Steven Spielberg is a renowned filmmaker known for his ability to transport audiences into the heart of the action. He has a unique talent for eliciting strong emotions and challenging viewers’ perceptions of storytelling.
One of his greatest accomplishments as a filmmaker is the epic war movie, Saving Private Ryan, which broke box office records in 1998 and left an indelible mark on the film industry. The movie presents a strong impact without relying on excessive violence and features an exceptional cast, including Tom Hanks, who assisted Spielberg in bringing his vision to life.
Steven Spielberg Was Uncertain About Making A War Movie
Steven Spielberg, the maestro behind timeless classics like E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial and Jurassic Park, harbored doubts about the success of Saving Private Ryan. He feared that the unflinching realism and brutality depicted in the film’s early scenes, particularly the harrowing D-Day landing at Omaha Beach, would alienate audiences.
“I didn’t anticipate the success of the movie. In very early screenings, certain associates and other people in my life were saying that I made it too tough. I feared that almost nobody would see it because the word of mouth would spread quickly after the first 25 minutes.”
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Saving Private Ryan is not just a typical war movie; it’s an exceptional piece of cinema. Spielberg’s storytelling and action sequences in this film redefined the standards for war movies. The realistic and intense portrayal of combat scenes set a new benchmark.
It’s accurate to say that the movie’s impact is still felt in the genre today. Major films such as Gladiator, Flags of Our Fathers, The Pacific, Hacksaw Ridge, Dunkirk, and even superhero movies with high-action sequences owe their success to Saving Private Ryan.
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How Tom Hanks Made A Difference To The Movie
Tom Hanks, an actor passionate about World War II history, collaborated with Steven Spielberg on a significant project. As revealed by the LA Times, Hanks expressed his interest.
“Starting in 1973, local Channel 2 up in Oakland ran ‘The World at War.’ I couldn’t get enough of it. And that tied into the connection that Steven and I shared, that we had grown up on an awful lot of fictional movies about World War II, or films that took moments from the war and then turned them into understandable morality plays like a certain type of genre movie.”
When Hanks decided to take on this project, he had a profound bond with the director, nurtured by their common upbringing on a diet of World War II movies and anecdotes. They worked together to portray the magnitude and intricacy of the war on the silver screen.
Capt. Miller, portrayed by Tom Hanks, is the calm at the heart of the storm in Saving Private Ryan. Hanks brought a stillness to the character that marked a departure from his previous roles. Steven Spielberg felt safe around Hanks and his character, and the subtle portrayal of Miller’s trembling hand was a masterstroke.
As expressed by the filmmaker to the LA Times, Hanks “discombobulated the audience,” making them feel the weight of his responsibility and fear.
“Tom was the adult in the story. Tom has played adults and sometimes as an adult he’s played a kid. In this case, he brought something to the movie that I hadn’t seen Tom bring to any other movie before, and that was a stillness. I felt safe around him; I felt safe around his character. So when his hand shakes — and we played that hand shaking a lot — it was meant to discombobulate the audience.”
Captain Miller’s character is more than just a war hero. He is a man who is tormented by the memory of loss. Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks researched the history of Charlie Company, 2nd Ranger Battalion, to uncover Miller’s prolonged battle history in World War II.
This history provided valuable insights into Miller’s behavior and his profound fear of losing more of his men. It added a layer of complexity to the character, which transformed the entire story.
Source: LA Times
