This is a great film, probably the best made, apart from Gladiator. It is not a complicated film, but it is hard to watch. And you have to pay attention for the whole film. It is also very realistic and is so realistic is worrying.
The film starts with the D-day landing, and then goes onto follow a US squad on a mission. Following the death of him 3 brothers, Private James Ryan is given a ticket home. All they have to do is find him, in a country infested with war. Could not be easier! And the fact that the US army has decided to risk eight men’s live for one mans live.
The leader of the squad is Captain John Miller, played by Tom Hanks. As the squad finds Ryan, her is a member of a squad defending a bridge from an impending German attack. The newly found squad lead by Hanks now has to fight and hold of the German army until the Allied re-enforcement arrives. And that’s about all you get out of me. I will not tell you how it ends.
The battle scenes in this film are incredible, and also quite distasteful as they are very realistic. The first one in particular. One of the first scene’s are men been shot as they try and land on the beach, people being shot, limbs torn off and piles of bodies piling up on the beach head.
The story follows the same sort of thing most the way through guns, fights, deaths and Nazis.
If you think this film is just a glorified film were the Americans can do no wring and the Nazis are pure evil, then you will not get what you’re expecting. This film does NOT glorify war in any way. It shows it is it is. Pointless and a great loss of life. This is a very emotional film. Oh, and do not expect a happy ending!