Saving Private Ryan: Accuracy Review
Saving Private Ryan is a 1998 film directed by Steven Spielberg dealing with the World War II Battle of Normandy. During its intense first twenty minutes, the film depicts the brutal, gruesome realities of what happened on June 6, 1944 on Omaha Beach. The historically accurate portrayal of the D-Day invasion by Allied Forces is the background for the fictional plot of a rescue mission for a single soldier, Private Ryan. The story of Ryan, his family, and his rescue is not true but it is symbolic of the heroism and terrible losses suffered in this crucial military campaign. Historian Steven Ambrose was a consultant on the film and views this kind of fiction as “the kind that illuminates truth rather than diminishing it.” Saving Private Ryan made history by telling the story of Omaha Beach on D-Day with great historical accuracy. Spielberg was very committed to recreating that time and place so that the audience would know the truth about the suffering, death and courage of our American soldiers and the Allied troops. The film provided a close-up view of what it was like to be on a landing craft heading for the Dog Green section of Omaha Beach from the point of view of the main character, Captain John Miller.
The production of sets, special effects, sound effects, ships, weapons, and uniforms were based on extensive research and first-hand accounts. The special effects recreated the vast size of the operation and the countless ships and carriers that were used in the attack. They recreated the Higgins boats, the high waves, the underwater traps set by the Germans, and the constant gunfire pointed at the men. The soldiers were in authentic uniforms and weighted down with heavy guns and seen shaking in fear, praying, and throwing up.
Soldiers that survived that day to tell their story helped provide details about what they experienced. The film captured the sounds of machine guns, the slaughter of troops as they left the Higgins boats, and the screams of the
The production of sets, special effects, sound effects, ships, weapons, and uniforms were based on extensive research and first-hand accounts. The special effects recreated the vast size of the operation and the countless ships and carriers that were used in the attack. They recreated the Higgins boats, the high waves, the underwater traps set by the Germans, and the constant gunfire pointed at the men. The soldiers were in authentic uniforms and weighted down with heavy guns and seen shaking in fear, praying, and throwing up.
Soldiers that survived that day to tell their story helped provide details about what they experienced. The film captured the sounds of machine guns, the slaughter of troops as they left the Higgins boats, and the screams of the
References: http://amankarios1.umwblogs.org/historical-accuracy/ http://www.strategypage.com/moviereviews/default.asp?target=Saving%20Private%20Ryan%20 http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/e-h/film-saving.html http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120815/quotes