Character Study: FUBAR! FUBAR!
Character Study: FUBAR! FUBAR
FUCKED UP BEYOND ALL RECOGNITION
He is all broken and weak, but inside, he doesn't and can't express to his men as he is a captain, which is the inherent burden of being a leader. He cries to himself and laughs with his men. He is admired by his men for his dedication and loyalty not only to their country, but for the well being of his men.
Neither war, nor military is his forte. Yet, he invariably accomplishes the mission entrusted to him. Because, he possesses what a leader must, which is perseverance. Now, he is tasked with another difficult mission of finding a man, whose brothers are killed in action. This mission entails threats which can not only take his life, but his men's and anyone coming in the way.
He teaches English composition back home. He is a teacher. The war broke, he volunteered. He is facing the insurmountable task of persuading himself and his men, who doubt the sanctity of putting everyone's life in danger for a man. He doesn't quarrel with anyone, nobody in the chain of command. He just does it as he sees this mission as his ticket back to home and for everyone involved. He earns it, but he doesn't go back home.
Character under study is Captain Miller, played by Tom Hanks
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While the reasons are several, I can't make them explicit as they could be appreciated only by those who can be connected to the profound section of my mind. However, part of the reasons are: Even though, the storyline of 'Saving Private Ryan' is fictional, the opening sequence of #DDay landings at Omaha beach (Normandy, France) is closest to the actual brutality happened there on 6th June, 1944. Anyone who is sane and has the fighting spirit, can't remain regular after witnessing the bravery and sacrifices of soldiers. I'm frequently reminded by my intuition that in one of my previous incarnations, I was one among them, an allied soldier fought and died for the men next to me, and not the nations, between 1939 and 1945.Therefore, I've chosen to devote my existence for the brothers and this film.
Whenever I watch '#savingprivateryan' (1998), I deprive myself of food, water and sleep on the day of watching. Because I need to experience the conditions of the characters (soldiers) portrayed in the film, which was partially based on a true story of the second world war. I don't know how else I can express my gratitude to auteur #StevenSpielberg for making this exceptional film, which has been making a greater impact on my conscience since 1998. I must have seen this film at least more than fifty times. Today, being its 20th anniversary, I watched it again.
I vivdly remember watcing Saving Private Ryan with my father and brother in my holy place Madurai Mappillai Vinayagar theatre (Sri Mappillai Vinayagar) in November of 1998. It was projected in the academy format/ aspect ratio (1.37:1) /35 mm film format, stereo sound. Not only the experience was unparalleled, but the film did something provocative to me. I became obsessed with second world war. In fact, this feeling began with Spielberg's 'Schindler's List' (1993), which I also watched at Madurai Mappillai Vinayagar theatre along with my father and brother. But, it was 'Saving Private Ryan' that made the difference. Later in 2001, Madurai Manicka Vinayagar theatre was equipped with air condition and DTS. 'Saving Private Ryan' was released again. The experience was once in a lifetime kind. The film was projected in academy format only (visuals don't occupy the entire screen with black bars on the left and right side). But the Digital Track Sound (DTS) was exceptional. I felt I was in Normandy, invading the Nazi Germany occupied France. I desperately need to travel back in time to 1998 and 2001 and experience watching 'Saving Private Ryan' in my holy place Madurai Mappillai Vinayagar and Manicka Vinayagar theatres again.
20 years ago today, auteur #StevenSpielberg's masterpiece '#SavingPrivateRyan' was released on 24th July, 1998. What happened next is history.
There was only one man left in the family, and the mission was to save him.
Plot:
Steven Spielberg directed this powerful, realistic re-creation of WWII's D-day invasion and the immediate aftermath. The story opens with a prologue in which a veteran brings his family to the American cemetery at Normandy, and a flashback then joins Capt. John Miller (#TomHanks) and GIs in a landing craft making the June 6, 1944, approach to Omaha Beach to face devastating German artillery fire. This mass slaughter of American soldiers is depicted in a compelling, unforgettable 24-minute sequence. Miller's men slowly move forward to finally take a concrete pillbox. On the beach littered with bodies is one with the name "Ryan" stenciled on his backpack. Army Chief of Staff Gen. George C. Marshall (Harve Presnell), learning that three Ryan brothers from the same family have all been killed in a single week, requests that the surviving brother, Pvt. James Ryan (#MattDamon), be located and brought back to the United States. Capt. Miller gets the assignment, and he chooses a translator, Cpl. Upham (Jeremy Davis), skilled in language but not in combat, to join his squad of right-hand man Sgt. Horvath (Tom Sizemore), plus privates Mellish (Adam Goldberg), Medic Wade (Giovanni Ribisi), cynical Reiben (Edward Burns) from Brooklyn, Italian-American Caparzo (Vin Diesel), and religious Southerner Jackson (Barry Pepper), an ace sharpshooter who calls on the Lord while taking aim. Having previously experienced action in Italy and North Africa, the close-knit squad sets out through areas still thick with Nazis. After they lose one man in a skirmish at a bombed village, some in the group begin to question the logic of losing more lives to save a single soldier. The film's historical consultant is Stephen E. Ambrose, and the incident is based on a true occurance in Ambrose's 1994 bestseller D-Day: June 6, 1944. ~ Bhob Stewart, Rovi. Courtesy: Rotten Tomatoes
Trailer:
https://youtu.be/RYExstiQlLc
#SavingPrivateRyan20thAnniversary
Authored by Balaji Thangapandian aka #BT - a spacefarer, who is also curious about film-making, connectivity technologies and military history.
mindofbt.blogspot.com
tbalajiocha@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/balaji.thangapandian
https://www.facebook.com/FilmTheorist/
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