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Albena Gradeva
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Saving Private Ryan
Steven Spielberg& Robert Rodat
Plot Music Editing Cast Message to the Viewer
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Saving Private Ryan
Genre: Action Drama History 1998, Steven Spielberg Won 5 Oscars Mixture of history(loosely
based) and fiction Portrays WWII as it really was:
very realistic portrayal of war About brotherhood, courage,
sacrifice and leadership
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Steven Spielberg• Born in 1946, Cincinnati,
Ohio, USA• Most famous movies
• First movies :WWII • Jaws(1975)• Close Encounters of the Third
Kind (1977)• Raiders of the Lost Ark(1981)• E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) • Schindler’s List(1993)• Jurassic Park (1993)
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Steven Spielberg Very interested in WWII• Escape to Nowhere (1961), which
featured children as World War Two soldiers
• Battle Squad (1961)• Empire of the Sun (1987) • Saving Private Ryan (1998) Started the ‘summer
blockbuster’ concept with Jaws
Pioneered in special effects and product placement (E.T. And Reece’s Pieces: peanut butter flavored candy)
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Robert Rodat
Screenwriter Inspired to write the movie
Loosely based on moving story of the Niland brothers: 4 brothers , 3 killed in the same week, all in different units:1 alive
Sullivan brothers: 5 brothers killed in action All served on the same vessel
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Plot 4 out of 3 brothers KIA(killed
in action) Mother is going to be told of
the losses all on the same day A group of rangers sent to
find the only remaining Ryan brother
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Plot
Opening scene: American flag Old WWII veteran visiting a
cemetry in France (French flag)
The beginning and ending scenes of the film mirror each other
Start and wrap up the film very well
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=toipOBs5oos : opening
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Music
John Williams: Military music Album Saving Private Ryan:
won Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television
Level of respect well portrayed by the music
Only 1hr of the movie has film ‘break’for the viewer: can soak up
what is happening(creates atmosphere)
None during battle scenes: sound editing made a realistic atmosphere with bombs and bullets flying at the viewer
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Many close ups + medium shots: show the suffering
Tracking shots mixed with long shots often used to follow battle scenes and the soldiers
Battle scene: Top 10 battle scenes of all time Omaha Beach D-Day, 6th June 1944 Shocked audiences: shaky, hand held
cameras, desaturated colour(grey,black,red), sea-sick soldiers, near suicidal assaults: documentary feel
Makes a cruel joke of the human body and spirit: what is human life worth?
“sickening sense of realism” (doesnt spare the viewer: gory, violent)
Spielberg terrifies the viewer: shows what happened in the past Could also be a warning for future
generations
Editing
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFQIuF590B4&feature=player_embedded#! : battle scene
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Cast
Capt. John H. Miller
(Tom Hanks) Well
respected by his rangers
He is a good leader with a good heart, but closed about his personal life
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Cast
Great Leader: tactfully leads the men on during D-Day. Breaks up a fight between
Horvath and Reiben not by orders, but by telling something about his personal life
Admits Ryan is just a name,but if this mission gets him to his wife, then he will carry on
He is just as tormented by the war as the lower-ranked privates, but never shows it (weeps for Medic Wade in solitude)
Good heart:Upham convinces him not to kill a surrendered German soldier
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEzNY0SLUUM: I’m a school teacher
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Cast
Self controlled- required to make good decisions as a leader
Brave and honorable Human: sense of humor
weeps (although in solitude)
Multi-dimensional character: On the one hand is closed up as
leader(cant get too attached to him) Later on, he confesses to his men he
will do whatever it takes to get back home to his wife
Initially seems dedicated to his mission Later, he confesses he just wants to
get home: makes him a character the audience can relate to
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Cast Richard
Reiben (Edward Burns)
Survivor of D-Day Hand picked by
Miller for saving Ryan
Attempts to return to American lines: Miller convinces him to stay
Most vocal: cynicaland sacrastic about their mission Doesnt believe 8
men’s lives should be risked for one random stranger, no better than any of them
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Cast Private
Jackson(Berry Pepper) Talented sniper:
brave strongly religious:
religion is the only thing keeping him going – but even his religion doesnt save him
Contrast:very religious but nothing loving about him: ruthless
Irony: quoting the Bible, simultaneously slaughtering dozens
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Cast Mike
Horvath (Tom Sizemore)
Miller relies most on him to lead the crew
Horvath convinces Miller to stay and fight alongside the stubborn Ryan: this could turn a negative situation into something positive
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Cast
Timothy Upham (Jeremy Davies)
Translater: never been deployed in battle before
Viewer can identify with him: coward
Most soldiers were civilians not prepared for what combat would bring
War can turn people into monsters: turning point when he kills a surrendered German in cold blood (who just killed his comrade)
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Cast Private
Mellish (Adam Goldberg)
Jewish soldier:fighting Hitler and the Nazi’ss
Is handed a Hitler Youth knife by Caparzo
Proclaims it a Shabbat(like the Christian Sunday: day of rest) challah cutter (Jewish Holly bread)
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Cast Adrian
Caparzo (Vin Diesel)
Has a tough guy act in the beginning
Killed first while trying to save a little French girl: she reminded him of his niece
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Cast
Medic Wade (Giovanni Ribisi)
Quiet and soft spoken: always eager to help fallen comrades
Tells his personal story: his mother; regrets avoiding her as a child: sends a message to be kinder to your family as you never know when you will be snatched away from them
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Cast Private
Ryan(Matt Damon) Brave and
courageous: refuses to leave behind his new and only ‘brothers’ at the Bridge
Will fight on and survives : the mission was worthwhile
He earns his rescue
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Although he doesnt become famous by “inventing a lolnger lasting light bulb or inventing something”, he fulfills a good life
Proof: Good husband, father and grandfather (his family loves him enough to go with him to see the fallens’graves in France all the way from America)
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Message What is a human life really worth?
8 men’s lives are risked for one, a complete stranger to all of them
Main protagonists do not beleive rescuing Private Ryan has anything to do with winning the war
Characters are multi-dimensional: many sides to a man(Upham the translater, Miller)
“Earn this… ”Ryan, and the viewers, must strive to be worthy of the sacrifices made by those who have suffered: make those losses worthwhile
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Message Personal identity (all characters
remain their own individuals)Title: “Saving Private Ryan”suggests that too
Family is importan goes with the old veteran to
support him; Try to spare the only son a mother
has left
Belonging to a group &brothership (dont care about Ryan; he’s not a part of the squad and hasnt earned his right to be saved)
Schindler’s List: humans are the villains, but here , not so much the Germans, but War itself
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Utilitarianism vs Non-utilitarianism
Non-Utilitarianism: Miller Just wants to end the mission so
he can get back home: only cares for himself and not about Ryan(a stranger)
Utilitarianism: Jackson, Reiben, Horvat and even Ryan Defend the greater good for the
greatest number of people Miller: Also argues the number of
men he loses during battle are to save 10, or 20 times as many
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Thanks !