Since its release in 1998, Steven Spielberg's D-Day drama
Saving Private Ryan has become hugely influential: everything from the opening sequence of
Gladiator ("Saving Marcus Aurelius") to the marvellous 10-hour TV series
Band of Brothers has been made in its shadow. There have been many previous attempts to recreate the D-Day landings on screen (notably, the epic
The Longest Day), but thanks to Spielberg's freewheeling hand-held camerawork,
Ryan was the first time an audience really felt like they were there, storming up Omaha Beach in the face of withering enemy fire.
After the indelible opening sequence, however, the film is not without problems. The story, though based on an American Civil War incident, feels like it was concocted simply to fuel Spielberg's sentimental streak. In standard Hollywood fashion the Germans remain a faceless foe (with the exception of one charmless character who turns out to be both a coward and a turncoat); and the platoon, led by Tom Hanks, consists of far too many stereotypes: the doughty sergeant; the thick-necked private; the southern-man religious sniper; the cowardly corporal. Matt Damon seems improbably clean cut as the titular private in need of rescue (though that may well be the point); and why do they all run straight up that hill towards an enemy machine-gun post anyway?
Some non-US critics have complained that Ryan portrays only the American D-Day experience, but it is an American film made and financed by Americans after all. Accepting both its relatively narrow remit and its lachrymose inclinations, Saving Private Ryan deserves its place in the pantheon of great war pictures.
On the DVD: This DTS edition of Saving Private Ryan presents the movie with astonishingly vivid surround sound that is audibly superior to the standard Dolby Digital version. With a wider dynamic range and a more spacious soundfield, the battles really do spill over into your living room. There are new animated menus but because the DTS data stream requires greater space on the disc, the 30-minute behind-the-scenes documentary included on the previous release is omitted. --Mark Walker
Introduction by Steven Spielberg (3 mins): Steven Spielberg discusses his interest in WWII and how it led him to make "Saving Private Ryan" Looking into the Past (6 mins): Steven Spielberg explains the research, the screenplay and his intentions Miller and His Platoon (8 mins): Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks and the entire cast introduce us to their characters and they interacted Boot Camp (8 mins): Memories from the camp about the intense boot camp they endured, with Captain Dale Dye Making Saving Private Ryan (20 mins): Steven Spielberg and collaborators discuss the look of the film, production, costumes & photography Re-Creating Omaha Beach (7 mins): How the filmmakers re-created this historical event Music & Sound (7 mins): With the Academy Award winning team who scored the film Parting Words (3 mins): Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks conclude on their experiences Motion Menus (10 mins): New, improved, interactive menus
