,000 aircraft supported them as they arrived in France.  Several hundred of these planes carried parachutists who were dropped behind enemy lines (Pearson Education).

Capt. John Miller – Tom Hanks plays a 38-year-old leader of the group. Private Reiben - Edward Burns plays a 24-year-old, smart New Yorker who doesn’t hide the fact that he resents risking his own life to save Ryan. Private Caparzo – Vin Diesel plays a 22-year-old tough Chicago Italian with a gentle side. Corporal Edward Wade– Giovanni Ribisi plays a 28-year-old, from California: the unit’s sensitive and dedicated medic. Private Stanley Mellish – Adam Goldberg plays a 21-year-old Jewish soldier who has personal reasons for fighting the Nazis. Corporal Upham -Jeremy Davies plays a 24-year-old map-maker and translator who joins Miller’s group when their interpreter is killed Private Ryan – Matt Damon plays the youngest of four brothers. Who becomes a symbol for Miller and his men: if he goes home the whole group can go home. (Saving Private Ryan Teacher’s Notes)

Praised by critics for its unflinchingly accurate depiction of the confusion and carnage of war. The bloody panorama of the Normandy invasion produced “one hell of a tightening in my chest, and I couldn't breathe and I shed a lot of tears,'' said a shaken Frank Davis, of Stanton, Delaware, a sergeant in the 101st Airborne. “It felt like I was right there again... It was so damned real (“Watching `Private Ryan”).'‘

On June 6, 1944, more than 160,000 Allied troops landed along a 50-mile stretch of heavily-fortified French coastline, to fight Nazi Germany on the beaches of Normandy, France. Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower called the operation a crusade in which, “we will accept nothing less than full victory.” More than 5,000 Ships and 13,000 aircraft supported the D-Day invasion, and by day’s end, the Allies gained a foot-hold in Continental Europe. The cost in lives on D-Day was high. More than 9,000 Allied Soldiers were killed or wounded, but their sacrifice allowed more than 100,000 Soldiers to begin the slow, hard slog across Europe, to defeat Adolf Hitler’s crack troops “D-Day”.

TRAGEDY OF THE FIVE SULLIVAN BROTHERS All five brothers were killed when their ship was sunk by a Japanese sub. As a result, the U.S. War department to adopted “The Sole Survivor Policy” so it would never happen again. The policy refers to discharging the only surviving child in a family in which the father or mother or one or more siblings have been killed in action or have died when serving in the U.S. Armed Forces from wounds, accident, or disease or are in a captured or missing-in-action status.

Contrary to popular belief, Saving Private Ryan is not based on the Sullivan brothers, a group of five brothers who were all killed in action while serving in the US Navy during World War II on the USS Juneau. The movie is actually based on the Niland brothers, four siblings who all served in the US Army during World War II. Three brothers— Robert, Preston, and Edward—were supposedly killed in action, which caused their remaining brother, Fritz (whom Private Ryan was based on) to be shipped back to America so that the Niland family wouldn’t lose all of their sons. Edward, who was originally thought dead, was actually found alive after escaping a Japanese prison camp in Burma, making two surviving brothers out of the four who fought in the war (Hutchinson).

Day Two

What were your thoughts after viewing scenes at Omaha Beach? Was this consistent with your earlier images of war as depicted in other movies? If they were different, please explain.

Academy Awards:  Best Director  Best Cinematography  Best Sound  Best Film Editing  Best Effects, Sound Effects Editing Golden Globes:  Best Motion Picture  Best Director

A motif (“moteef”)is a significant word, description, idea, or image that is repeated throughout a literary work and is related to its theme. A motif helps lead us to the theme.

Noise and Silence~ Noise -due to the war environment Silence – the first example is during D-Day, and Tom Hank’s character gets snapped out of it by a soldier asking for orders. Light and Dark~ In the light/daytime soldiers are always fighting and doing their duty. When nightfall comes, soldiers have time to think about what they did wrong in their past --if they die, they feel that they won't be able to change things or ask forgiveness from those they have wronged. Clean and Dirty~ Like in The Red Badge of Courage, soldiers who tend to be clean have no war experience and are immature, For example, Henry and in the movie; the translator. In the movie, there isn't a time where you see the soldiers clean. They are always on the move and doing their duty--dirty and ready to do what is necessary. Youth and Maturity~ The soldiers that are youthful are the ones that don't realize why they are fighting. They are fighting for freedom and the lives of their fellow countrymen. The mature soldiers understand that being a soldier means that they must be ready to lay down their lives for the cause (Fowlkes).

 The elimination of sound -The elimination of sound is particularly effective, since it is both logical in the narrative (the captain's hearing could have been damaged by the shock of battle noise) and psychological (it physicalizes the emotional trauma he is undergoing).  A shaking hand  A resistance to explaining his pre-war background All are simultaneously internal and external, and all are clearly understood by the audience to be the stress of the combat experience(Basinger).

Check out these film bloopers from Saving Private Ryan.

Basinger, Jeanine. “Translating War: The Combat Film Genre and Saving Private Ryan.” American Historical Association Web. 2 Sept “D-Day." Army.mil Features. Army.mil. Web. 26 August gce11kendraf [Kendra Fowlkes]. “Themes, Motifs, and Symbols (Saving Private Ryan)” blogspot. Kendras Blog, 4 Dec Web. 2 Sept Hutchinson, Sean."15 Fascinating Facts About ‘Saving Private Ryan." Mental Floss. 28 June Web. 30 Aug McCrary, Lacy. "Watching `Private Ryan,' Veterans Relive The Horrors Years From Omaha Beach, Pain Lingers." Philly.com. Philadelphia Inquirer digital edition. 6 Aug Web. 26 Aug “Saving Private Ryan Teacher’s Notes.” Pearson Education Web. 2 Sept Saving Private Ryan. Imdb. Web. 26 August “10 movie mistakes: Saving Private Ryan.” War History Online. 29 Mar Web. 2 Sept