Saving Private Ryan was inspired by the deaths of the Sullivan brothers, all of whom died when their ship was sunk in WW 2. I think they had a surviving sister. There's a ship USS The Sullivan's named after them.
@@awkwardashleigh It's inspired by a true story but not the Sullivans, it was based on the Niland brothers. Fritz was a paratrooper who dropped on D Day and was actually sent home after his three brothers were killed (one was actually taken prisoner by the Japanese and survived the war) Stephen Ambrose wrote briefly about them in Band of Brothers, which Speilberg read and inspired him to make Saving Private Ryan and later make Band of Brothers.
@@awkwardashleigh Actually, the Niland Brothers were the direct inspiration for this. Frederick Niland was in the 501st Regiment of the 101st Airborne (and Niland knew several of the 506th, 2nd Battalion, Company E members ("Easy Company" from Band of Brothers). During the work on "Ryan", Hanks learned about Easy Company and decided to make the "Band of Brothers" mini-series.
If you want BIG tears... When Spielberg had finished editing this movie, he premiered it for his crew, some friends, and some WWII Veterans. Halfway through that rough opening few minutes, he saw several of the WWII vets walking out. He stopped the film, and went out to the lobby... fearing they hated the movie. There were these old men, breaking down crying in the lobby.... it was TOO real for them, after 50+ years, it was too close. Every time I think about that, I tear up. I've never looked at an old guy wearing a WWII Veteran cap, or pin, the same again after watching this movie.
The realness of this movie, as harsh and shocking and triggering as it was (is), actually helped a lot of WWII veterans. They said that they were finally able to talk about their experiences because there was a reference point in the movie, it was a place to start the conversation. Where they hadn't been able to describe what they'd experienced they could now show it. And for those who were triggered and their PTSD, which had never really been treated they'd just learned to cope (some well and some incredibly poorly) resurfaced they finally, actually, got treatment for it. At least, this is what I understand, what I've heard.
I fully believe that at least the first half hour of this movie should be required viewing for high schoolers. There are too many young people who have no idea what their grandpas or great grandpas went through. You can’t fully appreciate that which you know nothing about.
You are now legally required to watch the mini-series called "Band of Brothers." Imagine if Saving Private Ryan were 10x better. That's Band of Brothers.
And mostly true too. One thing about Lt. Dike. He earned medals for bravery... including saving the lives of easy company before Foy and he was shot in the shoulder at Foy. So keep in mind BoB is the faithful retelling of what easy company *remembers* and reflects their dislike of the outsider, Lt. Dike. See : "Lieutenant Dike military record Band of Brothers"
@@catherinelw9365Well Saving Private Ryan never occurred either and was showing a totally insane mission that would never have happened, in order to show the soldiers protests and sacrifices. Such is movies I guess.
Upham is representative of many of the soldiers who fought in WWII, a bunch of young, scared 18-20 year old kids right out of high school who did not want to be in combat and were not ready to handle the horrors of war. Plus, Upham was simply a translator and hadn’t seen any combat up to that point. It’s easy to want to hate his character for letting Mellish and some of the others die, but there is a ton of realism at the same time to probably how many of those soldiers really felt.
@@GordoFunk555 fyi my dad was in the 1st Canadian parachute battalion and jumped on d day. I grew up listening to first hand accounts from him and his legion buddies. So yeah Ggi joe saving a bridge too far with his tommy gun and dirty socks is a joke in my eyes
The tragedy of Upham is that he was a kitten surrounded by tigers. Everyone else was either a Ranger or paratrooper, with extensive combat training as a unit, and for some, actual combat experience. Upham was a National Guard clerk. In combat, two things keeping you going- training and your bonds with the men around you. He had neither. So, dropped into the insanity, he froze. Just for a minute or two. And he'll carry those minutes for the rest of his life.
Its a natural human reaction, you have fight or flight, but sometimes the flight can be so strong or the situation so inescapable you simply freeze into a catatonic state, even other animals have similar reactions... even if your brain is screaming to act, it refuses to do so for your safety. People kinda react unfairly negatively to his actions in that bit, but I can bet 1000$ any of them in a similar situation would do the exact same thing... they often forget the sensory overload that would be happening around them. If you arent numbed to it, your basically screwed.
Reactors always seem to hate him for being cowardly but I find him to be such a realistic character. A lot of people would freeze up in that situation. It easy to sit there and judge him, yet I bet a lot of people would do the same thing if they were actually in his shoes and in the middle of battlefield facing death head on. It's natural for your self preservation to kick in.
Ashleigh, something to note, Mel Brooks is a WW2 veteran. He went thru all this. He even went thru the Battle of the Bulge and being surrounded and cut off by the Nazis in one of the coldest winters on record. During the battle, he would sing rude songs about Hitler over a loud speaker to entertain our troops and demoralize theirs. The rest of the time he was a mine sweeper, clearing mines from roads and fields. One of the world's funniest writer/directors is also a certified bada$$.
Another WW2 veteran was James Doohan,most famously known for playing Montgomery Scott, or Scotty if you will, on Star Trek. Doohan was a sniper who killed 2 German soldiers before being shot and being discharged due to injury. One of his fingers was shot off during the battle and he was also shot in his legs, back and arm. He survived thanks to a cigarette box gifted to him prior to his departure.
Rod Serling, creator and host of "Twilight Zone", was a paratrooper in WWII. His humanistic POV that came across in so many Twilight Zone stories (and other works he wrote) was well-earned.
Frank Sutton, who played Sgt. Carter on the show Gomer Pyle, was actually in the US Army. He fought in battles in the Pacific theater, including Iwo Jima.
The guy who plays the sniper is Barry Pepper. He was the young guard in The Green Mile. Also, despite the fact that he plays Southerners in both, he’s actually Canadian!!
@@brandonhill2183 Did you watch the ending? Or just to the end of the movie? She described it perfectly so she was definitely paying attention the whole time. She's caught things that most reactors didn't even talk about at all...or missed entirely
If you ever choose to do a series, I'm sure Band of Brothers will be recommended to you. A production by Spielberg and Hanks, based on the true story of the 101st Airborne, 506th Easy Company. Also, thank you for the Tom Sizemore tribute. I've been a fan since the 80s and he had a tough road, with addiction and relapses, etc. Spielberg wanted him in this movie to the point he told the studio he'd have Sizemore drug test daily, since the studio didn't want to take a chance. Sizemore agreed and the entire time of the shoot, he was clean and sober. Never slipped and proved Spielberg's belief in him correct. RIP, Tom. You left behind incredible work.
@@raymond9016 Not all. In fact in one episode, they have real life WW2 veterans who talk about the very fact that the common German soldier weren't bad people, were just doing their job, and, in different circumstances, they could have been friends. This is just one small snippet. There is more throughout the series.
I remember when I first watched this movie I HATED Upham for his cowardice. However, I have never served, I have never stood in those shoes. As time goes by I have realized what a brilliant character study this is in the middle of this magnificent story. Five out of five stars indeed!
Watch again and watch his transformation in the way he carries his rifle. From the beginning where people had to tell him to watch he points it, to the end after he kills the guy.
In WW2, a study of the US infantry ( excluding elite units ) in showed that in combat one third of their troops never fired back, another would fire back sporadically, and the last third could be counted on. By the Vietnam war, 90% of infantry could be counted on to return fire immediately, just through proper training.
Everyone always hates up ham but I always think to myself, what the fuck would I do? I can’t see myself doing hardly anything different. He wasn’t trained for action and just got thrown into the meat grinder.
You’re a better person for realising this. Unless you’ve been there, you can’t know how you’d be. I haven’t. Fear and the reality of war hits everyone differently. My grandfather was in the first war. Fought through unutterable horrors at the Somme and Ypres. Watched his friends torn to pieces. 15 days to advance 2 miles. 57,000 casualties in one day. Never talked about it. We found his letters after he passed. ‘I have near lost all my friends’
@@HT-io1eg That is heartbreaking! What is the old saying "There but for the grace of God go we"? I was too young for Vietnam and too old for all the middle east conflicts that came after. I count my blessings, so to speak. (funny, I am super *not* religious but used two different religious expressions in one post. Oh well, lol)
The hand shaking is a sign of PTSD. He was continually assigned tough missions where he saw lots of death. You can only see and experience so much until your body starts showing physical symptoms of your mental trauma
PTSD, maybe, but extreme stress over the long term definitely. Even outside of direct combat action when I was in the Army and deployed you would have guys who had been going too hard too long and start showing cracks. Little twitches and quirks. I would get just intense muscle soreness in my neck and side from just working and doing guard duty or transport security multiple days in a row. For the entire 15 months I was in Iraq I "worked" 6 or 7 day weeks 12 hours most days. If you were lucky you would get more down time if you were doing security, but sometimes you didn't get more than 12 hours and back at it. Setting aside the psychological toll, which often only catches up when you are back in the world, the physical stress of doing that stuff and being forward and lacking a chance to properly relax is drastic.
That was water he was drinking after that first battle, not alcohol. Alcohol flasks are much smaller. That was a WW2 era water canteen given to all soldiers back then. He had the shakes due to the stresses of battle and leading men to their deaths. Also, those iron cross things on the beach were called hedgehogs and were meant to impede moving equipment onto the beaches and/or shred any landing craft. The personnel carriers had to stop short and let the soldiers wade through the shallow waters, which slowed them down, making them easier targets. One last thing, Ryan was played by Matt Damon. Surprised you seemed not to know him off hand. He has been one of the most active leading actors of the last 25 years. You should definitely see the movie that made him famous. He co-wrote it with his best friend, Ben Affleck. It also does not hurt that it is an amazing movie and stars an amazing actor in Robin Williams. That move is "Good Will Hunting".
Hey Ashleigh, my Uncle George landed at Normandy with the Canadians. His best friend was blown apart moments later. He told me he could not watch this movie, it was too realistic. The bravery of these young men was astonishing. We would not have this world without them. We owe them everything
God bless your uncle. As a Canadian I've always been so proud of the men and women who sacrificed so much for the Commonwealth. My grandfather was a mechanic during that day of days, and passed before I could talk to him about his time overseas. Before my friend's grandfather passed, I was able to talk to him for hours on a quiet Easter Sunday. He had served in the Canadian Navy on a Sub-hunter Corvette patrolling the frigid (and quiet) waters around Northern Newfoundland. He was a wonderful storyteller and his remembrance of Victory Day over Germany, is something I will always hold dear. I felt so privileged to have spent that time with a wonderful man.
You are correct sir and being a disabled veteran from the 80s it pains and angers me to see how politicians just crap on them and undo everything our brave men and women fought for under a leader that wants to destroy EVERYTHING they bleed and died for !!! Our politicians hate us our country and the freedom we fought for and love yet we are threaten our freedoms more then our foreign enemies did because it's happening for the 1st time in US soil !!! We might as well have left the South Win !!! Why not ??? The slave owners are controlling it now and evidently the slaves approve !!! Yea Yea I know I'm a racist but never had truer words been spoken !!! I just have the balls to say it you Yankee cowards !!! At this point the civil war was nothing more then a waist of life and time !!! Like the Hebrew people they were freed from 400 years of bondage but they just wait to go back to them as soon as things got a little rough !!! We freed the slaves with war and then 150 years we get trashed by their job for doing it and try to run back to the slave owner's kids !!! Stupidity is blind and bliss and welcome !!! What can I say ???
Right before I went to Air Force Basic Training, I invited a coworker and good friend of mine to go see it when it came out in 1998. Mr. Paul Hyland was a WWII veteran and took part in the beach landings at Omaha with the 35th Infantry Division. I asked him if it was really like that and he replied "Not enough bodies." I'll never forget that. We kept in touch for the next several years even when I was deployed overseas. He was even able to come to my 1st reenlistment and he wore his WWII Class A uniform. It was pretty cool. He passed away in 2005 at the age of 81 and I miss him to this day and now, as a retired combat veteran myself, this movie means a lot more to me now.
Taking care of the dead was done by a group called graves registration.a thankless but terribly important job.the opening scene was shot at the American military cemetery just off Omaha Beach .visited there many years ago,a sad but awe inspiring place.
My grandfather was in the war and at the battle of the bulge, and he made it home.. my mom was an infant when he left and was two yrs old when he returned. I will forever be thankful for his sacrifice and the sacrifices of every soldier ♥️
My grandfather was in the leading force that liberated the soldiers at the bulge. I am very thankful his sacrifice and lucky he made it home, because my dad wasn't born until the 60's.
Ashleigh ... you do understand. Yes, you do. From a US Air Force veteran, please continue to be you! Don't change a thing! The world needs your laughter and beauty.
Ashleigh, I haven't seen this question answered yet so I'll do so. You asked "Who cleans up after big battles." That unit is called the Graves Registration and are a specialized branch of the US Corps of Engineers. They will plan out and construct the cemetery once the fighting has moved on, record who is resting in what place and place markers until the head stones are ready to be placed.
It's so astounding that 9,000 soldiers died on that beach and someone had to figure it all out, who had died and how to bury them properly. Thank God for dog tags?
I saw this in the theater. I’d read about the honest depiction of the D-Day landing and was worried when I saw a bunch of WWll veterans (wearing hats depicting that fact) come into the theater before the movie started. They weren’t together, sitting all over in different seats. I made note of where each man was sitting so I could run over to help if any of them freaked out or had a heart attack from triggered ptsd. When the film ended, I sat until all the credits were done rolling and the house lights came on. When I turned to leave, I saw all those veterans standing together, at attention, in the back of the theater. I stood and stared, it was so incredible. None were crying but all expressions were fierce. I’ll never forget it.
When you see the movie again, you can totally see how Tom Hanks character is a high school teacher and coach. He is a natural leader and knows how to watch over a young flock and remains the strongest and most determined and pushes the unit to their full potential. Something a really good teacher or coach always does.
If you ever decide to delve into a series for the channel, Band Of Brothers is an absolute must. Pretty much everybody who was involved in the making of this had a hand in making that.
Loved it. I was also in tears watching this remembering how war (Vietnam) changed my Father. He returned from the war covered in medals for Valour under fire, but he was never the same. A Young Man went off to war, someone else came back...
Wades speech in the church about ignoring his mother and pretending to be asleep resonates with me. I try to live my life knowing any word said or unsaid, any action taken or un-taken could be the last. The regret in Wades eyes when telling that tale has forced me to always appreciate.
Same here. That scene has stuck with me the most since the first time ever watching the movie. And clearly there are a lot of memorable emotional moments. I've probably seen this movie 10 times in its entirety and Wade talking about his mom makes me well up every time.
FUBAR is an acronym that stands for "F'ed Up Beyond All Recognition." A lot of military things have earned that title. :) Also, speaking of Speilberg movies that are real, important, and heavy, but good, please react to Schindler's List.
I second Schildler's List. That movie affected me so deeply that, although it was important to watch, I don't believe I could bear to view it a second time.
My father was a participant of this invasion, serving in the Canadian forces who landed on Juno Beach. He never talked about his experience but he did get injured on three different occasions, always going back in action. His last injury on his foot was a lasting impediment; he always had to ware a brace to allow him to walk. Since he never talked to us about all this, I never understood the kind of impact he would have lived thru until I saw this film. I just wish I would have been able to talk to him, but unfortunately, my dad passed away before this film came out.
Few people understand how someone can be so scared they can't force themselves to move ... they can't go forward or backwards. They can't even shit themselves. Your mind is screaming "GET UP! MOVE!" and ... you can't. I cannot express how much I appreciate @awkwardashleigh's take on Upham.
When my now husband and I went to see this in the theater, there was an elderly couple sitting a couple of rows in front of us. I could see him clearly squirming in his seat through the entirety of the opening beach scene. When they used the flamethrower on the bunker and the burning people began jumping from the opening, he sprung up and rushed out of the theater sobbing loudly. That was the moment I understood why my grandfather never spoke about his time in the service. Not just his time in the war, any of it.
i always notice people getting mad at oppum for being a coward. and i understand completely. but always remember he was a writer and not a soldier. He was brought a long as a translator for the group. His character arc is honestly one of the most heart breaking as we see him completely broken by the end
A famous phrase for Morphine is "One to kill the pain, two to kill the patient". The medic knew he was dead because his liver was shot up, so his request for the second shot was a request to die quickly.
The ending scenes in the village/town was filmed in my home town. I remember walking out of work and the ground shook and the loudest BOOM I'd ever heard, echoed across everything. A work buddy looked up at the smoke in the sky and said 'they're filming a movie at the old airfield.' We all (in the local area) mostly knew about it by then buy we had no idea it was going to be that good and that heart-breaking at the same time. Sobering to know that our guys were also just guys and got scared and sometimes got it wrong and still stayed at it to the end.
Saw it in the theatre when I was 27. Couldn't talk when walking out to my car. Sat there and cried for 20 minutes, then called a friend because I just couldn't be alone right then. Watching this reaction video is the closest I've come to watching the whole thing again, and it's almost too much even now that I'm in my 50s.
OMG... I forget that the first Ryan was Nathan Fillion... how nice is to be a great movie director and work with a bunch of amazing actors in every role of your movies...
Ashleigh, you do a wonderful job of breaking down a movie or its scenes. I was never in the military but your last review and the reaction to Saving Private Ryan seem to have you engaged and engrossed which this movie can do with its audience. But I thought you were harsh with the character of actor Jeremy Davies who played Col. Upham. Humans have four basic emotions and from the beginning to the end that character experienced all of them. I felt Col. Upham was so brave to stand up and try to save that German soldier who was responsible for killing his fellow unit member. Or moments he ran on the battlefield but failed others because he was human. I think, whenever I see a military memorial, I wondered how many died or were wounded but we never know how many are scarred emotionally and mentally or how many take their own lives because they struggled with PTSD. Anyway, keep up the good job and God bless you always.
This is the male version of the tearjerker film, like Fried Green Tomatoes or Steel Magnolias is for most women. I don't know a man that doesn't shed a tear watching this masterpiece of storytelling. I didn't even get through your viewing without tearing up multiple times. Spielberg celebrates the men who fought to save our world from fascism while never glorifying the violence of battle - in fact he's given us a powerful cautionary tale that doesn't shy away from showing us the true horrors of war. I'm so glad to see that it still resonates for the younger generations. Thanks for sharing your experience watching this incredible piece of cinematic brilliance, Ashley!
My Dad was a corporal in WWII (97th Inf, 303rd). He loved this movie. It meant a lot to him... and he meant the world to me. He passed on in 2012. Sure do miss my best friend.
Tom Sizemore's career punched way above its weight class. He's in (a)one of the top five all-time war films (this), (b)the hardest-boiled crime drama of all time ("Heat"), and (c)the most insane violent social satire of all time ("Natural Born Killers"). And that's just a small sample of his high quality work. I'd also single out his smallish role as a bullying EMT in "Bringing Out The Dead."
Same. I spent the first sequence (of the beach landing) sitting in my theater seat, protecting the back of my neck because I felt so vulnerable. Some of the most intense moments on film, ever.
I saw this movie on opening day. The opening sequence had me glued to my chair gripping the sides. And at the end when old Ryan tells his wife "Tell me I'm a good man" I cried. That line of please tell me I've lived up to the sacrifice my brothers paid for me. Heavy indeed. Thank you to those who have served and their families.
But as many miss, particularly on TH-cam, the point of the movie is that the mission WAS a huge mistake and actually would never occur just to save one ordinary guy. The horrors of war and sacrifice were the focus here and the tacked on hokey prologue and epilogue were soundly derided by critics. The “rescue mission” would never have been ordered and the soldiers in the movie are correct about it being a mistake.
@@DoctorShocktor The point of the movie was to remind the audience of what those in "The Greatest Generation" sacrificed for the rest of us, while a few of them were still alive to receive our thanks. The prologue and epilogue were neither "hokey" nor "soundly derided by critics." They were a necessary element added to further humanize the story and add to the emotional impact felt by the audience, as well as (hopefully) inspire audience members to ask themselves if _they_ had truly "earned it".
My first time on this channel. It was a great rewatching experience with her. You can tell that she had a real father (not a daddy) and has brothers. Her husband is a lucky man.
For me, the line from this movie that really gets me is when Ryan finds out his brothers are all dead and he says, "I'm all alone." I lost my only sibling to cancer when she was in her 30s and that's exactly how it felt. Like for the first time in my life, I was all alone.
We took my grandfather to see this when it first came out. He walked out after that opening battle in tears. He never would watch it again. Aside from my granny passing away, it was the only other time I saw him cry. He said he lived that day and that it brought back so many memories for him.
When my son was in high school we went together to see this movie in the theater. Before the movie started, an elderly gentleman with a younger woman sat in front us. The gentleman turned around and asked me if I could see okay. So nice of him! When the movie started he started crying and leaned over on the woman. Then I heard my son sobbing and the four of us all cried together. Yes. Thank you to all that served, is serving and will serve. I am so thankful for my freedom.
good thing you didn't sit behind me. I let out a very loud "what the fxxx" when hanks called monty an idiot. Wasn't shy about being vocal with my opinion of this film after that.
I volunteer in Kyrgyzstan helping Soviet WWII Vets and their stories are incredible and so sad at the same time. He told me one story I will never forget. He said that he was fighting outside of Berlin with a French and American attachment after his Soviet attachment got separated and the American soldiers ran through gun fire to save his attachment. He told me I was the first American he had talked to about the war with since 1945. He ended up becoming a KGB officer and ended up being sent to Kyrgyzstan. The entire time this old man was talking to me he was holding my hand and thanking me and all the Americans who saved his life and his country and that for them we were never the enemies and now he felt like he's finally able to feel better about what he did in the war. Before I left we made an agreement to go fishing in the Summer on Lake Issyk Kul. However, Vasily passed about 6 weeks later. Was my first "Bald and Bankrupt" moment living in Kyrgyzstan and something I will never forget. War is terrible but for many... these are men doing what they are told whether for good or not.
When this movie first came out on DVD. I got it so my grandpa could watch it. He was one of them that landed on Omaha beach on D-Day. After the movie was over we sat up all night and he told me all about his experiences in the war. He was and always will be my hero.
Ashleigh, I love your channel and your reaction to this movie! I am a Veteran of Desert Shield/Storm and I come from a family of servicemembers. My oldest uncle passed away a few years ago - he was at Pearl Harbor on 07 Dec 1941. He was awarded the Purple Heart and he never talked about what he witnessed that day, not even to other family members that served. He sometimes talked about the other campaigns he was in over in Europe, but never about Pearl Harbor. Thank you to all veterans and to their families! 🙏
My Grandad was in the British Army in 1940 and was captured as part of the rear guard outside Dunkirk. He spent 5 years in a POW camp in Poland before thankfully being liberated. He never spoke of any of his experiences with anyone other than occasionally with fellow veterans. I think sometimes that's the only way you can cope with the things you experience. It's important to never forget the sacrifices these people made.
@@Pengi_SMILES Yes! It is important that we not let the sacrifices be fogotten. I can't imagine Dunkirk! That was a very perilous situation. Thanks to him (and all the others) for their service, and thanks to you for sharing the story. God Bless.
@@gregmax1321 Thanks for your support. I know there were Marines doing a lot over there espcially as it was transitioning for Shield to Storm. Thanks to your pops for his role and the men and women serving with him. Thanks also to the families also - they often sacrifice in unsung ways. Thanks for sharing!
@Ashleigh Burton The first 20-30 minutes of the movie is the closest we would ever get to experiencing the Invasion of Normandy. My granddad served in the Army during WWII and he landed on Omaha Beach three days after the battle. He rarely ever spoke about his experience during the war, some veterans just wanted to forget they were part of it. One day (Long before Saving Private Ryan was even an idea) while my parents were visiting my grandparents, my dad and granddad were in the living room and my dad was flipping through channels trying to find something to watch and came across a documentary on D-Day and they watched it a bit until my granddad stood up and said "They've got everything right except for the smell. He walked out of the living room and never spoke about it again. It wasn't until after he passed away that I learned he served in WWII. Now that I'm older and after seeing many documentaries and movies, I've gained a better understanding why he refused to ever talk about being in the war.
Ashleigh ,I love your channel. When I saw this in the theater my wife was constantly whispering to me during the battle scenes, "Are you OK?", because I'd recently retired from the Army [20 yrs, Airborne Ranger] and had shed and taken blood for our country. But this movie had even more significance for us, a few years later. In 2004, we received that "knock on the door" to tell us that our son had been killed in IRAQ.
Oh my God. I’m so sorry. Our son was Marine Corp and I know that dread. We never knew the fact, but we knew our son’s best friends family who did get that knock. Bless you
He died a hero so that all of us can live free, thank you for your sacrifice and I am terribly sorry for your loss. I bet you think about him every day ❤️…. May he Rest In Peace 🫡
I remember the muted atmosphere as everyone walked out of the cinema after watching Saving Private Ryan. There were a few hushed conversations, but most people seemed to be trying to process what they'd just seen. The film is 25 years old now, so it's impact had been lessened with time, but when it was released no one had seen anything quite that visceral.
@@Scottrob20Agreed. After having finally gotten around to watching The Pacific myself (I've never had an HBO subscription until I got a free trial to HBO Max recently) very recently, I think The Pacific definitely should follow any watchthrough of Band of Brothers.
The opening scenes are some of the most realistic ever shot. And the time when Tom hanks has the feeling like everything is in slow mo, is known as fog of war and the depiction is very realistic
Hacksaw Ridge is also another amazing war movie. It was based on a true story and had several elements left out because it was deemed too unrealistic despite being actual events.
Yeah they had to dumb things down a bit but that was as much for time as anything. One story that I always thought needed to be told as a major motion picture was the story of Raul (Roy) Benavidez and his Medal of Honor battle in Vietnam. Roy was a great man who deserves greater recognition for his actions.
On a different note, I had a relative who was a mechanic in WWII and wrote an unpublished book about his time in France. He never allowed it to be published, but the manuscript was passed amongst the family. He didn't see a lot of fighting, but the stories of what day-to-day life was like was something I never could've imagined. I'm very grateful later generations were spared that experience and I'm hopeful we don't ever have to relive such a time. With what's going on in Europe right now, sometimes it's hard to hold on to that hope.
Respectfully, if your family one days feels like sharing, Amazon allows you to auto-publish, and you can even order as many printed hardcover copies as you want, even just one. Maybe the time he took to write it deserves to be read outside of your family. Cheers, from a Frenchman - and MERCI
Ooh lord, if Ashleigh has seen this film (in particular that opening beach scene), she must surely watch the brutal and devastating but necessary, Schindler's List. That is a must see of Spielberg's filmography, and regrettably, a movie that deserves to be seen just for history's sake.
My father served in Patton's 3rd Army 42-45 (687th FAB)....Thru Normandy, the battle of the hedgerows, Battle of the Bulge... Bastogne ...One of his last duties in Europe was helping "clean up" Buchenwald concentration camp in the spring of 45....He brought back pictures he took there.....He saw A LOT....
In a dangerous, traumatic situation, people will have one of three reactions: FIGHT, FLIGHT, or FREEZE. Very relatable and clearly a masterpiece. Yes, as everyone else says, "Band of Brothers" is a series must. Words to live by for EVERY Soldier: FUBAR, BOHICA, SNAFU, DILLIGAF
Just remember that the German which Upham defended was just an ordinary soldier. The war wasn’t his idea and the crimes of his government weren’t his doing. In all likelihood he was drafted into the army. He surrendered after he realized he had no hope (which is the only time soldiers ever surrender). Executing him after surrendering may feel right in the heat of the moment… but it’s morally wrong. When enemy soldiers execute american POW’s we view them as monsters… so it’s important to avoid going down that road.
Not the only time. Sometimes soldiers surrender because they don't want to fight for what they see as the wrong side. Its happened thousands of times in Ukraine - many Russians forced into uniform surrender the first chance they get, they have no interest in dying for a bad cause.
That soldier was SS….All volunteer (Until the very end) and they had to be vetted of being of “Aryan” stock. You had to be a true believer to be in the SS….So that soldier was a true believer.
@@ryanhampson673 This. That German was in the Waffen-SS they committed atrocities and war crimes everywhere they went especially on the eastern front.
My dad actually pulled me out of school to go see this movie in theaters. He said it was probably more important at the time than what I was going to hear in class that day anyway.
Upham was a guy who made it clear from the beginning he wasn't cut out for this kind of mission, was all scatterbrained and nervous fumbling with his typewriter and stuff, said he hadn't fired a weapon since basic training, said whilst being chosen for the mission that he wasn't ready for this mission, yet Miller is like "lol, you're coming with us anyway." Cut to the battlefield days later and he's overwhelmed, mentally shut down, and unable to act upon the situation he's in. It's almost as if he should had told them from the beginning that he wasn't cut out for this... Was he really the only available translator in the area?
They're made that way because any way you push them, they dig into the sand and stay put. They're hard to remove quickly. A few years ago, I was visiting Scotland and on the east coast they still have beach defenses in place, left over from WWII and the threat of a German invasion.
@@aaronburdon221No. Caltrops are specifically the small spiked objects to damage tires, hooves, feet, etc. Tank traps are an area denial weapon, as are mines, but they are not caltrops.
@@ElliotNestermanNo they are reminiscent of the configuration of a caltrop, but they are not named that. Words actually have specific meanings sometimes.
9:16 That's not a flask, Ashleigh, it's a canteen. He's just drinking water. He has the shakes due to the adrenalin and the trauma of the beach landing. The shakes persist probably due to the weight of responsibility that he bears. I'm sure he wishes he could take a nip of something, though!
This movie and Schindler's List are amazing movies I have to force myself to watch but it's all worth it. The messages and the history there are really no words.
If you want another real Steven Spielberg masterpiece, watch Schindler's List, if you haven't seen it already. The part where Oskar Schindler breaks down after it's over and regrets not saving more people makes me cry every time.
God that ending to Schindler’s List is gonna wreck her. It wrecks me and I’m a hard ass, she’s gonna get messed up. That scene where Liam Neeson cries that all the stuff around him could of saved “one more” gets me every time, Ughh…😢
I saw this in the theater opening day. Total silence during the film, especially after that horrific opening. I saw older men crying. A couple just left. It was too much. I held my husband’s hand and watched with wide eyes. My respect for the military was deepened that day in ways I can’t put into mere words.
Was just rewatching this reaction and I still have huge respect for how you acknowledge the service folks and the things they go through. I'm not a vet but lots of family are and I just wanted to say thanks. ❤
One thing that veterans who saw this film noted is the realistic sound of bullets. In nearly all the old war movies and westerns it was all bang pow sounds, where in actual war it is the evil zip and slap sounds portrayed here. Or in many cases there was no sound at all till it hit something.
I've never been to war, but I have heard the saying that "The bullet you don't hear is the one that hits/kills you." A large amount of a bullet's sound is produced because it is moving faster than the speed of sound and makes a (small) sonic "boom". A bullet tends to get to it's target before the sonic boom !BANG! gets there. But there's not a noticeable difference if the target is fairly close to the gun. A sniper's bullet may never be heard by the victim, a quarter mile away.
I was 12 when this came out and this is the first R rated movie i saw in theaters. My father took me because "this is an important movie, you need to watch it". And im pretty sure its the first movie i cried over when i watched it too.
Watch "Killing Private Kraut" on TH-cam and see how you feel. It's a very intelligent critique of the movie which shows that while pretending to be auntie war the movie actually dehumanizes Germans and celebrates killing them.
@@raymond9016 We all should celebrate when good overcomes evil. Unfortunately a lot of Germans were swept up in Hitler’s hysteria and may not have felt they had a choice, but the Axis power was evil and had to be defeated. In the context of WWII, killing German soldiers was necessary and undoubtedly a good thing. War is atrocious, but losing to Hitler would have been far worse for humanity. Spielberg knows this and so should you.
@@tjgray2815 So you believe that our comrade and ally Joe Stalin was good? That we did a good thing cooperating with him to turn half of Europe over to communists?
@@raymond9016 There are times, limited as they may be, when it’s true that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” A 50-year Cold War was preferable to the alternative. Are you kidding?
@@tjgray2815 So, we just gloss over the death of thirty million people under Stalin? And the fact that we supplied and financed his tyranny? I guess we're too busy pounding our chests about what great heroes we are. Because otherwise we'd be speaking German, right LOL.
"Graves Registration" are the guys who "clean up" after all the shooting and dieing is done the solders have two dog tags, one is put in a sack to be transcribed into books of he Dead that go to "the War Department"( later remained the DOD) the other is jammed between the teeth of the dead with a swift kick to identify the body (or skeleton) for later burial. it is a grizzly task. WW2 Vets who lived through this say the battle scenes was nightmarishly accurate. *FUBAR* means "F*cked Up Beyond All Recognition
This is one of the greatest movies of all-time in my eyes. It's so realistic and sadly beautiful. It looks amazing, great cinematography, set designs, etc...but it also shows every single emotion that exists. I know you eventually commented on it, but it's easy for those of us at home to be so frustrated that someone would cower back and allow a fellow soldier to be killed because they were too scared to act. But in that position he was watching people die and scared that he would die as well. He didn't expect to see combat and figured he'd be somewhere safe typing away on his typewriter. He was thrust into something that wasn't for him. He changed by the end, but it was because of the guilt and (in my opinion) self-hatred he had for himself to stand back while others died for something greater. But that's also the point of the movie for me. This movie is trying to explain things that you really only understand if you had to live through a similar situation. It's hard to understand certain things unless it happens to you, but I think this movie did about as good of a job as possible with that. It's a beautiful movie, but it's also heart-wrenching. One moment a group of guys could be making stupid jokes and flaming each other, and the next a tank could roll up on them and take them all out. Live your life to the fullest and be grateful for those that made the sacrifice for it to be possible.
I worked at a movie theater when this came out. We actually had a veteran have a heart attack and pass away at the beginning scene of them storming the beach. Also had other veterans walk out because it was too realistic and brought back memories. Such an intense, but brilliant film.
Elsewhere here I mention the 10 D-Day survivors who visited us in Bosnia (we were the headquarters of the 29th ID) shortly after September 11th. They watched the movie with some of us and while some admitted that when they first saw the movie it was right on them. Others didn't have that reaction, such things impact everyone differently, but every one of them made it through the experience with us without issue. Maybe in part because we had some shared experiences, separated by a couple wars and several decades, but maybe also because we were supporting them and at the same time they were supporting us.
They consider 1941 by Steven Spielberg a flop but I legit believe it was just too ahead of its time. Too chaotic for the year it came out, but by today’s standards, it’s perfectly fine. I remember going to see it with my family as a kid and had the greatest time. One of my favorite childhood movie going experiences.
My dad was a para in ww2. When I was young I'd question him about things. You know how ghoulish children can be. It wasn't until I was much older that I realised what a harrowing experience it must have been for such a young man. He was born in 1920 so he was very young. My respect for my dad has never diminished even though he has been gone from us these past 20 years. What these youngsters from all over the world went through is gut wrenching. Such bravery and selflessness.
When I returned from my first Iraq deployment my neighbor Laurel asked if I could help her pick up a table her father had given her. We went to her parents place and her dad, a Vietnam vet who never really spoke of his wartime experience, asked me about my year. He and I swapped a few stories and after just a few minutes he and I stopped, looked at his wife and daughter who were stunned by Bill's willingness to discuss things. Bill and I exchanged a quick look and he said "well I guess we should load this into the truck." It was over halfway to Laurel's place before she spoke, she was dumbfounded by his willingness to talk about things. She'd heard more about her dad's wartime service in those few minutes than she'd heard in the preceding 33 years. Different wars, different decades, shared experiences.
Not only is this based on a real situation from D-Day but the way it was filmed, the content and how it was shown are so true to the way it really was that WWII veterans had one of two reactions....tears or long past horror or gratefulness for surviving while finally explaining what had happened to them. My own grandfather NEVER talked about his days in the service during WWII. A friend of mine's father was a D-Day veteran and suffered from the trauma for the rest of his life.
A friend of mine took his father to see this film at the theater. His dad was a WW2 veteran. He became so emotional that they had to leave. He lived through it, and didn't think it would bring back so many memories.
The conversation he has with his wife at the end implies he may have never told her about the sacrifice that was made in order to bring him home. That's one of the saddest parts for me, in that so many war veterans carried the burden of what they saw and did internally in order to shield their loved ones from having to know about the 'fog and friction' of war...great movie, great reaction.
RIP Tom Sizemore. He did a good job at being the sergeant. Another Tom film that I highly recommend is Enemy Of The State (1998) with Gene Hackman, Will Smith, and Jon Voight. Great cast in this war film, in my opinion, this is the best depicted World War II Omaha Beach tribute out there. When this came out, I heard many veterans walked out the theater because of how realistic it was, and it reminded them when they were in combat. Nice reaction Ashleigh. Thank you to all the veterans and other personnel who served during that time. Fubar in this movie meant messed up beyond all recognition. I played the Playstation game Medal Of Honor: Frontline that was modeled after this movie and I tell you the scenes of war were crazy.
The theatre I worked at premiered this movie when it first came out. The studio had invited veterans to view it for free. During the Omaha Beach scene, many vets, especially from WW2, walked out. They said it was too realistic and captured the feeling too well. Many said it was like a living flashback.
The Psychology department at UND posted mental health hotline posters at the theatre in Grand Forks when this movie was released. It had a help line for veterans to call
The sniper duel - including the shot through the other guy's scope, was based on a real event from the Vietnam War. The sniper's name was Carlos Hathcock, and his autobiography is a great read.
Several family members and I went to see this in the theatre when it came out. My Grandfather was an Army Ranger on that beach. He was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for saving 3 fellow soldiers that day. We all cried as we watched, seeing the Hell he likely went through. To this day I cannot watch this movie without tearing up. Such a brilliant film.
Tons of soldiers, like my dad, started smoking during the war. Sometimes it was their last cigarette for good. They ate when they could eat and it was water in the canteens most of the time.
You should watch Band of brothers created by Spielberg and Hanks immediately after this movie. They had a ww2 veteran as a coordinator and they were so inspired by his war stories they created the show about his unit. It’s a mini series and it’s done in the style of this show and follows easy company from basic training to wars end and has interviews with ww2 veterans to go with it.
My grandfather was on the beaches of Normandy. How he made it home to my grandmother, I’ll never know. When I teach military history, this is always shown in my class.
To answer you question 'what are they hiding behind on the beach'? They are Czech Hedgehog. They were designed to punch holes in the bottom of landing crafts.
I strongly recommend you watching "Das Boot" from 1982. It's set in the submarine warfare of WWII in the Atlantic Ocean, and even though it's far less "blood action" than in Saving Private Ryan it portraits the psychic horrors of war in a unique way. Even though it's a German film and it is told from a German perspective it's still regarded as one of the best war movies ever.
The "wrong" Ryan was Nathan Fillion from Firefly. I believe it was his first role. The other commander they meet after the sniper scene is Paul Giamatti.
The commander from the wrong Ryan is Ted Danson. Who has such a simple and great line to Miller when he tells him to go and get Ryan out. I think it was that that changed things for Miller. He was going to do the mission but it was hearing it from someone else on his level that really made him feel why it was important.
Yeah. D-Day was...a lot. And FUBAR is a military term which stands for "Effed Up Beyond All Recognition." It basically means plans or a situation went tits up. Also: I was working at a manager at a little 6 plex when this came out, and everyone came out of the auditorium afterwards just full-on sobbing. ALSO, another movie about D-Day you should watch: The Longest Day (1962) Also: Spielberg did War Horse as well, about WW1, and it's a great film as well.
Watching this in the theater, surrounded by sniffling and crying vets was the single most emotional movie watching experience of my life. Some of the vets got up and left cause it was too much. This movie gets me every single time 😭
My Grandfather was in WW2 and said the scene getting on the beach didn't even come close. He said it was much much worse. So thankful for our service men a d what they gave for us.
Fantastic reaction, as always! Saving Private Ryan is a classic for a reason. I have a request for a reaction of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF since the main actor recently passed. It is a classic, beautiful film/musical. You will laugh, sing, cry, and love it. so worth the watch.
Saving Private Ryan was inspired by the deaths of the Sullivan brothers, all of whom died when their ship was sunk in WW 2. I think they had a surviving sister. There's a ship USS The Sullivan's named after them.
holy wow - I had no idea that this was inspired by a true story.
This movie was much more inspired by the story of the 4 Niland Brothers...it is basically an alteration of that basic story.✌
@@awkwardashleigh It's inspired by a true story but not the Sullivans, it was based on the Niland brothers. Fritz was a paratrooper who dropped on D Day and was actually sent home after his three brothers were killed (one was actually taken prisoner by the Japanese and survived the war)
Stephen Ambrose wrote briefly about them in Band of Brothers, which Speilberg read and inspired him to make Saving Private Ryan and later make Band of Brothers.
There's a movie from the late 40s about the Sullivan Brothers. I think it's called The Fighting Sullivans. Pretty good.
@@awkwardashleigh Actually, the Niland Brothers were the direct inspiration for this. Frederick Niland was in the 501st Regiment of the 101st Airborne (and Niland knew several of the 506th, 2nd Battalion, Company E members ("Easy Company" from Band of Brothers). During the work on "Ryan", Hanks learned about Easy Company and decided to make the "Band of Brothers" mini-series.
If you want BIG tears... When Spielberg had finished editing this movie, he premiered it for his crew, some friends, and some WWII Veterans. Halfway through that rough opening few minutes, he saw several of the WWII vets walking out. He stopped the film, and went out to the lobby... fearing they hated the movie. There were these old men, breaking down crying in the lobby.... it was TOO real for them, after 50+ years, it was too close. Every time I think about that, I tear up. I've never looked at an old guy wearing a WWII Veteran cap, or pin, the same again after watching this movie.
Within a week or two of this movie coming out the VA was swarmed with WW II Vets asking for help with PTSD.
We All Should Thank The Veterans AND Their Families!!!
The realness of this movie, as harsh and shocking and triggering as it was (is), actually helped a lot of WWII veterans. They said that they were finally able to talk about their experiences because there was a reference point in the movie, it was a place to start the conversation. Where they hadn't been able to describe what they'd experienced they could now show it. And for those who were triggered and their PTSD, which had never really been treated they'd just learned to cope (some well and some incredibly poorly) resurfaced they finally, actually, got treatment for it.
At least, this is what I understand, what I've heard.
I fully believe that at least the first half hour of this movie should be required viewing for high schoolers. There are too many young people who have no idea what their grandpas or great grandpas went through. You can’t fully appreciate that which you know nothing about.
Tom Hanks - Philadelphia
You are now legally required to watch the mini-series called "Band of Brothers." Imagine if Saving Private Ryan were 10x better. That's Band of Brothers.
From the earth to the moon is another good series made by Tom Hanks
And mostly true too.
One thing about Lt. Dike. He earned medals for bravery... including saving the lives of easy company before Foy and he was shot in the shoulder at Foy. So keep in mind BoB is the faithful retelling of what easy company *remembers* and reflects their dislike of the outsider, Lt. Dike.
See : "Lieutenant Dike military record Band of Brothers"
Band of Brothers is now a must-watch. It's a long series. So just watch it without the camera. Maybe do a review after.
@@macmcleod1188 All false. No record of what you say.
@@catherinelw9365Well Saving Private Ryan never occurred either and was showing a totally insane mission that would never have happened, in order to show the soldiers protests and sacrifices. Such is movies I guess.
Upham is representative of many of the soldiers who fought in WWII, a bunch of young, scared 18-20 year old kids right out of high school who did not want to be in combat and were not ready to handle the horrors of war. Plus, Upham was simply a translator and hadn’t seen any combat up to that point. It’s easy to want to hate his character for letting Mellish and some of the others die, but there is a ton of realism at the same time to probably how many of those soldiers really felt.
nothing real about this film.
@@banzi403 go home bro, you’re drunk.
@@GordoFunk555 fyi my dad was in the 1st Canadian parachute battalion and jumped on d day. I grew up listening to first hand accounts from him and his legion buddies. So yeah Ggi joe saving a bridge too far with his tommy gun and dirty socks is a joke in my eyes
@@banzi403 my dad invented a jetpack and owns Nintendo. Bet you can't top that hrm
@@kingamity1985 Spr is the cleopatra of war movies.
The tragedy of Upham is that he was a kitten surrounded by tigers. Everyone else was either a Ranger or paratrooper, with extensive combat training as a unit, and for some, actual combat experience. Upham was a National Guard clerk.
In combat, two things keeping you going- training and your bonds with the men around you. He had neither. So, dropped into the insanity, he froze. Just for a minute or two.
And he'll carry those minutes for the rest of his life.
Its a natural human reaction, you have fight or flight, but sometimes the flight can be so strong or the situation so inescapable you simply freeze into a catatonic state, even other animals have similar reactions... even if your brain is screaming to act, it refuses to do so for your safety.
People kinda react unfairly negatively to his actions in that bit, but I can bet 1000$ any of them in a similar situation would do the exact same thing... they often forget the sensory overload that would be happening around them. If you arent numbed to it, your basically screwed.
To the devil with him. His cowardice got men killed.
Why the "National Guard" comment?
Reactors always seem to hate him for being cowardly but I find him to be such a realistic character. A lot of people would freeze up in that situation. It easy to sit there and judge him, yet I bet a lot of people would do the same thing if they were actually in his shoes and in the middle of battlefield facing death head on. It's natural for your self preservation to kick in.
@@clg0003 Upham is wearing the shoulder patch of the 29th Infantry Division, made up of the Maryland and Virginia National Guard.
Ashleigh, something to note, Mel Brooks is a WW2 veteran. He went thru all this. He even went thru the Battle of the Bulge and being surrounded and cut off by the Nazis in one of the coldest winters on record. During the battle, he would sing rude songs about Hitler over a loud speaker to entertain our troops and demoralize theirs. The rest of the time he was a mine sweeper, clearing mines from roads and fields. One of the world's funniest writer/directors is also a certified bada$$.
Another WW2 veteran was James Doohan,most famously known for playing Montgomery Scott, or Scotty if you will, on Star Trek. Doohan was a sniper who killed 2 German soldiers before being shot and being discharged due to injury. One of his fingers was shot off during the battle and he was also shot in his legs, back and arm. He survived thanks to a cigarette box gifted to him prior to his departure.
@@liamfitzgerald7217 think Doohan was on Juno Beach. He was a DDAY veteran.
Rod Serling, creator and host of "Twilight Zone", was a paratrooper in WWII. His humanistic POV that came across in so many Twilight Zone stories (and other works he wrote) was well-earned.
Frank Sutton, who played Sgt. Carter on the show Gomer Pyle, was actually in the US Army. He fought in battles in the Pacific theater, including Iwo Jima.
@@notbono3870 Jimmy retired from the reserves as a Brigadier General in 1968.
The guy who plays the sniper is Barry Pepper. He was the young guard in The Green Mile. Also, despite the fact that he plays Southerners in both, he’s actually Canadian!!
didn't know that, disappointed
Ashley, "Is this movie gonna make me cry?" Yes. Yes Ashley. This movie makes everybody cry.
Everybody with any humanity in 'em....
Except she didn't even cry lol. Zero tears.
Except she didn’t actually cry, so what’s the point of your comment?
She was too busy talking, making jokes, and having ADD moments to immerse herself into the movie.
@@brandonhill2183 Did you watch the ending? Or just to the end of the movie? She described it perfectly so she was definitely paying attention the whole time. She's caught things that most reactors didn't even talk about at all...or missed entirely
If you ever choose to do a series, I'm sure Band of Brothers will be recommended to you. A production by Spielberg and Hanks, based on the true story of the 101st Airborne, 506th Easy Company.
Also, thank you for the Tom Sizemore tribute. I've been a fan since the 80s and he had a tough road, with addiction and relapses, etc. Spielberg wanted him in this movie to the point he told the studio he'd have Sizemore drug test daily, since the studio didn't want to take a chance. Sizemore agreed and the entire time of the shoot, he was clean and sober. Never slipped and proved Spielberg's belief in him correct. RIP, Tom. You left behind incredible work.
Band of Brothers is my favorite television series. I think it’s the best series to ever air on tv,
Band of Brothers is an incredible series. Heartbreaking but such an incredible story.
@@MikeB12800 Does it dehumanize Germans the way this movie does?
@@raymond9016 Not all. In fact in one episode, they have real life WW2 veterans who talk about the very fact that the common German soldier weren't bad people, were just doing their job, and, in different circumstances, they could have been friends. This is just one small snippet. There is more throughout the series.
Band of Brothers is a masterpiece, I watch it every year. Ashleigh should totally watch it!
I remember when I first watched this movie I HATED Upham for his cowardice. However, I have never served, I have never stood in those shoes. As time goes by I have realized what a brilliant character study this is in the middle of this magnificent story. Five out of five stars indeed!
Watch again and watch his transformation in the way he carries his rifle. From the beginning where people had to tell him to watch he points it, to the end after he kills the guy.
In WW2, a study of the US infantry ( excluding elite units ) in showed that in combat one third of their troops never fired back, another would fire back sporadically, and the last third could be counted on. By the Vietnam war, 90% of infantry could be counted on to return fire immediately, just through proper training.
Everyone always hates up ham but I always think to myself, what the fuck would I do? I can’t see myself doing hardly anything different. He wasn’t trained for action and just got thrown into the meat grinder.
You’re a better person for realising this. Unless you’ve been there, you can’t know how you’d be. I haven’t. Fear and the reality of war hits everyone differently. My grandfather was in the first war. Fought through unutterable horrors at the Somme and Ypres. Watched his friends torn to pieces. 15 days to advance 2 miles. 57,000 casualties in one day. Never talked about it. We found his letters after he passed. ‘I have near lost all my friends’
@@HT-io1eg That is heartbreaking! What is the old saying "There but for the grace of God go we"?
I was too young for Vietnam and too old for all the middle east conflicts that came after. I count my blessings, so to speak.
(funny, I am super *not* religious but used two different religious expressions in one post. Oh well, lol)
The hand shaking is a sign of PTSD. He was continually assigned tough missions where he saw lots of death. You can only see and experience so much until your body starts showing physical symptoms of your mental trauma
It's also a natural reaction to adrenaline.
In 1944 it was known as Shell Shock.
PTSD, maybe, but extreme stress over the long term definitely. Even outside of direct combat action when I was in the Army and deployed you would have guys who had been going too hard too long and start showing cracks. Little twitches and quirks. I would get just intense muscle soreness in my neck and side from just working and doing guard duty or transport security multiple days in a row. For the entire 15 months I was in Iraq I "worked" 6 or 7 day weeks 12 hours most days. If you were lucky you would get more down time if you were doing security, but sometimes you didn't get more than 12 hours and back at it. Setting aside the psychological toll, which often only catches up when you are back in the world, the physical stress of doing that stuff and being forward and lacking a chance to properly relax is drastic.
Come to think of it it's also a sign of fatigue
@@brandonlynch5910 it was "shell shock" in WWI. It was rebranded "combat fatigue" in II.
Band of Brothers is usually a must watch after seeing this. Definitely check it out.
That was water he was drinking after that first battle, not alcohol. Alcohol flasks are much smaller. That was a WW2 era water canteen given to all soldiers back then. He had the shakes due to the stresses of battle and leading men to their deaths.
Also, those iron cross things on the beach were called hedgehogs and were meant to impede moving equipment onto the beaches and/or shred any landing craft. The personnel carriers had to stop short and let the soldiers wade through the shallow waters, which slowed them down, making them easier targets.
One last thing, Ryan was played by Matt Damon. Surprised you seemed not to know him off hand. He has been one of the most active leading actors of the last 25 years. You should definitely see the movie that made him famous. He co-wrote it with his best friend, Ben Affleck. It also does not hurt that it is an amazing movie and stars an amazing actor in Robin Williams. That move is "Good Will Hunting".
Hey Ashleigh, my Uncle George landed at Normandy with the Canadians. His best friend was blown apart moments later. He told me he could not watch this movie, it was too realistic. The bravery of these young men was astonishing. We would not have this world without them. We owe them everything
God bless your uncle. As a Canadian I've always been so proud of the men and women who sacrificed so much for the Commonwealth. My grandfather was a mechanic during that day of days, and passed before I could talk to him about his time overseas. Before my friend's grandfather passed, I was able to talk to him for hours on a quiet Easter Sunday. He had served in the Canadian Navy on a Sub-hunter Corvette patrolling the frigid (and quiet) waters around Northern Newfoundland. He was a wonderful storyteller and his remembrance of Victory Day over Germany, is something I will always hold dear. I felt so privileged to have spent that time with a wonderful man.
You are correct sir and being a disabled veteran from the 80s it pains and angers me to see how politicians just crap on them and undo everything our brave men and women fought for under a leader that wants to destroy EVERYTHING they bleed and died for !!! Our politicians hate us our country and the freedom we fought for and love yet we are threaten our freedoms more then our foreign enemies did because it's happening for the 1st time in US soil !!! We might as well have left the South Win !!! Why not ??? The slave owners are controlling it now and evidently the slaves approve !!! Yea Yea I know I'm a racist but never had truer words been spoken !!! I just have the balls to say it you Yankee cowards !!! At this point the civil war was nothing more then a waist of life and time !!! Like the Hebrew people they were freed from 400 years of bondage but they just wait to go back to them as soon as things got a little rough !!! We freed the slaves with war and then 150 years we get trashed by their job for doing it and try to run back to the slave owner's kids !!! Stupidity is blind and bliss and welcome !!! What can I say ???
Right before I went to Air Force Basic Training, I invited a coworker and good friend of mine to go see it when it came out in 1998. Mr. Paul Hyland was a WWII veteran and took part in the beach landings at Omaha with the 35th Infantry Division. I asked him if it was really like that and he replied "Not enough bodies." I'll never forget that. We kept in touch for the next several years even when I was deployed overseas. He was even able to come to my 1st reenlistment and he wore his WWII Class A uniform. It was pretty cool. He passed away in 2005 at the age of 81 and I miss him to this day and now, as a retired combat veteran myself, this movie means a lot more to me now.
Thank you for your service, and the story.
Thank you Sir for your Valor as well as sharing your story with us.
With Respect & Care,
A grateful citizen and member of a proud Military family.
I watched one veteran say the only thing missing from the beach scene was the smell.
Taking care of the dead was done by a group called graves registration.a thankless but terribly important job.the opening scene was shot at the American military cemetery just off Omaha Beach .visited there many years ago,a sad but awe inspiring place.
My grandfather was in the war and at the battle of the bulge, and he made it home.. my mom was an infant when he left and was two yrs old when he returned. I will forever be thankful for his sacrifice and the sacrifices of every soldier ♥️
Amen.
My grandfather was in the leading force that liberated the soldiers at the bulge. I am very thankful his sacrifice and lucky he made it home, because my dad wasn't born until the 60's.
@@knightleeb3606 that’s awesome!! I’m thankful to ♥️
Ashleigh ... you do understand. Yes, you do. From a US Air Force veteran, please continue to be you! Don't change a thing! The world needs your laughter and beauty.
FUBAR stands for f*ck up beyond all recognition.
Ashleigh, I haven't seen this question answered yet so I'll do so. You asked "Who cleans up after big battles." That unit is called the Graves Registration and are a specialized branch of the US Corps of Engineers. They will plan out and construct the cemetery once the fighting has moved on, record who is resting in what place and place markers until the head stones are ready to be placed.
It's so astounding that 9,000 soldiers died on that beach and someone had to figure it all out, who had died and how to bury them properly. Thank God for dog tags?
I saw this in the theater. I’d read about the honest depiction of the D-Day landing and was worried when I saw a bunch of WWll veterans (wearing hats depicting that fact) come into the theater before the movie started. They weren’t together, sitting all over in different seats. I made note of where each man was sitting so I could run over to help if any of them freaked out or had a heart attack from triggered ptsd. When the film ended, I sat until all the credits were done rolling and the house lights came on. When I turned to leave, I saw all those veterans standing together, at attention, in the back of the theater. I stood and stared, it was so incredible. None were crying but all expressions were fierce. I’ll never forget it.
of all the things that never happened, this never happened the most.....
Thanks for sharing your memory.
When you see the movie again, you can totally see how Tom Hanks character is a high school teacher and coach. He is a natural leader and knows how to watch over a young flock and remains the strongest and most determined and pushes the unit to their full potential. Something a really good teacher or coach always does.
everyone talks about PTSD, but the ending scene here is making a point about survivor’s remorse.
If you ever decide to delve into a series for the channel, Band Of Brothers is an absolute must. Pretty much everybody who was involved in the making of this had a hand in making that.
That would be amazing. A great idea here.
29:05 This line just breaks me down to tears everytime.
“Tell my mother I was standing beside the only brothers I had left”.
Loved it. I was also in tears watching this remembering how war (Vietnam) changed my Father. He returned from the war covered in medals for Valour under fire, but he was never the same. A Young Man went off to war, someone else came back...
Wades speech in the church about ignoring his mother and pretending to be asleep resonates with me. I try to live my life knowing any word said or unsaid, any action taken or un-taken could be the last. The regret in Wades eyes when telling that tale has forced me to always appreciate.
Same here. That scene has stuck with me the most since the first time ever watching the movie. And clearly there are a lot of memorable emotional moments. I've probably seen this movie 10 times in its entirety and Wade talking about his mom makes me well up every time.
Spielberg did us one hell of a favor.
FUBAR is an acronym that stands for "F'ed Up Beyond All Recognition." A lot of military things have earned that title. :)
Also, speaking of Speilberg movies that are real, important, and heavy, but good, please react to Schindler's List.
I second Schildler's List. That movie affected me so deeply that, although it was important to watch, I don't believe I could bear to view it a second time.
and yes. it is another movie that will leave you a mess
I'm a bigger fan of Catch-22's SNAFU because it's more prevalent and usually precedes FUBAR.
Forgot: SNAFU is Situation Normal, All F'cked Up.
The "F U" can be represented by "Fowled Up", but since when do soldiers use polite language?
My father was a participant of this invasion, serving in the Canadian forces who landed on Juno Beach. He never talked about his experience but he did get injured on three different occasions, always going back in action. His last injury on his foot was a lasting impediment; he always had to ware a brace to allow him to walk.
Since he never talked to us about all this, I never understood the kind of impact he would have lived thru until I saw this film.
I just wish I would have been able to talk to him, but unfortunately, my dad passed away before this film came out.
Few people understand how someone can be so scared they can't force themselves to move ... they can't go forward or backwards. They can't even shit themselves. Your mind is screaming "GET UP! MOVE!" and ... you can't.
I cannot express how much I appreciate @awkwardashleigh's take on Upham.
When my now husband and I went to see this in the theater, there was an elderly couple sitting a couple of rows in front of us. I could see him clearly squirming in his seat through the entirety of the opening beach scene. When they used the flamethrower on the bunker and the burning people began jumping from the opening, he sprung up and rushed out of the theater sobbing loudly. That was the moment I understood why my grandfather never spoke about his time in the service. Not just his time in the war, any of it.
i always notice people getting mad at oppum for being a coward. and i understand completely. but always remember he was a writer and not a soldier. He was brought a long as a translator for the group. His character arc is honestly one of the most heart breaking as we see him completely broken by the end
Also the amount of times he's running TOWARDS the gunfire... none of us can say as much.
A famous phrase for Morphine is "One to kill the pain, two to kill the patient". The medic knew he was dead because his liver was shot up, so his request for the second shot was a request to die quickly.
The end when he says ‘tell me I’m a good man’, gets me every time.
Every time
The ending scenes in the village/town was filmed in my home town. I remember walking out of work and the ground shook and the loudest BOOM I'd ever heard, echoed across everything. A work buddy looked up at the smoke in the sky and said 'they're filming a movie at the old airfield.' We all (in the local area) mostly knew about it by then buy we had no idea it was going to be that good and that heart-breaking at the same time. Sobering to know that our guys were also just guys and got scared and sometimes got it wrong and still stayed at it to the end.
Hatfield. My old home town too. Remember when they filmed this
@@terryhughes9291 Yeah it was LOUD. I came out of the galleria and the glass shook ! That's a lot of glass !!
Saw it in the theatre when I was 27. Couldn't talk when walking out to my car. Sat there and cried for 20 minutes, then called a friend because I just couldn't be alone right then. Watching this reaction video is the closest I've come to watching the whole thing again, and it's almost too much even now that I'm in my 50s.
OMG... I forget that the first Ryan was Nathan Fillion... how nice is to be a great movie director and work with a bunch of amazing actors in every role of your movies...
Oh gosh, he looked familiar but I couldn't place him as Mal!
I didn't know Fillion when I first saw the film. It's only something that's apparent in later viewing after Fillion made a name for himself.
Mal's backstory we never got in the show. 😂
@@spangelicious837 To me, he's Castle. Who's Mal?
@@mrkelso Malcolm Reynolds, his character in Firefly. Castle actually has several references to Firefly. 😁
Ashleigh, you do a wonderful job of breaking down a movie or its scenes. I was never in the military but your last review and the reaction to Saving Private Ryan seem to have you engaged and engrossed which this movie can do with its audience.
But I thought you were harsh with the character of actor Jeremy Davies who played Col. Upham. Humans have four basic emotions and from the beginning to the end that character experienced all of them. I felt Col. Upham was so brave to stand up and try to save that German soldier who was responsible for killing his fellow unit member. Or moments he ran on the battlefield but failed others because he was human. I think, whenever I see a military memorial, I wondered how many died or were wounded but we never know how many are scarred emotionally and mentally or how many take their own lives because they struggled with PTSD. Anyway, keep up the good job and God bless you always.
This is the male version of the tearjerker film, like Fried Green Tomatoes or Steel Magnolias is for most women. I don't know a man that doesn't shed a tear watching this masterpiece of storytelling. I didn't even get through your viewing without tearing up multiple times. Spielberg celebrates the men who fought to save our world from fascism while never glorifying the violence of battle - in fact he's given us a powerful cautionary tale that doesn't shy away from showing us the true horrors of war. I'm so glad to see that it still resonates for the younger generations. Thanks for sharing your experience watching this incredible piece of cinematic brilliance, Ashley!
My Dad was a corporal in WWII (97th Inf, 303rd). He loved this movie. It meant a lot to him... and he meant the world to me. He passed on in 2012. Sure do miss my best friend.
Tom Sizemore's career punched way above its weight class. He's in (a)one of the top five all-time war films (this), (b)the hardest-boiled crime drama of all time ("Heat"), and (c)the most insane violent social satire of all time ("Natural Born Killers"). And that's just a small sample of his high quality work. I'd also single out his smallish role as a bullying EMT in "Bringing Out The Dead."
He's awesome in Strange Days as well
He was a crappy human being.
To understand the stand off scene at the radar station you might have watch Enemy of the State, where he is a leader of the mob.
He had an Outstanding role in True Romance too, but it was short lived.
Point break!
I saw this at the theater. You cant even imagine how much more intense this movie is with a theater sound system.
Yea I probably saw it three or four times in theatres.
Same. I spent the first sequence (of the beach landing) sitting in my theater seat, protecting the back of my neck because I felt so vulnerable. Some of the most intense moments on film, ever.
Same. When it was over I realized I didn't even eat my popcorn or anything.
I saw this movie on opening day. The opening sequence had me glued to my chair gripping the sides. And at the end when old Ryan tells his wife "Tell me I'm a good man" I cried. That line of please tell me I've lived up to the sacrifice my brothers paid for me.
Heavy indeed.
Thank you to those who have served and their families.
Heavy but so real so many.
But as many miss, particularly on TH-cam, the point of the movie is that the mission WAS a huge mistake and actually would never occur just to save one ordinary guy. The horrors of war and sacrifice were the focus here and the tacked on hokey prologue and epilogue were soundly derided by critics. The “rescue mission” would never have been ordered and the soldiers in the movie are correct about it being a mistake.
@@DoctorShocktor The point of the movie was to remind the audience of what those in "The Greatest Generation" sacrificed for the rest of us, while a few of them were still alive to receive our thanks. The prologue and epilogue were neither "hokey" nor "soundly derided by critics." They were a necessary element added to further humanize the story and add to the emotional impact felt by the audience, as well as (hopefully) inspire audience members to ask themselves if _they_ had truly "earned it".
Time for Band of Brothers
My first time on this channel. It was a great rewatching experience with her. You can tell that she had a real father (not a daddy) and has brothers. Her husband is a lucky man.
The scene that gets me the most is the mom collapsing on the porch watching the army representative approach.
That scene, and Ryan at the end, “tell me I’ve lived a good life, tell me I’m a good man”. Niagara Falls.
Gets me every time, 😢
For me, the line from this movie that really gets me is when Ryan finds out his brothers are all dead and he says, "I'm all alone." I lost my only sibling to cancer when she was in her 30s and that's exactly how it felt. Like for the first time in my life, I was all alone.
We took my grandfather to see this when it first came out. He walked out after that opening battle in tears. He never would watch it again. Aside from my granny passing away, it was the only other time I saw him cry. He said he lived that day and that it brought back so many memories for him.
When my son was in high school we went together to see this movie in the theater. Before the movie started, an elderly gentleman with a younger woman sat in front us. The gentleman turned around and asked me if I could see okay. So nice of him! When the movie started he started crying and leaned over on the woman. Then I heard my son sobbing and the four of us all cried together. Yes. Thank you to all that served, is serving and will serve. I am so thankful for my freedom.
good thing you didn't sit behind me. I let out a very loud "what the fxxx" when hanks called monty an idiot. Wasn't shy about being vocal with my opinion of this film after that.
I volunteer in Kyrgyzstan helping Soviet WWII Vets and their stories are incredible and so sad at the same time. He told me one story I will never forget. He said that he was fighting outside of Berlin with a French and American attachment after his Soviet attachment got separated and the American soldiers ran through gun fire to save his attachment. He told me I was the first American he had talked to about the war with since 1945. He ended up becoming a KGB officer and ended up being sent to Kyrgyzstan. The entire time this old man was talking to me he was holding my hand and thanking me and all the Americans who saved his life and his country and that for them we were never the enemies and now he felt like he's finally able to feel better about what he did in the war. Before I left we made an agreement to go fishing in the Summer on Lake Issyk Kul. However, Vasily passed about 6 weeks later. Was my first "Bald and Bankrupt" moment living in Kyrgyzstan and something I will never forget. War is terrible but for many... these are men doing what they are told whether for good or not.
When this movie first came out on DVD. I got it so my grandpa could watch it. He was one of them that landed on Omaha beach on D-Day. After the movie was over we sat up all night and he told me all about his experiences in the war. He was and always will be my hero.
Ashleigh, I love your channel and your reaction to this movie! I am a Veteran of Desert Shield/Storm and I come from a family of servicemembers. My oldest uncle passed away a few years ago - he was at Pearl Harbor on 07 Dec 1941. He was awarded the Purple Heart and he never talked about what he witnessed that day, not even to other family members that served. He sometimes talked about the other campaigns he was in over in Europe, but never about Pearl Harbor.
Thank you to all veterans and to their families! 🙏
My Grandad was in the British Army in 1940 and was captured as part of the rear guard outside Dunkirk. He spent 5 years in a POW camp in Poland before thankfully being liberated. He never spoke of any of his experiences with anyone other than occasionally with fellow veterans. I think sometimes that's the only way you can cope with the things you experience.
It's important to never forget the sacrifices these people made.
My pops was in 24th MEU during shield and storm much love to you & your uncle
@@Pengi_SMILES Yes! It is important that we not let the sacrifices be fogotten. I can't imagine Dunkirk! That was a very perilous situation. Thanks to him (and all the others) for their service, and thanks to you for sharing the story. God Bless.
@@gregmax1321 Thanks for your support. I know there were Marines doing a lot over there espcially as it was transitioning for Shield to Storm. Thanks to your pops for his role and the men and women serving with him. Thanks also to the families also - they often sacrifice in unsung ways. Thanks for sharing!
@Ashleigh Burton The first 20-30 minutes of the movie is the closest we would ever get to experiencing the Invasion of Normandy. My granddad served in the Army during WWII and he landed on Omaha Beach three days after the battle. He rarely ever spoke about his experience during the war, some veterans just wanted to forget they were part of it. One day (Long before Saving Private Ryan was even an idea) while my parents were visiting my grandparents, my dad and granddad were in the living room and my dad was flipping through channels trying to find something to watch and came across a documentary on D-Day and they watched it a bit until my granddad stood up and said "They've got everything right except for the smell. He walked out of the living room and never spoke about it again. It wasn't until after he passed away that I learned he served in WWII. Now that I'm older and after seeing many documentaries and movies, I've gained a better understanding why he refused to ever talk about being in the war.
Ashleigh ,I love your channel. When I saw this in the theater my wife was constantly whispering to me during the battle scenes, "Are you OK?", because I'd recently retired from the Army [20 yrs, Airborne Ranger] and had shed and taken blood for our country. But this movie had even more significance for us, a few years later. In 2004, we received that "knock on the door" to tell us that our son had been killed in IRAQ.
❤
Hoo-ah, brother. RIP young bro. 🙏❤😢
Standing in solidarity with you and your family. Thank you and your son for your Valor and sacrifices.
Oh my God. I’m so sorry. Our son was Marine Corp and I know that dread. We never knew the fact, but we knew our son’s best friends family who did get that knock. Bless you
He died a hero so that all of us can live free, thank you for your sacrifice and I am terribly sorry for your loss. I bet you think about him every day ❤️…. May he Rest In Peace 🫡
This movie was so intense on the big screen. You really need to watch Band Of Brothers next.
Agreed its so worth the watch
I remember the muted atmosphere as everyone walked out of the cinema after watching Saving Private Ryan. There were a few hushed conversations, but most people seemed to be trying to process what they'd just seen. The film is 25 years old now, so it's impact had been lessened with time, but when it was released no one had seen anything quite that visceral.
Required viewing.
Band of Brothers and The Pacific
@@Scottrob20Agreed. After having finally gotten around to watching The Pacific myself (I've never had an HBO subscription until I got a free trial to HBO Max recently) very recently, I think The Pacific definitely should follow any watchthrough of Band of Brothers.
Every single reactor: "Is that Vin Diesel?"
The opening scenes are some of the most realistic ever shot. And the time when Tom hanks has the feeling like everything is in slow mo, is known as fog of war and the depiction is very realistic
Hacksaw Ridge is also another amazing war movie. It was based on a true story and had several elements left out because it was deemed too unrealistic despite being actual events.
Truth is often stranger than fiction
Yeah they had to dumb things down a bit but that was as much for time as anything.
One story that I always thought needed to be told as a major motion picture was the story of Raul (Roy) Benavidez and his Medal of Honor battle in Vietnam. Roy was a great man who deserves greater recognition for his actions.
On a different note, I had a relative who was a mechanic in WWII and wrote an unpublished book about his time in France. He never allowed it to be published, but the manuscript was passed amongst the family. He didn't see a lot of fighting, but the stories of what day-to-day life was like was something I never could've imagined. I'm very grateful later generations were spared that experience and I'm hopeful we don't ever have to relive such a time. With what's going on in Europe right now, sometimes it's hard to hold on to that hope.
Respectfully, if your family one days feels like sharing, Amazon allows you to auto-publish, and you can even order as many printed hardcover copies as you want, even just one.
Maybe the time he took to write it deserves to be read outside of your family.
Cheers, from a Frenchman - and MERCI
Ooh lord, if Ashleigh has seen this film (in particular that opening beach scene), she must surely watch the brutal and devastating but necessary, Schindler's List. That is a must see of Spielberg's filmography, and regrettably, a movie that deserves to be seen just for history's sake.
My father served in Patton's 3rd Army 42-45 (687th FAB)....Thru Normandy, the battle of the hedgerows, Battle of the Bulge... Bastogne ...One of his last duties in Europe was helping "clean up" Buchenwald concentration camp in the spring of 45....He brought back pictures he took there.....He saw A LOT....
In a dangerous, traumatic situation, people will have one of three reactions: FIGHT, FLIGHT, or FREEZE.
Very relatable and clearly a masterpiece.
Yes, as everyone else says, "Band of Brothers" is a series must.
Words to live by for EVERY Soldier:
FUBAR,
BOHICA,
SNAFU,
DILLIGAF
I'm 47 now, saw this in the theater, and the end still makes me cry. No shame Ashleigh.
Just remember that the German which Upham defended was just an ordinary soldier. The war wasn’t his idea and the crimes of his government weren’t his doing. In all likelihood he was drafted into the army. He surrendered after he realized he had no hope (which is the only time soldiers ever surrender). Executing him after surrendering may feel right in the heat of the moment… but it’s morally wrong. When enemy soldiers execute american POW’s we view them as monsters… so it’s important to avoid going down that road.
Not the only time. Sometimes soldiers surrender because they don't want to fight for what they see as the wrong side. Its happened thousands of times in Ukraine - many Russians forced into uniform surrender the first chance they get, they have no interest in dying for a bad cause.
but it was normal to do it in the war.. Japanese often got it worse than the germans ever did regarding this behavior
Also shooting POWs makes surrender less likely and more likely to lead to pointless death on both sides.
That soldier was SS….All volunteer (Until the very end) and they had to be vetted of being of “Aryan” stock. You had to be a true believer to be in the SS….So that soldier was a true believer.
@@ryanhampson673 This. That German was in the Waffen-SS they committed atrocities and war crimes everywhere they went especially on the eastern front.
You got it exactly right. No matter what story Steven is telling, he puts 100% of everything into the movie.
My dad actually pulled me out of school to go see this movie in theaters. He said it was probably more important at the time than what I was going to hear in class that day anyway.
The soldier on the beach, holding in his insides and screaming "momma!", absolutely destroys me. Every single time.
Upham was a guy who made it clear from the beginning he wasn't cut out for this kind of mission, was all scatterbrained and nervous fumbling with his typewriter and stuff, said he hadn't fired a weapon since basic training, said whilst being chosen for the mission that he wasn't ready for this mission, yet Miller is like "lol, you're coming with us anyway."
Cut to the battlefield days later and he's overwhelmed, mentally shut down, and unable to act upon the situation he's in. It's almost as if he should had told them from the beginning that he wasn't cut out for this... Was he really the only available translator in the area?
The big metal things are called tank traps. While generally planted to stop tanks, they will impede the progress of any sort of large vehicle.
Caltrops are the real name but yes, that is what they do.
@@aaronburdon221 Are they really named after the anti-cavalry weapon? I've never heard them called that, but it does make sense.
They're made that way because any way you push them, they dig into the sand and stay put. They're hard to remove quickly. A few years ago, I was visiting Scotland and on the east coast they still have beach defenses in place, left over from WWII and the threat of a German invasion.
@@aaronburdon221No. Caltrops are specifically the small spiked objects to damage tires, hooves, feet, etc. Tank traps are an area denial weapon, as are mines, but they are not caltrops.
@@ElliotNestermanNo they are reminiscent of the configuration of a caltrop, but they are not named that. Words actually have specific meanings sometimes.
9:16 That's not a flask, Ashleigh, it's a canteen. He's just drinking water. He has the shakes due to the adrenalin and the trauma of the beach landing. The shakes persist probably due to the weight of responsibility that he bears. I'm sure he wishes he could take a nip of something, though!
This movie and Schindler's List are amazing movies I have to force myself to watch but it's all worth it. The messages and the history there are really no words.
If you want another real Steven Spielberg masterpiece, watch Schindler's List, if you haven't seen it already. The part where Oskar Schindler breaks down after it's over and regrets not saving more people makes me cry every time.
That should be the next one!!!
I agree. She needs to find the time to watch it.
God that ending to Schindler’s List is gonna wreck her. It wrecks me and I’m a hard ass, she’s gonna get messed up. That scene where Liam Neeson cries that all the stuff around him could of saved “one more” gets me every time, Ughh…😢
That movie took me two years to watch in its entirety. I stopped partway and couldn’t face it again until lockdown.
I saw this in the theater opening day. Total silence during the film, especially after that horrific opening. I saw older men crying. A couple just left. It was too much. I held my husband’s hand and watched with wide eyes. My respect for the military was deepened that day in ways I can’t put into mere words.
Was just rewatching this reaction and I still have huge respect for how you acknowledge the service folks and the things they go through. I'm not a vet but lots of family are and I just wanted to say thanks. ❤
One thing that veterans who saw this film noted is the realistic sound of bullets. In nearly all the old war movies and westerns it was all bang pow sounds, where in actual war it is the evil zip and slap sounds portrayed here. Or in many cases there was no sound at all till it hit something.
There were a few ‘Nam Vets in the theatre when I went to see this. They were joking and laughing until the movie started. They left after ten minutes.
I've never been to war, but I have heard the saying that "The bullet you don't hear is the one that hits/kills you." A large amount of a bullet's sound is produced because it is moving faster than the speed of sound and makes a (small) sonic "boom". A bullet tends to get to it's target before the sonic boom !BANG! gets there. But there's not a noticeable difference if the target is fairly close to the gun. A sniper's bullet may never be heard by the victim, a quarter mile away.
I was 12 when this came out and this is the first R rated movie i saw in theaters. My father took me because "this is an important movie, you need to watch it". And im pretty sure its the first movie i cried over when i watched it too.
Watch "Killing Private Kraut" on TH-cam and see how you feel. It's a very intelligent critique of the movie which shows that while pretending to be auntie war the movie actually dehumanizes Germans and celebrates killing them.
@@raymond9016 We all should celebrate when good overcomes evil. Unfortunately a lot of Germans were swept up in Hitler’s hysteria and may not have felt they had a choice, but the Axis power was evil and had to be defeated. In the context of WWII, killing German soldiers was necessary and undoubtedly a good thing. War is atrocious, but losing to Hitler would have been far worse for humanity. Spielberg knows this and so should you.
@@tjgray2815 So you believe that our comrade and ally Joe Stalin was good? That we did a good thing cooperating with him to turn half of Europe over to communists?
@@raymond9016 There are times, limited as they may be, when it’s true that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend.” A 50-year Cold War was preferable to the alternative. Are you kidding?
@@tjgray2815 So, we just gloss over the death of thirty million people under Stalin? And the fact that we supplied and financed his tyranny? I guess we're too busy pounding our chests about what great heroes we are. Because otherwise we'd be speaking German, right LOL.
"Graves Registration" are the guys who "clean up" after all the shooting and dieing is done the solders have two dog tags, one is put in a sack to be transcribed into books of he Dead that go to "the War Department"( later remained the DOD) the other is jammed between the teeth of the dead with a swift kick to identify the body (or skeleton) for later burial. it is a grizzly task. WW2 Vets who lived through this say the battle scenes was nightmarishly accurate.
*FUBAR* means "F*cked Up Beyond All Recognition
This is one of the greatest movies of all-time in my eyes. It's so realistic and sadly beautiful. It looks amazing, great cinematography, set designs, etc...but it also shows every single emotion that exists. I know you eventually commented on it, but it's easy for those of us at home to be so frustrated that someone would cower back and allow a fellow soldier to be killed because they were too scared to act. But in that position he was watching people die and scared that he would die as well. He didn't expect to see combat and figured he'd be somewhere safe typing away on his typewriter. He was thrust into something that wasn't for him. He changed by the end, but it was because of the guilt and (in my opinion) self-hatred he had for himself to stand back while others died for something greater. But that's also the point of the movie for me. This movie is trying to explain things that you really only understand if you had to live through a similar situation. It's hard to understand certain things unless it happens to you, but I think this movie did about as good of a job as possible with that. It's a beautiful movie, but it's also heart-wrenching. One moment a group of guys could be making stupid jokes and flaming each other, and the next a tank could roll up on them and take them all out. Live your life to the fullest and be grateful for those that made the sacrifice for it to be possible.
This movie is actually pro-war propaganda under the fake guise of being antiwar. See the TH-cam critique called Killing Private Kraut.
I worked at a movie theater when this came out. We actually had a veteran have a heart attack and pass away at the beginning scene of them storming the beach. Also had other veterans walk out because it was too realistic and brought back memories. Such an intense, but brilliant film.
Elsewhere here I mention the 10 D-Day survivors who visited us in Bosnia (we were the headquarters of the 29th ID) shortly after September 11th. They watched the movie with some of us and while some admitted that when they first saw the movie it was right on them. Others didn't have that reaction, such things impact everyone differently, but every one of them made it through the experience with us without issue. Maybe in part because we had some shared experiences, separated by a couple wars and several decades, but maybe also because we were supporting them and at the same time they were supporting us.
They consider 1941 by Steven Spielberg a flop but I legit believe it was just too ahead of its time. Too chaotic for the year it came out, but by today’s standards, it’s perfectly fine. I remember going to see it with my family as a kid and had the greatest time. One of my favorite childhood movie going experiences.
Love that movie!!
Love that movie!!
Love that movie!!
Love that movie!!
Love that movie!!
My dad was a para in ww2. When I was young I'd question him about things. You know how ghoulish children can be. It wasn't until I was much older that I realised what a harrowing experience it must have been for such a young man. He was born in 1920 so he was very young. My respect for my dad has never diminished even though he has been gone from us these past 20 years. What these youngsters from all over the world went through is gut wrenching. Such bravery and selflessness.
I never spoke to my dad about his time in the army and fighting in the war and he never volunteered the information. I regret that a lot now.
When I returned from my first Iraq deployment my neighbor Laurel asked if I could help her pick up a table her father had given her. We went to her parents place and her dad, a Vietnam vet who never really spoke of his wartime experience, asked me about my year. He and I swapped a few stories and after just a few minutes he and I stopped, looked at his wife and daughter who were stunned by Bill's willingness to discuss things. Bill and I exchanged a quick look and he said "well I guess we should load this into the truck." It was over halfway to Laurel's place before she spoke, she was dumbfounded by his willingness to talk about things. She'd heard more about her dad's wartime service in those few minutes than she'd heard in the preceding 33 years.
Different wars, different decades, shared experiences.
The German vehicle right before you meet Ryan was not a tank. It was a half-track which has gun on it, but can also transport a few troops.
Known as a Hanomag.
Not only is this based on a real situation from D-Day but the way it was filmed, the content and how it was shown are so true to the way it really was that WWII veterans had one of two reactions....tears or long past horror or gratefulness for surviving while finally explaining what had happened to them. My own grandfather NEVER talked about his days in the service during WWII. A friend of mine's father was a D-Day veteran and suffered from the trauma for the rest of his life.
A friend of mine took his father to see this film at the theater.
His dad was a WW2 veteran. He became so emotional that they had to leave.
He lived through it, and didn't think it would bring back so many memories.
The conversation he has with his wife at the end implies he may have never told her about the sacrifice that was made in order to bring him home. That's one of the saddest parts for me, in that so many war veterans carried the burden of what they saw and did internally in order to shield their loved ones from having to know about the 'fog and friction' of war...great movie, great reaction.
That's why they spent so much time at the legion
RIP Tom Sizemore. He did a good job at being the sergeant. Another Tom film that I highly recommend is Enemy Of The State (1998) with Gene Hackman, Will Smith, and Jon Voight. Great cast in this war film, in my opinion, this is the best depicted World War II Omaha Beach tribute out there. When this came out, I heard many veterans walked out the theater because of how realistic it was, and it reminded them when they were in combat. Nice reaction Ashleigh. Thank you to all the veterans and other personnel who served during that time. Fubar in this movie meant messed up beyond all recognition. I played the Playstation game Medal Of Honor: Frontline that was modeled after this movie and I tell you the scenes of war were crazy.
And black hawk down
Check him out in Strange Days if you haven't seen it
The theatre I worked at premiered this movie when it first came out. The studio had invited veterans to view it for free. During the Omaha Beach scene, many vets, especially from WW2, walked out. They said it was too realistic and captured the feeling too well. Many said it was like a living flashback.
Saw the same at the theater I worked at then.
The Psychology department at UND posted mental health hotline posters at the theatre in Grand Forks when this movie was released.
It had a help line for veterans to call
The sniper duel - including the shot through the other guy's scope, was based on a real event from the Vietnam War. The sniper's name was Carlos Hathcock, and his autobiography is a great read.
I'll second it being a great read!
Yep I was going to mention it as well
White Feather!
Several family members and I went to see this in the theatre when it came out. My Grandfather was an Army Ranger on that beach. He was awarded a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for saving 3 fellow soldiers that day. We all cried as we watched, seeing the Hell he likely went through. To this day I cannot watch this movie without tearing up. Such a brilliant film.
If memory serves, Ryan's story about his brothers and the "girl who fell from the ugly tree" was all improvised by Matt Damon.
Tons of soldiers, like my dad, started smoking during the war. Sometimes it was their last cigarette for good. They ate when they could eat and it was water in the canteens most of the time.
You should watch Band of brothers created by Spielberg and Hanks immediately after this movie. They had a ww2 veteran as a coordinator and they were so inspired by his war stories they created the show about his unit. It’s a mini series and it’s done in the style of this show and follows easy company from basic training to wars end and has interviews with ww2 veterans to go with it.
Based on the book "Band of Brothers" by Stephen Ambrose
My grandfather was on the beaches of Normandy. How he made it home to my grandmother, I’ll never know. When I teach military history, this is always shown in my class.
very bad choice if teaching military history. Far better movies then a hollywood action flick.
To answer you question 'what are they hiding behind on the beach'? They are Czech Hedgehog. They were designed to punch holes in the bottom of landing crafts.
I strongly recommend you watching "Das Boot" from 1982. It's set in the submarine warfare of WWII in the Atlantic Ocean, and even though it's far less "blood action" than in Saving Private Ryan it portraits the psychic horrors of war in a unique way. Even though it's a German film and it is told from a German perspective it's still regarded as one of the best war movies ever.
The "wrong" Ryan was Nathan Fillion from Firefly. I believe it was his first role. The other commander they meet after the sniper scene is Paul Giamatti.
The commander from the wrong Ryan is Ted Danson. Who has such a simple and great line to Miller when he tells him to go and get Ryan out. I think it was that that changed things for Miller. He was going to do the mission but it was hearing it from someone else on his level that really made him feel why it was important.
Saving Private Ryan should have swept the 1999 Oscars.
My uncle was in WWII, said this movie is accurate, little-known fact actor James Doohan who was the original Scotty from Star Trek was on Juno Beach
He also lost the middle finger on his right hand. Not many are aware of this because he kept it hidden from the cameras.
Neither of these are little known facts.
@@DaviniaHill They're "little known" to anyone who isn't a Trekkie. 🤨
Yeah. D-Day was...a lot. And FUBAR is a military term which stands for "Effed Up Beyond All Recognition." It basically means plans or a situation went tits up. Also: I was working at a manager at a little 6 plex when this came out, and everyone came out of the auditorium afterwards just full-on sobbing. ALSO, another movie about D-Day you should watch: The Longest Day (1962) Also: Spielberg did War Horse as well, about WW1, and it's a great film as well.
I learned not to say tits up, but say Tango Uniform
Watching this in the theater, surrounded by sniffling and crying vets was the single most emotional movie watching experience of my life. Some of the vets got up and left cause it was too much. This movie gets me every single time 😭
My Grandfather was in WW2 and said the scene getting on the beach didn't even come close. He said it was much much worse. So thankful for our service men a d what they gave for us.
Fantastic reaction, as always! Saving Private Ryan is a classic for a reason. I have a request for a reaction of FIDDLER ON THE ROOF since the main actor recently passed. It is a classic, beautiful film/musical. You will laugh, sing, cry, and love it. so worth the watch.
After Saving Private Ryan, Fiddler on the Roof sounds like a great idea.
Yeah, I second that. But she might have already seen it... If not, then yes. If nothing else, she'll enjoy the songs.