War Compared in The Movies Saving Private Ryan and Apocalypse Now The movies Saving Private Ryan and Apocalypse Now are based in two major war conflicts including the United States. This paper will examine how Saving Private Ryan depicts World War II and how the movie has become recognized everywhere for the realism of the war conflicts. Commonly known for the first conflict in the movie that reenacts the gruesome attack on Omaha Beach on June 6th, 1944. While apocalypse Now is based in the middle of the Vietnam War. It is a story where Captain Willard receives “classified” mission to travel up the Nung River and terminate the faulted General Kurtz. Kurtz has crossed the border into Cambodia and is conducting hit-and-run missions against the Viet Cong. In this paper, it will also compare to see how each …show more content…
Especially in the invasion of Omaha Beach. From the very beginning on the LCVP boats, they were the same type of boats used in World War II. In fact, 2-3 boats used in filming were actually used in the real Normandy invasion. “40 barrels of fake blood were utilized in the opening battle scene” (IMDB). Which successfully replicated the water and sand turning red from blood on June 6, 1944. “The focus is on grand strategy, and an attendant grand narrative; the lens offers a blow-by-blow assessment of the massive assault” (Finns and Ryder). The movie also accurately portrayed how common it was to lose soldiers and injured soldiers would commonly be left behind so that the others would be saved. Even though the battle scenes were very realistic the biggest inconsistencies lied in the story line. For example, there was no Captain John Miller in real life. Even the town of Rommelle (the last battle) did not exist in real life, Rommel was actually a German field commander in World War II. Also Private Ryan didn’t exist either, he was just a character replicating a Civil War monument as described
Jarhead follows the journey of Anthony Swofford during his service in Middle East. Throughout his journey, Swofford presents a unique perspective on a variety of issues that indirectly affect American life and the “war” on terrorism. Some of the issues touched on include the mental stability and mentality of American soldiers, the influence of politics in the presentation of war, and the construction of a marine. Through these themes, along with the unique perspectives offered by the characters in the film, the audience is able to gain insight into the corruption and lies that are “war”. This insight ultimately helps the audience analyze the text deeper and enables them to draw the similarities in current events and dissect what they
gives us simple a wide view, so that we can see lot more scenes and
There is one scene where the three flag raisers entered a crowded stadium before a football game which typified how an image of war can be so different to the reality of war. The flash photography, the cheering, the roar of the crowd all went to John Bradley’s head and he had flash backs of the fighting on Iwo Jima and the genuine heroes that he had left behind. This scene contrasts what the reality of war, were all the men are dug in and fighting for there life, and the images of war. Ira Hayes says “I know it’s a good thing, raising the money and that, ‘cause we need it. But, I can’t take them calling me a hero. All I did was try not to get shot. Some of the things I saw done, things I did, they weren’t things to be proud of, you know?” Clint Eastwood shows continuously, through his characters physiology shows how one single photo can be so different what really makes up the battle of Iwo Jima. The aim was to get war bonds; the minds of the three main characters through Clint Eastwood’s directing showed a strong insight to how the reality of a war and an image of war can be so contrasting.
I read the section about the battles that took place during WWII. It brought to my minds that in real life. There are more important things during a war than finding a private Ryan. War is a huge event and the little things like finding a person to keep the family name going is too small to include in war history. This is what separates the movies from the real life. Another difference is they don't show the actual planning it takes to start an attack or the inelegance that is needed to set up the perfect defense barrier to prevent the advancement of the enemy soldiers. A real battle can last days, weeks, months, or years, compared to movie war that lasts not even a day and has one guy or one platoon take on the entire other side. The casualties of real war is tremendous, rather than movies where you see almost the same characters in the whole movie accomplishing some of the most intense tasks with only one or two dying. Also, in movie war you don't see the other side's horror. You think all the opponents are bad horrible people that deserve to die, when they are just soldiers doing their job and the only reason we are fighting them is because of a bad leader or government. So in the movies every enemy deserves to die and should be shown no mercy, but the actual thing about that is that the enemy is just like any other soldier. And furthermore when the good guys lose a battle in a
With Hollywood producers jumping all over the idea of making historical wars and battles come to life on the big screen, many times fabricated and over-the-top details are added to enhance the overall plots. Keeping this in mind, I analyzed the movie Gettysburg, directed by Ronald F. Maxwell, for historical accuracies. The battle of Gettysburg was the bloodiest battle in American history, many movies have been made to re-enact the horrors that unraveled within those days; however, many of them are incorrect. The movie Gettysburg, directed by Ronald F. Maxwell, seems to be mostly accurate with the historical events. The defense of Little Round Top was a pivotal moment within the battle of Gettysburg, the winner of this skirmish would decide
When the United States entered World War II in 1941, it was commonly believed that the war was “America’s golden age, a peak in the life of society when everything worked out and the good guys definitely got a happy ending” (2), which is a direct result from Hollywood’s glamorization of the war. During the war, the film industry began to boom, using the war as inspiration for making movies. Lifeboat (1944) and The Moon Is Down (1943) for example, makes it clear who the enemies were because the enemies were always “…cruel, devious, and unprincipled…” (11). It was also clear who the good guys and heroes were. The film industry even glamorized how people died in the war. In these movies whenever an American died their death was quick, painless, and clean. However, when the
According to the author Tim O’Brien, people tend to readily accept the ‘facts’ presented of what happened during a war. People do not consider the existence of fallacies regarding the actual stories of what happens in wars, few consider that the ‘facts’ of an incident often change through people’s words. The film ‘Saving the Private Ryan’ by Steven Spielberg features both facts and seemingness part of the war story. Since it is so difficult to fully describe a war using human language, Spielberg ended up revising his stories to make sense out of it. Spielberg included parts that did not occur or exclude parts that did occur in order to make their stories seem more credible. According
Saving Private Ryan is a theatrical masterpiece that incorporates many universal themes that almost all people can relate to. The movie follows a squad of U.S. soldiers as they battle through the trenches of World War II. Directed by the great Stephen Spielberg, the movie is claimed by many to be the most accurate presentation of war in any movie to date. The movie includes several themes that helps captivate the audience and truly help people understand just how horrible war is. The idea of losing loved ones frightens even the toughest of us, and being lost in a foreign land scares many others. Both of these themes are thoroughly explored and propelled onto the audience to experience. The extremely accurate depiction of war, the universal themes that everyone can relate to, and the film being a theatrical masterpiece are all reasons why everyone should watch Saving Private Ryan.
The film has many characters that actually made a difference in history. Four major characters were Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, Pvt. Trip, Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins and Cpl. Thomas Searles. Colonel Shaw served as the Commander of the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. He also serves as great leader to his troops. Pvt. Trip was a soldier of the 54th Regiment. Seen to other soldiers as a smart mouth trouble maker because of his background. Sgt. Maj. John Rawlins started as a grave digger for wars then moved up to a non-commissioned officer. After volunteering for the 54th regiment he was promoted by Major Cabot Forbes. He had to
This paper will be discussing the two movies The Green Berets (1968) and Apocalypse Now (1978), and argue how The Green Berets is a propagandist pro-war film depicting the unrealities of the Vietnam War while Apocalypse Now is an ambiguous anti-war film that shows the social and political absurdities of the Vietnam War.
The mission to save Private Ryan, the names of the soldiers, and the names of smaller battles were fictional. The final battle of the movie at “Romelle” did not happen, and Romelle is actually a German Field Commander during World War II. There was no Captain John Miller of the 2nd Rangers either. The mission to find the fictitious character, Private Ryan, never happened but Private Ryan was modeled after a soldier named Frederick “Fritz” Niland from the 101st Airborne Division. Niland was one of four brothers and his other three brothers were killed in the war. His mom received the death notifications all at once, and Niland was sent home to the U.S. There was no record of a rescue mission for Fritz Niland.
on the Omaha beach at the date and time of the war. The Longest Day
Since 1968, there have been at least 25 films made that portray the events of the Vietnam War. Historians have to ask themselves when watching these films, "Did the fictional character represent historical figures accurately? Is this how a soldier would react in this situation?" The point of view of the director of the film can change with simple alterations in camera angles. For example, a view from the ground of a battle seen can show how the innocent people had the war in their own backyards. The view from a helicopter can show Viet Cong firing rounds at American troops and the troops can't tell the difference between the innocent and the enemy. The audience feels empathy and sympathy for the person from whose point of view the
Apocalypse Now Through the years many wars have been fought. Lives have been lost, and people have been left emotionally scarred. This is exactly what the plot, of the movie Apocalypse Now from 1979, circles around.
While watching this film you may find yourself experiencing some of the same emotions as the characters in the film this allows you to be in the movie letting you be a part of an important event in our history. This is what makes the film so unique. Its full of different scenarios that keep you wondering what is going to happen next. I think that this film is a very close representation of what WWII was really like.