Matt Damon is not one to walk by people and go unrecognized. Everybody knows who the actor is and how acclaimed he is in the Hollywood industry. He is not one to stop himself from taking risks with movies and will go forward with a leap, leading him to become one of the biggest stars out there. Whether it is his individual stardom or fame joined by Ben Affleck, there is no stopping him.
Similarly, Steven Spielberg is one of the most respected directors out there. His movies are always critically acclaimed and appreciated, often finding themselves to be nominated for Oscars and mostly winning them as well. When the two got together for a project, of course, it was going to create a lot of positive feedback. Hence, Saving Private Ryan came to be.
Steven Spielberg Wanted Matt Damon’s Face To Be Unnoticed
Steven Spielberg admitted that when he was searching for his titular character, one of the most famous faces was not on his mind. A movie about war that explored the darker side of the United States of America was something the director had no intention of spoiling. For him, the movie was something he had to handle with care.
“Who knew he was gonna go off and become a movie star overnight and win the Academy Award for screenplay? And not be the anonymous actor I had in mind? But he looked the part. You know, the people in World War II actually looked different than people look today. A lot of the people I cast in this picture, I was looking at their faces, to match the faces I saw on the newsreels.”
According to Spielberg, he wanted a lesser-known actor who could mix in the crowd easily. However, he also wanted an actor who could accurately play the part as well as look like he had fought wars at a young age. He did not want a face of innocence but a face of time. Matt Damon’s face was one that accurately fit his description and he did not hesitate one bit before casting the actor as Private Ryan.
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Steven Spielberg Did Not Want An Action War Film
Since it is Steven Spielberg, there has to be something that makes a movie stand out differently than the rest, else it wouldn’t be as unique. Saving Private Ryan was a movie that saw a change in the story with the passage of time. The director confirmed that things would have been very different if the film would have been made forty years prior to when it was actually made.
“My wanting to acquit his war with honor, as opposed to just using his war as the backdrop for a big action adventure picture.”
He did not want a story where a search party goes to find Private Ryan, has some difficulty, but successfully finds Matt Damon’s character. He instead wanted more. He wanted to explore sides of the war that were left untouched quite often.
Source: Rogerbert
