Finally saw "Saving Private Ryan" last night.
Of course, I found the opening gripping, and was grateful for the
moments when the battle sounds were muted, allowing the audience
slight relief from the tensions.
I suppose I was expecting a sort of David Lean epic, but there
was rarely if ever that kind of sweeping shot that one would find
in his movies or others who film in that style. Unlike, say the
railroad scene in "Gone With the Wind," where the
camera pulls back to show hundreds of people, Spielburg's camera
stays close and tight on the 8 men. We actually see less than the
characters do (where often in movies we see more).
Tom Hanks is definitely beginning to accumulate an iconographic
aura as an actor, bringing to this role the history of his
previous roles. Ed Burns played his role well, I thought.
