| Junior's Academic Essays - Saving
Private Ryan and the Realities of Modern Warfare
†
08 May 2008
Saving Private Ryan and the Realities of
Modern Warfare
While realism tends to be considered more often
in terms of art cinema, delving in the day to day, it can also be
found elsewhere. War, a sub genre of action adventure cinema, has
become more concerned with realism in recent years. Saving Private
Ryan (Spielberg, 1998) offers a prime contemporary example
as a basis for realism analysis.
“Cinema provides a sustained assertion […]
as to the way things are – socially, politically, economically,
internationally.” (2006: 157) Here, Lapsley and Westlake suggest
how film pervades across our civilisation. If realism is to reflect
real life this implies it must occur on several levels. There is
worthwhile endeavour in exploring the way in which realism functions
in these ways.
Analysis of the Saving Private Ryan’s
historical context and the material properties of the film production
will serve to visualize a given period, while identifying issues
of nationalism will present potential contentious bias. This must
in turn be linked to other pertinent key issues of substance as
they relate to the genre and the real world issues the film wishes
to authentically represent.
The most obvious function of realism occurs on
the physical level, which will be examined both from a cinematic
perspective and that of military behaviour and activity such as
tactics. There is a need to acknowledge, and therefore investigate
bias in this regard towards the depiction of our former foes, which
may act as a counter to realism. Collectively the aforementioned
are dictated to by the environment in which they occur across both
social and psychological spectrums. These elements cannot be ignored
in the war setting.
In order to position a given scene or film narrative
effectively within a specific time and place various cues need to
be implemented. The more realistic the intention of the film, the
more authentic the properties of these cues need to be. Prince considers
the full extent of this:
“The historical realist mode works by
accumulating authentic period detail. Meticulously detailed sets
and costumes evoke now-vanished eras. Production design, therefore,
is extremely important in this mode.” (2001: 258)
Real world weapons, uniforms and language are used
to depict and cue a specific time and place, and particular nations
involved in the conflict. Yet this is only a surface aesthetic;
far more must be involved for authenticity.
The film begins with Ryan at the memorial in Normandy,
this signifying a personal history. A lapel badge shows he has been
a 101st Airborne paratrooper. Further to this, in a cut to the Omaha
beach the caption denotes a specific time, cueing a specific date
in history – 06 June 1944. Even if the viewer is not aware
of its significance, they soon will be. In the closing scene, as
Ryan looks on to Miller’s cross we see the Captain was killed
on 13 June 1944. We have seen an eight day snapshot of his life.
In serving to emphasise the impact upon participants
who have experienced combat first hand and demonstrate how the experience
transcends the historical period in which it took place, Haggith
comments:
“So successfully were the battle scenes
and especially the Omaha beach scenes recreated, that the Royal
Marines who were extras in the film found the filming brought
back memories of their experiences in the Falklands War.”
(2002: 333-334)
This therefore reinforces that there is a genuine
attempt to realise a traumatic period of world history on screen.
One would like to assume, as Clooney argues, that there is a fair
and balanced account of all those who were involved:
“There are those who believe that Steven Spielberg
has deliberately undertaken a serious effort to let generations
who were born long after World War II know what it was, what it
meant, and why remembering it in detail is still important.”
(2002: 20)
Yet this is central to debate. Tomasulo argues
that Saving Private Ryan presents D-Day as “an all-American
operation”, that “America saved the world, pretty much
unassisted, and emerged victorious despite great sacrifices […]
we never see any other nation’s troops” (2001: 118)
This questions realism on a basis of nationalistic
grounds. As a document for historical accuracy this becomes valid.
Yet, while there is no account of Gold, Sword (British) or Juno
(Canadian) beaches, there is likewise no account of the other US
beach, Utah. On grounds of bias nationalism, therefore, issues of
realism become moot.
The efforts of the filmmaker are to depict a given
aspect of the war, not to produce an all-encompassing documentary.
It is unreasonable that any film goes beyond its intended focus.
For example, Bravo Two Zero (Clegg, 1999), focuses on a
British Special Forces operation during the Persian Gulf War, yet
does not direct its attention to the American experience in that
war.
While the historical context has been shown to be
more abstract in the nature of realism, the physical nature of warfare
is the most visually apparent. It addresses key issues which better
connect to those who took part in the events depicted in a film
like Saving Private Ryan. There is an inherent need, in relation
to realism, to investigate specific accounts to ascertain events
unique to those being portrayed.
“Frank South: a medic of 2nd Rangers:
“Several of the men became seasick, but the others spent
their time checking their arms and equipment and in indulging
in rather black humor.” (O’Donnell 2001: 145)
From the outset, seasickness, as a result of the
environment, denotes the frailty of men even before they face combat.
This bluntly avoids the traditional traits of the action genre in
displaying the hero as generically infallible.
Combat scenes quickly recognise the extremes of
wounds, including dramatic amputation, where, on the beach a soldier
looses his arm. A massive gut wound shows a soldier screaming for
his mother, which is repeated later when the medic, Wade, is hit
by the SS machine gun at the radar station. These displays of graphic
wounding have also been seen in Black Hawk Down (Scott,
2001) where a Delta Force soldier is literally cut in half from
a RPG rocket blast, who is comforted by a mate before he dies.
Central to the physical nature of war is the dynamics
involved in battle. In the war film where realism is a focus, real
world tactics must be aptly presented, particularly for those familiar
with their application. Additionally, combat experience must be
accurately depicted for the benefit of an unbiased historical record.
While there are numerous examples of real world
combat experience and improvisation of the Allied forces Saving
Private Ryan does not forgo our former enemies in this respect.
“Despite Rommel’s advice to move
the 352nd up to the coast [a tank division], the division commander
had kept the bulk of his division well back from the beaches.
[…] [Yet] out of the ten battalions available […]
two battalions were more than enough to give the US Army one of
the worst days in its history.” (Murray 2003: 157)
In this way, for those German forces present, both
historically and in this film, they have been shown to good tactical
account. This promotes a balanced view of events. The enemy is organised
and competent.
Opposing sides confront each other in mortal combat
and there is no glory in this. Bitter struggle between the SS soldier
and Mellish demonstrates that anything goes and it is an unpleasant
experience. While struggling for his own life, the Jewish soldier
is unable to save the life of the paratrooper who has been shot
in the throat, who dies horrifically slowly.
Tomasulo comments on the “thrilling days of
yesteryear when American hegemony was undisputed” and the
use of Saving Private Ryan as a sign of a return to the “Good
War” due to the end of the Cold War, with the need for the
return of “its sadistic Nazi enemies typecast in the role
of evil villains.” (2001: 119)
Yet Jaehne informs us, specific to the above scene
that the SS soldier is saying: “Lass uns es beenden”,
which translates as “Let’s just end it all.” “In
short, the German wants to show the American an easy death. Why?
This is not the sadistic, vicious enemy we know from stand issue
Nazis in WWII pictures. […] In this duel to the death, the
German soldier seems to bring mercy to the ghastly business of being
a soldier.” (1999: 39-40)
Before embarking on the mission which serves as
the dominant plot for the film, Miller makes claim of a record of
enemy commitment to the battle, in taking on 88mm guns: thirty-five
dead, two wounded. This shows the nature of the combat. In most
combat encounters the ratio for dead and wounded is the opposite.
Brutal determination from the Germans, despite this late stage in
the war and the outcome being obvious enough, depicts the enemy
in a highly respected light.
Against the deployed German 20mm cannon, the Americans
have the weight of fire necessary but need to relocate to get the
proper angles. Real battles are about angles and position, and the
frustration and cost of regaining the upper hand becomes instantly
apparent. The graphic nature of this weapon’s impact is shown
as American soldiers attempt to destroy an enemy tank and kill its
crew. Technological inequality is reflected also, when Sergeant
Horvath fails to damage the German tank with his bazooka despite
hitting it with two shots.
In the final battle, the Germans push through in
a counter attack. Like the beach scene, they in turn kill wounded
American troops so as not to be tactically compromised. They would
have succeeded tactically in their immediate mission had it not
been for the US air cover. This cannot be over-emphasised and is
as relevant today as it was in 1944.
It can be argued that the environment, both in regards
physical and historical circumstances, is the most critical ingredient
in serving a foundation for realism. It also lends itself to a great
deal of contention.
In relation to the shooting of surrendering German
soldiers Tomasulo considers this “brutal and unmerciful retaliation
against their adversaries” (2001:119). For filmmakers wishing
to depict realism it is essential to confront issues that are socially
contestable, rather than to deny them. This makes for a more accurate
record of history.
The virtual shooting gallery in the trench works
above Omaha beach can be exemplified by historical accounts. A German
Fallschirmjäger [paratrooper] Gerald Kellner states:
“Two SS men were shot right in front
of my eyes – why, I don’t know. […] During house-to-house
combat at night, you normally didn’t take prisoners, so
I expected to be knocked off too.” (Kershaw 1994: 236)
In this way, the film does not attempt to cast aside
the issues of what might be considered in an idealistic light, war
crimes. Enemy soldiers are shot in the process of attempting to
surrender. This is both reflecting the chaos of war, the rapid tempo
of battle but also the dire practicalities. To leave enemy soldiers
alive is tactically untenable at such an early stage in the battle,
as you can quickly become compromised. Moreover, manpower and the
logistics of taking prisoners at this point is a critical factor.
Understandably such logic defies human values in a civil environment.
The Glider Infantry scene introduces lines of dead
soldiers covered over. As Miller’s squad move out from here
the buzzing of flies produces a very visceral sense of the cost
of war, by way of the decomposing bodies of the 82nd Airborne paratroopers.
The sensory perceptions of the audience play a critical
role in the questioning of reality as it pertains to a given film.
Particularly in the opening Omaha beach portion of the film, cinematography
plays this out visually.
“The camera always faces out against
the enemy, or inward at the grievous wounds enemy fire causes.
The individual soldier fighting for his life becomes the victim
of war; those he kills, since they are so evidently bent on his
destruction, the perpetrators of violence.” (Young
2003: 255)
The killing of German soldiers as they attempt to
surrender in the opening scene, and the resulting deaths of the
German machine gun crew at the radar station, show an overt willingness
to demonstrate the opposite of Young's assessment. Shooting Germans
in the back as they rush out of the bunkers address the brutal realities
of close quarter fighting, dispelling notions of Allied soldiers
as universally virtuous.
The unsettled camera work of Saving Private
Ryan, which is intended to reflect the environment and the
situation from the soldier’s point of view, has been frequently
hailed as an exemplary example of the film’s realism. Claims
of a documentary feel, as if the cameraman is in the heat of battle,
are worth further investigation. In examining the trials and techniques
of wartime cameramen, Haggith has concluded that:
“If Spielberg was simply striving to
mimic combat film, he has failed. [...] Only a suicidal cameraman
flying around the battlefield in an armoured micro-light could
have covered the battle at Omaha as comprehensively as Spielberg’s
camera-team. […] And in comparison with the highly constrained
views of the AFPU men at Normandy, there is no similarity. […]
[Therefore] we have highlighted the artificial and manipulative
filmmaking technique with which the battle has been recreated
try to create such a realistic vision of war.” (2002:
347-348)
The environment serves as a gauge, though soldier
dialogue, between civil and military life, when Captain Miller says:
“Quite a view”. It is a valuable statement of conveyance
between life as a civilian and that of the soldier at war, emphasising
the nature and impact of war. Other films have this in recent years,
such as Black Hawk Down based in Somalia: “Beautiful
beach, beautiful sun, it’d almost be a good place to visit.”
These impacts as depicted in Saving Private
Ryan understandably beg the question of the social and psychological
consequences upon soldiers and are addressed in a number of ways
within the film.
Broadly, Gabbard claims critics who praised the
film as a means to “discourage young Americans from going
to war [Spielberg was] too late”, since “Americans no
longer fight that kind of war”, citing the remoteness of modern
warfare (2001: 138). Current conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and
elsewhere contradict this in the most critical way. On the social
level this also serves to show that, regardless of the era depicted,
these sorts of films starkly bring home the realities of modern
warfare.
As Miller and his men rifle through dog tags, which
the Glider lieutenant has given them, each signifies the cost of
life and collectively, the scale of death. Each has the “big
four” – Name, Rank, Service Number and Date of Birth.
This denotes identity with each individual human being. Facing such
events in the social context presents a psychological cost also.
While some impacts of war are physically rendered
in the film, they have their roots in psychological trauma. The
impact of these elements must be shown if the film is to be deemed
realistic. Russell Miller relays the words of Sergeant Eric Grinham,
which can attest to the scene where the SS man is forced to dig
his own grave, and an argument ensues between Miller’s men
on the enemy soldier’s life:
“There was a scare one night when a
German soldier who was injured when his convoy was shot up staggered
into our camp and was caught. The following day, the Maquis made
him dig his own grave and shot him. […] They had suffered
very badly in that area and two nurses had been raped so the Maquis
were unmerciful.” (Miller 2003: 161)
While rendered physically manifest in argument and
(for the German) imminent death, this addresses the psychological
impact of war. Miller is likewise shown to have the physical symptoms
of shaking from the deeply psychological consequences of shell shock.
The verbal expression of Miller’s collective
war experience is presented in the church when he refers to the
ninety-four men lost under his command. To put this in context,
as a Captain in the US Army he is a Company commander, who is responsible
for 120-150 men. Therefore he has lost the equivalent of an entire
combat company, which has expectantly been weakened by losses and
sickness. There is a psychological cost in the responsibility inherent
in leadership.
In the closing scene we are provided with a significant
example of psychological trauma in the irrationality of Miller shooting
the approaching tank with his pistol. This is a realistic depiction
deeming his current state of mind, and having gone into shock due
to his wounds. It also stands as a final act of defiance, often
done by dying men.
It is evident that, while there are many aspects
to realism, it is difficult to implement them all. Saving Private
Ryan provides an effective example of how realism functions
in a multitude of realms reflecting the realities of war. Lapsley
and Westlake remark that: “film’s extraordinary power
to imitate reality has made realism a central feature of cinema
aesthetics.” (2006: 156)
Film, while depicting reality, is not reality.
The vast numbers of discourses present in arguing realism further
stresses this. We can argue therefore, that there are no facts,
only interpretations.Toplin uses the term “fraction”
(2006: 29) to describe the notion of a fictitious character driven
story, its background a textbook type history. This concept comes
some way to encompassing the historical reality of Saving Private
Ryan within the action adventure genre of traditional Hollywood
productions.
Considering the historical and human involvement in the events of
war it becomes necessary to produce actual accounts of the time
to assess a film in the context of realism. Film theory and criticism
alone does not suffice.
Saving Private Ryan makes a serious attempt
to avoid a nationalistic bias through appropriate depiction of German
combat efficiency and technological prowess, though this might not
be explicit to many viewers. Examining cinematography provides awareness
that there must be a balance between the practicality of war footage
produced in wartime and that of creative licence for dramatic effect.
One can conclude that there has been a wholehearted
attempt to present historical events without prejudice. Noting the
impact upon, and views of, veterans demonstrates a film which has
transcended time and the events which it depicts.
Bibliography
Clooney, N. (2002) The Movies That Changed Us: Reflections
on the Screen, New York: Atria Books
Gabbard, K. (2001) ‘Saving Private Ryan Too
Late’, from The End of Cinema as We Know It: American Film
in the Nineties, Jon Lewis (ed.) New York: New York University Press
Kershaw, R. (1994) D-Day: Piercing the Atlantic
Wall, Maryland: Naval Institute Press
O’Donnell, P. (2001) Beyond Valor: World
War II’s Ranger and Airborne Veterans Reveal the Heart of
Combat New York: The Free Press
Miller, R. (2003) Behind the Lines: The Oral
History of Special Operations in World War II London: Pimlico
Murray, W. (2003) ‘A Visitor to Hell’
The D-Day Companion Penrose, J. (.ed) New Orleans: The
National D-Day Museum
Prince, S. (2001) Movies and Meaning: An Introduction
to Film Second Edition. Boston: Allyn and Bacon
Tomasulo, F. (2001) ‘Empire of the Gun: Steven
Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan and American Chauvinism’,
from The End of Cinema as We Know It: American Film in the Nineties
Jon Lewis (ed.) New York: New York University Press
Electronic Sources
Haggith, T. (2002) ‘D-Day Filming: For Real.
A Comparison of ‘Truth’ and ‘Reality’ in
“Saving Private Ryan” and Combat Film by the British
Army’s Film and Photographic Unit’ in Film History,
Vol. 14, No. 3/4, Indiana University Press, pp. 332-253
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3815436
[Accessed 02 May 2008]
Young, M. (2003) ‘In the Combat Zone’
in Radical Historical Review, Issue 85, The Radical Historian’s
Organization, Inc., pp. 253-264
http://muse.jhu.edu.helicon.vuw.ac.nz
[Accessed 02 May 2008]
Jaehne, K. (1999) ‘Saving Private Ryan by
Steven Spielberg’ in Film Quarterly, Vol. 53, No.
1 University of California Press, pp. 39-41
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3697212
[Accessed 02 May 2008]
Films
Clegg, T. Bravo Two Zero (1999) British
Broadcasting Corporation
Scott, R. Black Hawk Down (2001) Columbia
Pictures
Spielberg, S. Saving Private Ryan (1998)
DreamWorks Pictures
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