Saving Private Ryan

Tom Hanks Director: Steven Spielberg Steven Spielberg

Overview

One of the most important World War II films of our time and winner of five Academy Awards, Saving Private Ryan is a seemingly routine DVD, but it packs a big punch. In addition to standard DVD extras such as production notes, cast and crew bios and the theatrical trailer, this disc includes "Into the Breach," a 25-minute making-of featurette that is both an informative history lesson on D-day and a story of Spielberg's fascination with war. "Into the Breach" includes interviews with D-day survivors as well as of Spielberg and his father and spotlights his early student war films Escape to Nowhere and Fighter Squadron. The film itself receives a great transfer in widescreen 1:85, and Dolby Digital or 5:1 Surround.

Product Details

Release Date:	11/02/1999
UPC:	0667068443325
Original Release:	1998
Rating:	R
Source:	Dreamworks Video
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Time:	2:49:00
Sales rank:	1,307

Special Features

Exclusive message from Steven Spielberg; "Saving Private Ryan: Into the Beach"; Two theatrical trailers; Production notes; Cast and filmmakers' bios

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Tom Hanks	Capt. John Miller
Edward Burns	Private Richard Reiben
Tom Sizemore	Sgt. Horvath
Jeremy Davies	Cpl. Upham
Vin Diesel	Pvt. Caparzo
Adam Goldberg	Pvt. Mellish
Barry Pepper	Pvt. Jackson
Giovanni Ribisi	T/4 Medic Wade
Matt Damon	Pvt. James Ryan
Dennis Farina	Lt. Col. Anderson
Ted Danson	Capt. Hamill
Harve Presnell	Gen. George Marshall
Dale Dye	War Dept. Colonel
Bryan Cranston	War Dept. Colonel
David Wohl	War Dept. Captain
Paul Giamatti	Sergeant Hill
Ryan Hurst	Paratrooper Michaelson
Harrison Young	Ryan as Old Man
Dylan Bruno	Private Alan Toynbe
Max Martini	Corporal Henderson

Technical Credits

Robert Rodat

Steven Spielberg	Director,Producer
Ian Bryce	Producer
Denise Chamian	Casting
Neil Corbould	Special Effects Supervisor
Bonnie Curtis	Co-producer
Kevin de la Noy	Associate Producer
Dale Dye	Consultant/advisor
Ricky Eyres	Art Director
Mark Gordon	Producer
Mark Huffam	Associate Producer
Industrial Light & Magic	Special Effects
Priscilla John	Casting
Joanna Johnston	Costumes/Costume Designer
Ronald Judkins	Sound/Sound Designer
Michael Kahn	Editor
Janusz Kaminski	Cinematographer
Lisa Dean Kavanaugh	Set Decoration/Design
Gary Levinsohn	Producer
Sergio Mimica-Gezzan	Asst. Director
Robert Rodat	Screenwriter
Gary Rydstrom	Sound/Sound Designer
Tom Sanders	Production Designer
Chris Seagers	Art Director
Allison Lyon Segan	Co-producer
Tom Brown	Art Director
Alan Tomkins	Art Director
John Williams [composer]	Score Composer

Scene Index

1. Memorial.
2. Omaha Beach.
3. Rallying.
4. Breakthrough.
5. Letters.
6. A Public Relations Mission.
7. Pool.
8. Private James Ryan.
9. Choices.
10. Fubar.
11. Dog-Tags.
12. Radar Station.
13. Big Mystery.
14. One Decent Thing.
15. Piaf.
16. Born Lucky.
17. Ammo.
18. The Alamo.
19. The Bridge.
20. Duty Roster.

Menu

1. Play Movie.
2. Scene Index.
3. Special Features.
a. A Special Message from Steve Spielberg.
b. Theatrical Trailer.
c. Re-release Trailer.
d. Cast and Crew.
e. Production Notes.
4. Subtitles.
5. Audio.

Editorial Reviews

Steven Spielberg's 1998 film Saving Private Ryan instantly took its place in the pantheon of great war movies by setting a new standard for its shockingly realistic D-Day sequences -- scenes that redefined the graphic depiction of film violence. When a platoon, led by Tom Hanks, receives orders to rescue the title character (Matt Damon) from behind enemy lines, the value of a life is questioned. Can Ryan be worth the potential sacrifice of eight men? Spielberg put his young actors through a modified boot camp, and their harrowing real-life experience informs their portrayals. Tom Sizemore (one of the many psychos in Natural Born Killers) displays great humanity as Sergeant Horvath, while Giovanni Ribisi and Barry Pepper turn in career-making performances as a medic and a sniper. Through it all, Spielberg's remarkable, unfussy technique keeps the narrative's preachiness from overwhelming the film. He and Academy Award-winning cinematographer Janusz Kaminski always place the camera in exactly the right perspective to the action, providing even the quiet moments with great power. Squeamish viewers be forewarned: The violence here is truly brutal. But that is part of Spielberg's point: War is hell. Or, as Hanks puts it: "Every time I kill somebody, I get farther away from home."

Barnes & Noble - Ben Wolf

Saving Private Ryan marked another foray into World War II for Steven Spielberg, this time examining the soldiers' struggles to maintain their sense of mission even in situations that seemed to defy reason and hope. To show the carnage of the D-Day Omaha Beach landing, Spielberg used a barrage of sound and the unpolished immediacy of a hand-held camera to thrust the viewer into the conflict for a 24-minute sequence of relentless, random violence more intense than in any previous Hollywood war movie. The desaturated color further recalled WWII newsreel footage while rendering the blood a matter-of-fact part of the landscape. Adapted from an incident recorded by historian Stephen E. Ambrose, the mission to save one man after the Normandy invasion becomes a means for Capt. Miller and his troop of WWII film archetypes to debate the sacrifices of war, even a "good" war. Critically hailed for its stunningly realistic battle sequences and heartfelt performances, the film became a summertime hit despite its realistic violence and serious subject. After winning several critics' prizes, Saving Private Ryan garnered 11 Academy Award nominations and won five, including Spielberg's second Oscar for Best Director and Janusz Kaminski for Best Cinematography.

All Movie Guide - Lucia Bozzola

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