12:50 My father took my grandfather to see Private Ryan. My grandfather was a British D-Day veteran, and he said he spent most of the beach scene with his eyes closed, just listening. After, he said "that's exactly what I remember". My father said it's the only time he'd ever seen his father cry.
@@ilyaszaim6494 Shock does strange things to the mind and body. I worked with Aeromed in the States for a while, and saw some pretty crazy things. In an interview with Mark Ormrod (Royal Marine IED triple amputee) he said he watched the medic put his severed foot on his chest. The NCO that raced him back to [relative] safety for EVAC was an old schoolfriend of mine. Amazing people.
@@PPKwazz999 Thank you. He was (will always be) my hero. Visited Normandy with him many times before he passed away. His stories were both incredible and humbling. And often extremely funny!
My grandfather’s friend was on omaha beach in the initial wave. He left the theater because it was too emotional and accurate for him. He never tried to watch the movie again.
This movie despite being released in 1998 still to this day is better than most movies that come out. Does not look or appear “old” in anyway. Hands down the best war movie over all that was ever created
I had a patient that was born in 1919. He fought in WW2, Korea, and Vietnam. He refused to watch any war movies regardless how accurate they were. He stated “why would I want to relive the horrors that I’ve spent decades to forget?” He sadly passed away in 2017. I enjoyed listening to the stories he had to say from all the wars but specially WW2. It was better than any movie I could ever watch. We forget that they were the greatest generation. RIP John.
@@salazam I didn’t force him to do anything. He never told me anything he didn’t feel comfortable talking about. We would meet for lunch weekly and talk about various things including politics and family. He always told me the stories on his own terms. Not every visit was a discussion of the war. It was more about how life was during that time and how it has effected us today. Perhaps you should take the time to listen to a vet. Many don’t share their stories because they feel like nobody cares. Often it can be their only way of dealing with what they went through. As long as they don’t feel forced to tell their stories.
@@WWTormentor But, do you not see this contradiction? He didn’t want to relive, yet he willingly continued to relive? He spent the same decades actively engaged (WWII, Korea, Vietnam) doing what he spent the same decades trying to forget? Then after that, relived (yet again) with you?
My father Igor Bensen (1917-2000) served as a test pilot during WW2 and never really talked about his service. He later as an Aeronautical Engineer started Bensen Aircraft Corporation and designed, built and sold in kit form the Gyrocopter plus other small aircraft from 1958 to around 1996. His B8-M GYrocopter is displayed in the Air Museum at Smithsonian in Washington D.C. and another one is on display in Raleigh N.C.at the Museum of History. His history bio is documented in Wilkipedia and other history formats. Throughout his life he appeared on several T.V. shows like ''To Tell The Truth'' and others. Sadly my father passed away in 2000 from complications of Alzheimer's and Parkinson Disease. He was my childhood Hero but I'm sure he is in a better place.
I enlisted in 96' as a Combat Medic. I saw this movie and the part that affected me the most was when they were asking "doc" how to fix him. My first Combat tour was in 2002, then in 2008, and finally in 2011. It still haunts me to remember those I couldn't save.
@@aegismule13 yup all the vets have to live for all that did not for their are many of them that did not come home or get that welcome home that so many got after ww2
Those guys being sentenced by a judge to watch this movie after destroying veteran memorials is probably one of the best examples of justice I have ever heard of
@@aleksmilenkovic3552 You know that there is no more draft, right? In my almost 30 years in the military, I didn't know one, single person that was given the choice of "the military or jail".
@@paulmorris6177 if another world war kicks off and they get drafted, if they survive, they would learn their lesson is what I'm saying. Personally I think all young men should have military training
@@aleksmilenkovic3552 I agree. We have done very well with our all-volunteer force but compulsory service would be beneficial to some. WWII was a very different time. If you just look at the people that refuse the COVID vaccine, flat-earthers, Qanon, etc., drafting people (or making them serve in the military) would be a VERY tall order! I can't IMAGINE what horrendous world disaster would have to befall us in order to make some of these people think of OTHERS before THEMSELVES!
When my wife and I saw this movie we were both physically ill afterwards. Her grandmother, whose husband was a paratrooper on D-Day, said the movie was as perfect as any she’d seen about WW II. I think this movie is easily among the 10 best ever made, all genres, and had a superior cast, totally top notch! God Bless the Greatest Generation!
As a photographer that did his end thesis on Robert Capa when I studied. And someone who has worked in The film industry for over a decade. Thank you for including the information about him and his work in this video. His work was so integral to bringing the gritty realism to the film. It often gets over looked. I literally watched the whole video hoping you would have a spot for him.
I remember when “Saving Private Ryan” came out and there were many calls to tone down the graphic violence, especially at the beginning. Some of the loudest voices to leave it in came from World War Two veterans who had landed at Normandy. They said “That was what it was like.”. I have never heard of, much less seen, a censored “Saving Private Ryan”,so I guess they carried the day.
A censure of that movie would be to disrespect the veterans who went through the actual fighting depicted in it. This movie brought home the horror of combat. The opening scene on Omaha beach is gut wrenching in it's realism. I have never seen it's equal. Several vets who were there stated as much.
And so they should. Was them who were there, not us.Tone down the violence???!!! Did the Germans tone down there machine guns??? After seeing your mates get mown down like wheat, are you going to ' shake that German gunner's hand? I don't think so.
My grandfathers both fought in WWII while they were British they spent a lot of time with the Americans. Also, they both fought in Europe and in the Pacific. When I was very young and still very naïve I asked each of them separately which was worse. Interestingly, despite being asked at two different times and in two different places their answers were quite similar. I’m paraphrasing but basically they each said hell is hell no matter which part of hell you are in you are still in hell. I feel that I was uniquely blessed to have two grandfathers both of whom would tell me about the war. I’m sure they left some parts out when I was still very young but as I grew older they shared more and more details. A lot of people mention that their relatives wouldn’t talk about the war for various reasons. By the time I was almost a man my grandfathers had told me a great deal about what the war was like, friends that were lost, having to kill a man with their knife, D-day with so many bullets flying around that the air tasted like lead, men you had trained with and fought side by side with in other places floating face down in the water, men calling out for help not realising that from their belt down was gone and many more things that happened in many other places such as the jungles in the Pacific. At no time were they ever bragging or boasting, in fact they usually spoke in a very matter of fact sort of way. I also heard about war from my uncle who served in Korea and my father and another uncle who served in Vietnam. They all recounted their times in combat in that same unemotional matter of fact way. Years later when I was serving in a far away place enduring my own time in combat it occurred to me what a great thing the men in my family had done for me. By sharing with me the realities of war, however reluctantly, they had stripped it of its romanticised appeal you get from most war films and recruiters as well as playing soldiers as boys. In doing so they helped me to understand it and cope with it better than most of the young men I was serving with. When the SHTF moments occur you aren’t fighting for your country or your flag or your family back home. You’re fighting for that man 3 feet away laying in the dirt with you and the men off to your right laying down covering fire with the saw. You’re fighting for them just as they are fighting for you because in that moment they are all that matters. You, without them, are not making it home and they, without you, aren’t either. Men of my family from every generation have served our country going back to a time long before William the Conquerer crossed the channel in 1066. That’s more than a thousand years of serving and fighting and yes sometimes dying. It must be in our DNA, its what we do. My son grew up listening to the men of our family speak of war as it is, without glamour and rather matter of fact like. He’s finished his tour now and oddly it was at the end of the same war that I was in when it was just beginning. Now my grandsons are growing up listening to all of us just as we listened to those who came before us. It is my sincere hope that when my grandsons or maybe their grandsons grow up that there aren’t any wars to fight. That our long line of service will come to an end. I hope.
I worked as a police office near the airfield where they filmed a lot of the movie, I remember on night shift being called out to a report of a dozen men with firearms in the nearby farmers field. We went around and couldn't find them so went to the airfield and spoke with the production staff (they worked 24hrs during the making of the movie) and they said it was their actors doing their roughing it training. They then gave us a guided tour around the outside sets and all the inside departments including prosthetics, the horse blown in half was so realistic and they had the best canteen i have ever been into. We were invited to go back many times and one time included watching a scene being practised in the town set standing about 10 metres behind Mr Spielberg, great memories brought back to me by your video, thanks :)
@@CadillacDriver I give the man the benefit of the doubt. Why question him & immediately be offensive by calling "bs" on him. We weren't there so we can't disprove him; I'll just choose to be kind instead of being triggered by something trivial.
@@seppeisenmann8710 indeed. Short research gives away that they indeed travelled around to make a movie. There is then a chance that the story is right. If the man had seen this all could be given credeibility by mentioning the location where the story has happened. Even if that is not on the list of offically named ones it may still be true. I guess this goes tnen to Mr Speilberg that can do fact checking. Other than this is impssible to tell. Not that it makes a huge difference. It is a nice story. Looks possible for me.
I remember going to see this movie in the theaters with my wife. I’ll never forget when I looked over to my left there was a older gentleman sitting by himself. I remember looking over at him and seeing him with tears in his eyes. There was no doubt in my mind that he had served. When it was over I went over and thanked him for his service. He nodded and tried to smile. He gave me a silent thank you and walked off. I’ll never forget that.
Just before the movie was released Spielberg invited a whole load of WW2 vets to a private screening . When they showed the 1st 30mins of the movie they had to stop due to many of the VETS crying . Some leaving even some soiled themselves becuse it brought back so many bad memories. As they had turned up the volume in the movie theatre very loud .many VETs who stayed spoke to Spielberg and told him they was back on them beaches ..
@@vlratcliffe1 It disturbs me that he did that. I know he and others felt like it was a treat, but it feels terrifying for me to watch it and I am not a vet, just related to them. I am sobbing uncontrollably just watching clips. I cannot bear thinking about what these poor men felt.
@@vlratcliffe1 watched that movie on my giant screen with the 12 speaker set-up...but forgot we had ordered a pizza..so in the middle all that screaming and shouting and things going off....we started hearing "PIZZA".....took us awhile to realize he wasn't on Omaha Beach but was pounding on the door. trying to be heard over all the din!.....bizarre...
Watched it for the second time this past weekend! There is something about war films that makes me break down every time I see one- and Saving Private Ryan was right up there with the rest. Our greatest generation!
It's true that Spielberg didn't storyboard the beach scene, but he didn't just "set up cameras and hoped he caught something" as you said. He made up his shots on the fly before takes. The scene was properly orchestrated, just not in the traditional way with a storyboard. Spielberg would have never spent all those millions and 25 days for that scene just to "hope he got it". The beach scene shows his brilliance as a director because he was able to give the chaos clarity, which would have never worked had he just let things happen on their own.
At the very least, the film crew has to plan out the shots involving any explosives embedded in the sand that give the impression of bullets impacting the ground. The actors have to know where these charges are laid, so that they know where to walk or run safely. One does not point a camera and "hope for the best". This stuff is planned out well beforehand.
@@carlboudreaux they were WW2 landing craft but were the type used in the Pacific. Also the British were driving their landing boats that the rangers did use and I think those are all gone.
Although that opening scene is truly horrific, the one that sticks with me is Pvt Mellish’s death at the hands of the SS soldier. I’ll never forget the blade slowly sinking into Mellish's chest as the SS soldier says in untranslated German: "Give up, you have no chance. Let us end this. It's easier for you, way easier. You will see, it's over in a moment." I can’t recall a most disturbing scene ever.
Spielberg invented the character Mellish and his death that didn't exist in the original 1994 script, I suppose to make the Germans even more hated in the movie.
I went to see this movie in the theater. It was very powerful. Surroundsound was perfect! Perfect! The whistling sound of the rounds made you duck. That’s how good it was. There were a bunch of World War II veterans near the front row with their families. When we found out, a bunch of us went over to shake hands with them at the end of the movie. Wasn’t a dry eye among us. Some of them visibly shaken with their grown kids and teenage grandkids having their arm around them for support. You must understand. This was shockingly realistic to us all. One old fellow among the veterans said that it was so realistic, he felt he could smell the diesel. Spielberg really nailed it with this one.
Just lost my grandmother recently, she was 97 years old. During the funeral, I learned quite a bit about her younger years that I had never heard before ... makes me wonder if my grandfather hadnt died in 1994, and made it to my adult years or even teenage years, how much I could've learned about his war experience. Normandy, Battle of the Bulge, and what it was like upon his return home....
Propaganda has always led us to believe that we, "The Yankees" (And your Grandfather), beat Hitler. But, I have news for you Mr. Phillyred: The US did not win the war against Germany. The Russians won it. The Allied Army of the US, UK, Canada, Belgium and France (and Poland, and other countries), was able to reach Normandy, thanks to the Soviets destroying the Nazis in Stalingrad, Leningrad and in Kurks, in 1943. It took them 289 days but the Russians won and without the help of nobody… OF NOBODY! Normandy was until June 1944, and Mr. “Hollywood” Patton did NOT manage to set foot on Germany until January 1945, when the Red Army was going over Berlin. General Patton was able to enter Germany only when the Russians were 180 kilometers from the Oder River (LOL). The Allies were defeated at Arnhem (Market Garden Sep. 25-1944), and at The Battle of the Bulge (Jan. 25-1945). General Patton was paralyzed without fuel, while the Red Army was preparing for its last offensive. Look: It took the Allies 8 months to advance only 550 kilometers from Normandy to Arnhem, and from there, start the Withdrawal to the border of France (What?), facing a virtually defeated German Army cuz USSR. Well… The US has been defeated in Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, Lebanon, Somalia and now, in Afghanistan. However, the powerful US Army defeated the tiny island of Grenada, as it faced a fearsome army of 287 Police Officers, since Grenada does NOT have an Army nor Navy. Less Air Force. In fact, they were half this number, since the Policemen on the afternoon shift had not yet come to work. What seems incredible is the fact that the US was defeated by Viét Nam. What? Did the US lose the war against Nam? OMG! Against a poor country, underdeveloped, malnourished, without Navy, without Air Force, NO Marines, Green Berets, SEALs, Rangers, Delta Force, USMC, Rambos or Chuck Norris. Defeated by a country of peasants without strategic plans, no B-59 Bombers, PT-Boats, Atomic Submarines, without Aircraft Carriers, NO Continental Missiles, nor tanks, choppters, Gatlin Machins, Flamethrowers, Napalm, Agent Orange... and to top it off, defeated by an army of teenagers who had no shoes… WITHOUT SHOES!!! Army that fought with bamboo sticks!!! Charlie Kicked Our Asses and even invaded our Embassy.
I'll never forget seeing this film when it was first-released and the stunned silence at the end of the movie. I will also never forget seeing an elderly man - probably a veteran of that war - sitting alone and weeping silently to himself. Shortly afterward, a brief but impactful volume came out, called "Now You Know," which was guys reflecting on what they had experienced in the invasion and their reactions to the film.
The scene where Ryan talks about his brother with the ugly girl is so fucking genuine. It's the exact type of story real soldiers tell. The number of stories like that I've heard while in the military is insane
Dude, EVERY time I watch that movie I always think about how well Matt acted that scene out, it genuinely feels as if he is remembering the story as he tells it, and I can’t help but laugh along with him as he tells it.
This was a excellent movie,the war scenes are second to none, it's almost like it was real....we shall NEVER forget!! To ALL those Brave Young men and women who paid the ultimate price... I thank you
The only WW2 cinematography that is equal of serpasses is Band of Brother's, The Pacific, and Midway(2020?) And Black Hawk Down also gets the gritty chaos of a firefight as the Normandy Beach Landing
I saw this movie when it first came out and I told my mum that I saw it and she had said that every generation should see this movie and she also said that Steven Spielberg did a great job on reacting it
The Normandy shot had me in shock on what our soldiers went thru,it was so realistic that movie theaters had bulletins all over the theater for vets warning them of the scenes and phone numbers to call if they needed counseling
I still have all my receipts from Saving Private Ryan. 27 times, in the theater. Obviously opening night, was the most chilling, horrific, surreal turnout. Others were close for about a month, but damn. That night....so many vets, young and old. Teens, and seniors left, softly weeping. Those who never seen war, ( and most realistic experience to date) and those who seen too much first hand. There was no cheering, just moments of moans ( including the "ryan" mix up). When I left, there was a bench, with two couples. A young serviceman in camo uniform (bdu??), and his wife, and WWII vet, in all veteran memorabilia, with his wife. The old vet, head into his knees, holding his wife's hand. The young soldier, on his knees, his head, in his wife's lap. Both ladies looking at each other, lost, not knowing what either man had seen, or been through. Tears coming from both wives, visually "consoling" each other by looks, as thier men wept. It was a Norman Rockwell moment for sure. I wished I had a camera, but it was such a private moment. I'm glad I didn't. Some things, just shouldn't be photographed. But it will always be burned into my soul.
First time I saw Saving Private Ryan was with my dad. We were watching it at my house on pay per view. During the invasion of Normandy Beach my dad got up and went outside. At first I thought he couldn't take it because he served in Korea. I went outside and asked him if he was okay. He was looking up at the sky and with tears in his eyes he said, I lost my brother over there. My uncle Ernest died in WW2. He was at the invasion of Normandy Beach.
This film should be mandatory viewing in high school. I think it would be a great lesson to kids of the last few generations as to what it looks like when you fight ACTUAL fascism, and not what is imagined by these generations. Not to mention what it is to be willing to sacrifice for something greater than yourself. The Greatest Generation will hopefully be honored rather than forgotten for the sacrifices they made both home and abroad.
Mandatory, Yep. That will kill antifa, blm and crt in an instant. Let them see what REAL MEN DO so the Flag of The United States of America has more meaning then they ever imagined.
I watched it at school when I was around 15-16 in the UK. I'm sure most of my classmates also watched it. It NEEDS to be watched by that age group to understand what they went through for US, and what they sacrificed for us to be free today.
One of the greatest films ever made, that was beaten by “Shakespeare in Love” for best picture. It was the last time I watched the Academy Awards. We owe those men who stormed those beaches a debt we can never repay. RIP.
This remains the most impressive movie I have ever seen for so many reasons. The production, sound, acting, atmosphere are all so incredibly spot on it’s almost unreal and you feel like you are actually on the battlefield with the actors.
After watching Saving Private Ryan in the summer of 1998, I knew right away that this was THE BEST war movie ever. And I went back to the cinema the next day to watch it again. Never happened before or later.
My Great Uncle Vernon fought in Burma throughout WW2, one of his first jobs was blowing up the oil wells so the Japanese invading forces could not get the oil. He then went on to become a proto Special Forces Guerrilla, setting traps, mines and causing general mayhem. He never talked about it much and would refer to is as "Playing soldiers". He did say once that the only respect the Japanese had for any opponent was the Gurkhas - who could be every bit as ruthless. My Uncle caught a Japanese soldier and tied him to a tree to interrogate later, a passing Gurkha shot him dead without even pausing. I read the novel and then saw the mini series "Band Of Brothers" - that was powerful stuff, and based on true events. I guess there is simply no way to prepare for the theatre of war and any film however realistic, isn't ever going to get it across.
I worked with an older guy who would constantly tell us about the horrible things he saw and did during the war. We'd invite him to sporting events but he would always refuse, stating that he's always irrationally paranoid of being in an enclosed space with a lot of people because he was certain the enemy would blow everything up and kill everyone.
13:24 I think they did the same in Band of Brothers, and the guy who played Webster was allowed to go on holiday for the part where his character was wounded while everyone else stayed in training to increase the resentment the characters were supposed to show towards him.
Saw SPR with my VFW group when it was released. This group included 11 guys who actually landed at Omaha and Utah beaches on D-day…2 ended up needing to leave partway through the opening beach scene and went with guys to help them out, the rest stayed and endured the scene. We made sure to have discussions later and this helped draw out a lot of long buried hurts n fears. It’s a good thing this movie was so realistic as people need reminding what that generation did and endured for not only our Country but the world.
I first saw this film in the theater. The opening sequence was gut-wrenching! I was openly crying hard with-in the first minute The realism really got me. It was as close to being there as you would ever want to get. That's when you realize the sacrifice our Sons, Dads, Uncles, and Brothers made for us.
Watched this in the theatre with my dad. An old man sat behind us, and wept (as quietly as possible) during the Omaha Beach sequence and also during the final battle. I'll never forget that.
I'm an Army Special Forces veteran, but never had to experience anything even close to what these heros did. Thank you for your service truly. Thanks to Tom Hanks for doing this great tribute.
Great video. Just rewatched it again this Memorial Day. Every time I watch it, I'm just teared up and silent for about 10 minutes afterwards. God Bless the iron men who fought that war for us.
I was fortunate to be able to witness several interviews of WWII vets for a library that was being complied and these men had such amazing character. They went through being born into the great depression then going to WWII in their prime hence being honed by difficulty. I've heard said our younger generation will be like them because of all they have been born into. I believe it because I've just starting catching up with their music and they have surpassed my GenX beloved music; something I would not have thought possible, but the talent and insight of some of these guys is just amazing - maybe we are still evolving - God speed young ones you are what the vets fought for.
I watched on the first release in my home city with my dad and dozens of wives and ex-servicemen and women who served. Was a super heavy vibe, but an honour to watch it with with them. Quite a few of the wives had to leave after the landing scene.
My dad was in WWII, the 5th Armored Division. He was in the Anzio invasion as well as France. After the war he collected military guns from several campaigns as well as being a NRA instructor and was on the Army National Pistol Team in the late 50's and 60's. At any given time we had possibly 125-150 guns inside our home, mostly from WWII. He passed away in 2003, but he did see Private Ryan and stated some of the rifles used in the beach scene had the wrong color gun stock. The lighter color on the M1 Garands and M1A Carbine were not used until after the invasion. We never knew of his involvement in the Anzio invasion until after he passed away when we found a coffee table book on the war. He had placed a bookmark on one page. On that page was a description of his unit going into Anzio.
I'll be honest, I never saw this movie as it came out as a kid and I don't recall even understanding any of what happened. This past June, I finally saw it in preparation to visit Normandy with my family. Seeing the movie from this perspective and then walking the beaches and seeing all the German bunkers now all covered in grass, dust, rotting away just blows your mind away. It's a sobering experience to be able to visit and see first hand the areas all the soldiers gave their lives at. It's a must visit to really appreciate your freedom, more so now than ever.
I'm the 7th of 9 and my father only shared 2 things with me. He would accompany a pilot in an unarmed light-duty plane mapping the German countryside and he was pulled from his platoon for this duty the day his entire platoon was killed. Years later (65?) My oldest sister said he was with the men who liberated Auschwitz. I almost turned away from your facts again but I'm glad I stayed. I watched Saving Private Ryan while my wife was at work so, yes, the volume was up. At one point I sobbed so uncontrollably my dogs thought something bad was up. I Liked, Subscribed, & Ding!!! Thanks for sharing.
Everytime I watch this movie I get chills down my back realizing that men as young as 18 years old actually lived and experienced it. I love the ending when Tom Hanks says earn it. It's like the Greatest Generation was saying earn it to us. That their sacrifices gave us the freedoms we take for granted and freedom isn't free. It's paid for in blood.
My next door neighbour was 16 when he stormed the beaches .he never went back to the beaches ever again I asked him when this movie was on the TV and did you see it and he said yes and it was nothing compared to the real thing but was a real good attempt at it .I asked him did he ever go back and he replied I went there once NEVER LIKED IT and I'll never go back . As for the ages listen to paul hardcastle song ...19 ... one part that song hit me hard . !!! The average age of a combat solider in WW2 was 26 in Vietnam it was 19 !!!! I have a son 19 . That scares me .
Most WW2 vets never say anything about it. My dad, his brother, both my neighbors were all in combat. none of them ever talked about their time in the war. What horrific things they must have experienced, I'll never know. I didn't learn until after my father died, that most of his unit died. He and his brother had been all gung ho to join up after Pearl. The letters they wrote back to my grandmother and aunt once they were in the thick of it, reflected what they were really going through.
My father was in the armed forces one day. Drafted for military service. He probably got one of the worst jobs in the war. He had to wage war against the worst enemy that cannot be seen. Partisans. My father only spoke to me once about this war, when I was around 6 years old. He died a year later. that was a war in which all peoples were incited against each other. We all have to be careful that this doesn't happen again. What is happening right now should make everyone sit up and take notice, because it starts again exactly the same way. It always seems to me that the US population doesn't even notice certain things. This, too, is strongly reminiscent of the beginnings of the two world wars.
The reference to hedgehogs is interesting 18:08 but a mistake of note usually overlooked is the other angled barriers mixed in with the hedgehogs. They are all placed on the beach backwards. The narrow end should face the ocean, the idea being that landing craft would ride up the obstacle's slope and tip over.
Watched this movie at home with my Dad, he was D3 landing, He followed Patton all the way from Normandy across to Paris, He was also at the Battle of the Bulge. we were able to stop the movie so he could talk about what he remembered!! I'd seen my Dad cry only 3 times in my life... That movie was the 3rd!!!
I was 18 and working my first job at AMC theaters….I can definitely confirm I saw many distressed old guys exiting the film weeping. You could tell from the first screening it was special.
This has to be one of my all time favourite films and it is still relevant as it was when it first came out. Can’t get over it came out in 1998. It’s one of those films that never gets old
17:55 I heard differently about the “Czech Hedgehogs” They still worked because the US had to decide do we go at high tide but risk getting the landing vessels caught on them or do we go at low tide and risk having the men have to go so much farther to storm the beach where they will be out in the open longer. So the Czech Hedgehogs weren’t a “mistake” or “huge miscalculation” by the Germans like you claim. They did exactly what they were supposed to do. Without them, the landing vessels would have been able to drop the soldiers off even closer. Forcing the US to make a decision on what to do. Risk the landing vessels getting struck by the hedgehogs or dropping the soldiers off a lot farther away making it harder for them to storm the beach and being stuck out in the open longer...
I was working for the theatres when this came out. Veterans walked out of the movie when it was over saying that they were getting flashbacks and that it was the most realistic war film they'd ever seen as it felt like they were back in the war again.
02:59 Yes, I watched the movie in original with subtitles for the first time in around 2006. I was 15. I prepared sandwiches and tea, waited for my parents to go somewhere and played the movie aloud to enjoy the battle scene. I was sweating and genuinely scared. My ever-lasting passion for this part of history and respect to all those who took part in it sparked in that moment aaaand...I'm Czech. I started wondering what my grandfathers were actually doing around that time. When I heard these extras speaking the language of my 10mil nation in US world-known movie, I literally dropped my sandwich and the view of cheese and ham on our cork tiled floor will forever be stitched with "Look, I washed for dinner."
I’m sorry about your bad personal exp with the movie. I’ve been to Czech myself and I find some the most beautiful ppl in the world. It is the war that is bad, and made everything so random and chaotic. Still, Dekuji Vam for sharing
@@tonyzhang492 don't get me wrong, it was not bad experience. It was just so surprising. I like my country too, but I live in Latin America since the outbreak of the pandemics and I find local people much nicer than my own kind. Still, thanks for kind words.;)
The opening sequence still gives me goosebumps, my hair stands on end, it's almost too much for me, to know that our brave men had to face such brutality and violence and to keep pushing forward into that and worse. I love England, I'm very proud of our soldiers past and present, thank you so much for my freedom and my home.
To fact 44: it's actually very important it's refered to "shooting fish in a barrel" because the US choose Omaha Beach very carefully. The attending german military in that section was not only be assured that there won't be any invasion for the next days, but it also was one of the worst battalions in the defense line made up of wounded soldiers and POWs that have been denied heavy artillery and a proper weapon arsenal since germany expected the invasion about 200km to the east. It was probably the worst fight in human history while only being defended by a crippled, non functioning and poorly equipped army. As a german I can still only be grateful it happened that way since I wouldn't wanna know how the world would look like if the Nazis plans would have worked out.
Appreciate the true factual information of this incredible movie I've seen many times and love. FYI I was born 5/14/45, days after Germany surrendered, visited Germany in 1965 with my family and stayed with some German relatives, visited and "touched" the Ziegfried Line, and my cousin,Major Hugh Michael Fanning, a USMC fighter pilot during Vietnam and shot down and captured, and executed as a prisoner, on Oct. 30-31, 1967. He was the only US military pilot shot down in all of Vietnam that day, his bones returned to Hawaii years later, and his remains are interred in Arlington National Cemetary. Hugh would appreciate this video, and thank you. My cousin can be read about by Googling Hugh Michael Fanning. R.I.P Hugh...
Honestly, the Indian PM deserves a lot of credit. Hands on approach, taking iniciativ, accepting responsibility for the outcome (people could claim it gave them ptsd etc) and doing what he did because he believed it was the right call. That's a politician I respect.
My Mom and Aunt took my grandfather to see it. He was a POW and on the last prisoner exchange of the war. All he said, "That's what it was like." and had tears in his eyes. Never talked about the war or the movie again. Wish my kids could have met him.
When this movie was released. I had just started boot camp. I was in Nov of 98. While watching this movie. I was in total and complete aww. My grandfather fought in WWI and in WWII. To survive in the battle of the BULGE. Must respect for him and his brother's that gave so much for all of humanity. In secret I cried without any of my fellow soldiers knowing. To my past brothers, current and into the future. Thank you.
Having visited the Normandy beaches about a month before the release of the film, I went to see it with the same two buds I walked with on those beaches and the cemetery shown. At the opening scene we all looked at each other spooked... The first 25 minutes of this film should be mandatory large screen viewing and loud surround sound system with no talking or interruption. Vets I spoke with who were there said Spielberg nailed it. The film speaks for itself. I watch it every June 6th.
I walked those same beaches, and stood on point Du Hoc looking out over the landing. Everytime I see the photos I think it was a wonder that anyone made it off of there, much less were able to advance to the top. That is a trip that I will never forget, went there for the 60th anniversary as a member of the 29th Infantry Division (ARNG). Spielberg did get it right.
I did a 2 day hike along those beaches in my teens in the late 90's. But I feel like I cheated a bit because I'm from the UK. It was a £30 ferry that I'd taken loads of times. My great-grandfather was alive growing up and served in WW1 and I feel a lot more connection to that war. He had Alzheimer's and was still a sweet man no matter how confused he was. Between the two sides of my family we lost 18 men in the trenches. WW2 my family was short adult men to serve. My grandfather became an orphan when his mother died in London at 23 years old, he was 15 when the war ended. My Nan was with her aunt on a farm when her baby sister died when their house was bombed in London, her Mum survived. In the last days of the war, Nan lost another younger sister playing in a shelled house. While you're taking note of all the soldiers who died, remember why they were there. The civilians are real people. My Nan still can't talk about seeing her sister die when she was little even at 83 years old. An entire generation of children saw shit no child should see.
Visited them as a kid as well, even then (coming from a military family and watching / learning about countless films and battles) I got chills and just wanted to stand there and take it all in. The number of craters is surreal, and a few of the concrete reinforced gun emplacements. You can close your eyes and imagine it all coming back to life - the things that happened there and the number of lives which were extinguished all around you is completely surreal.
My grandfathers both fought in WWII while they were British they spent a lot of time with the Americans. Also, they both fought in Europe and in the Pacific. When I was very young and still very naïve I asked each of them separately which was worse. Interestingly, despite being asked at two different times and in two different places their answers were quite similar. I’m paraphrasing but basically they each said hell is hell no matter which part of hell you are in you are still in hell. I feel that I was uniquely blessed to have two grandfathers both of whom would tell me about the war. I’m sure they left some parts out when I was still very young but as I grew older they shared more and more details. A lot of people mention that their relatives wouldn’t talk about the war for various reasons. By the time I was almost a man my grandfathers had told me a great deal about what the war was like, friends that were lost, having to kill a man with their knife, D-day with so many bullets flying around that the air tasted like lead, men you had trained with and fought side by side with in other places floating face down in the water, men calling out for help not realising that from their belt down was gone and many more things that happened in many other places such as the jungles in the Pacific. At no time were they ever bragging or boasting, in fact they usually spoke in a very matter of fact sort of way. I also heard about war from my uncle who served in Korea and my father and another uncle who served in Vietnam. They all recounted their times in combat in that same unemotional matter of fact way. Years later when I was serving in a far away place enduring my own time in combat it occurred to me what a great thing the men in my family had done for me. By sharing with me the realities of war, however reluctantly, they had stripped it of its romanticised appeal you get from most war films and recruiters as well as playing soldiers as boys. In doing so they helped me to understand it and cope with it better than most of the young men I was serving with. When the SHTF moments occur you aren’t fighting for your country or your flag or your family back home. You’re fighting for that man 3 feet away laying in the dirt with you and the men off to your right laying down covering fire with the saw. You’re fighting for them just as they are fighting for you because in that moment they are all that matters. You, without them, are not making it home and they, without you, aren’t either. Men of my family from every generation have served our country going back to a time long before William the Conquerer crossed the channel in 1066. That’s more than a thousand years of serving and fighting and yes sometimes dying. It must be in our DNA, its what we do. My son grew up listening to the men of our family speak of war as it is, without glamour and rather matter of fact like. He’s finished his tour now and oddly it was at the end of the same war that I was in when it was just beginning. Now my grandsons are growing up listening to all of us just as we listened to those who came before us. It is my sincere hope that when my grandsons or maybe their grandsons grow up that there aren’t any wars to fight. That our long line of service will come to an end. I hope.
Thanks for sharing your story. My father in law served in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. I like to hear stories; not because I think its cool or fun (its not) but because I love history and learning about the men and women who gave me the life I have today. He did tell me two stories, but then he said "I dont really like to talk about it. I know some folks do, but I dont" I respected him for that, and I never ever asked him. If he shared, I would listen. If he didnt, I never asked.
You could not have said it better. I, too, come from a military family going back many generations. The men folk that survived imparted in me a sense of duty and honor. As a child, I asked my one uncle, who served in Pacific theater, what he did during the war. He just stared off into space a few moments then quietly replied, " I survived." He never shared with any of family his experiences in WW2. I was drafted in 1970 and served stateside. I have the greatest respect for any soldier, Marine or sailor that served honorably and survived.
I went to see this movie at the theater on a Sunday morning early showing. I ended up sitting between 2 WWII veterans. I can't begin to try to express the level of gratitude I felt with each of these American heroes on each side of me during this event. In the opening scene we all had tears quietly running down our faces. God Bless America. And God Bless all those who have given their oath to protect what so many of us take granted for.
"God bless America" yes I get what you are saying, but good luck telling that to the Japanese Americans of the time, or the fact that in the South, blacks still couldn't vote. Where was god for them? It was a troubled time, these guys went through hell, but America was not a beacon of hope and good.
The German sniper scene had the American sniper saying "don't venture out there fellas, this sniper has got talent" because not so long ago that same German was on The X-Factor 'dressed in his Wermacth uniform' and when Simon Cowell said "what are you going to do tonight for us Heinrich?" And the kraut replied "ach vell Simon tonight I'm gonna juggle with these stick grenades" so Private Jackson 'played by Barry Pepper' was spot on?
Fun fact: On Kevin Pollack's chat show, Bryan Cranston states that when he got the role of the one-armed general(?), he learned how to hold both the saucer and cup with one hand while also stiring the sugar he placed in it with his tiny tea spoon at the same time. Spielberg was impressed with the trick, but was like "nah, we don't need that. It bogs down the scene. Good job, though."
One word. Magnificent!!! Thank you so much for this brilliant war movie. Very realistic and all. Thank you very much for your effort by making this movie a masterpiece.. We salute all the war veterans of world War 2. May yous all rest in peace..............
Most of this movie was filmed on a disused aerodrome close to where I live. I remember watching them film the final scenes where the P51 Mustangs kept swooping down over the village. When I took my wife for a walk over the meadow there last year she couldn't believe that this was where it was filmed. It was a very sobering movie. I featured this in my video: Hertfordshire Village Walks: 'Wheathampstead to Bishop's Hatfield'.
I was a Texas Ranger background artist in the French village when the P51 flew over. Strange for me reading these comments as at the time I never expected that it would be a historic iconic movie. I was being paid £100 a day enjoying the experience.
11:39 that's exactly what I love about saving Private Ryan, it doesn't have violence for the sake of violence, but rather uses violence as a form of story telling. Truly amazing movie. Top 5 of all time imo
I went to a matinee showing of this with my brother which was full of pensioners, it was one of the most humbling & moving experiences of my life. What a movie.
Nice job on this. Like everyone who enjoys WW2 films, Saving Private Ryan ranks up there among my favorites. I think that you could easily say that SPR set the standard of realism for all future WW2 movies, a fact that is a benefit to us, the viewing public.
Parts of it were Hollywood silliness though such as machine gunning through the Tigers driver's visor. Oh and Tigers in the Cotentin Peninsula. Historical nonsense to be frank. The first half hour was great though.
Hey mate, have you ever seen a South Korean movie called 'Brotherhood?' It's not WW2, it's set during The Korean war and is excellent as long as you can handle reading subtitles. Check it out if you've not seen it.
I saw Shakespeare In Love at the movies, I've seen Saving Private Ryan at least 20 times. It still pisses me off when the Waffen SS soldier kills the Jewish American soldier and shoots Tom Hanks.
@@ralphalvarez5465 Not the same German. Guy who kills Mellish is Waffen SS and Steamboat Willie (who shoots Capt. Miller) was Wermacht. Their camo smocks are different & the SS guy’s hairline is different. Upham sees what showing him mercy at the radar station cost.
What an outstanding movie! I had 4 Uncles that saw heavy action in WW2 and they all made it back: My Mom also had 2 neighbors, twin boys who went overseas to fight and were never seen again. Very sad indeed… God Bless all those young men who gave their lives, limbs and minds
My grandad served in the 'kings own Yorkshire light infantry' during ww2 and then became a pow towards the end of the war. Him my dad and my Uncle watched this at the cinema when it first got released and he always said saving private ryan was the most accurate war film he watched.
Still the greatest war movie of all time. No matter how many times I’ve watched it, I still get goosebumps. The neck hairs standing up during the combat and that gut wrenching feeling realizing that men actually went through this hell.
I remember seeing this in theaters. It was the most powerful experience of my life. I was 10 and watched grown men crying, walking out of the movie. I have been studying ww2 for 20 years and I will continue to study it. Sadly my grandfather fought in the Pacific theatre, he took his own life after returning to the states. This will always be my favorite movie. It was a mandatory watch in my highschool, a long with the pledge of alligence. Seeing what America is turning into makes me struggle everyday to keep living myself, real talk.
I watched this at the first showing at the Ft. Hood, TX theater. I can't describe the experience watching this with a room full of active duty soldiers.
My sister stated that the Normandy scene was shown to her in basic training along with other battles scene from movies. The recruits were reminded that they could called upon to such an action in the modern day.
We watched parts this in our 8th grade history class! Our history teacher dressed in uniforms they wore during WW2 we spent a entire semester on WW2 wish we coulda took that class more than a year he had the weapons they used during the war and they fired but all the firing pins had been removed! Now the school made him remove all firearms swords crossbows spears that he had in his class the kids nowdays will never know what his class was like! He was by far the best teacher I ever had and the only one I really remember!He retired in 2019
Growing up my great grandfather who was on Juno beach would try to explain to me what it was like for him being there but he never could. When this movie came out on VHS he let me watch it and told me the beach landing scene was so accurate he could still remember the smell when watching the film.
This movie was like a little psychology experiment for me. I saw it on the opening day, Friday, and noticed that through the first frames in the French cemetery the other people watching did their usual movie shit...eating, crinkling bags, little chatter... Then, when the soldiers started getting slaughtered as the landing craft doors opened...not one, single, solitary sound for the rest of the movie...NOTHING. Had never experienced that in a theater before. I went the next day Saturday and then Sunday wanting to see the movie again of course, but if the audience would react the same and the same exact sequences played out... Spielberg, I think with that movie, was the first director to make theater audiences shut up and finally respect a movie.
i just rewatched this on monday and it holds up, still as good now as it was then, there was even a few shots that still made me a little uncomfortable, like when the soldier is laying on the ground with his guts sitting next to him, and when Tom Hanks is trying to pull a guy to safety only to realize the lower half of his body is gone, 100 years from now this movie will still be shocking and wowing audiences
I came back from Iraq and watched Saving Private Ryan. Unfortunately my parents didn’t explain their surround sound system to me. Hit the deck pretty hard !!
My favourite movie of all time and certainly the best war movie ever. The battle scene at the end was actually an old WW2 aircraft factory in Hertfordshire, England where they built the Mosquito aircraft. The tiger tank in the final scenes was actually a mock up built on the chassis of a Russian T34. Looking forward to Spielberg's series about the 8th. Airforce in WW2. Doubt you will ever better this movie no matter how hard anyone tries!
12:50 My father took my grandfather to see Private Ryan. My grandfather was a British D-Day veteran, and he said he spent most of the beach scene with his eyes closed, just listening. After, he said "that's exactly what I remember". My father said it's the only time he'd ever seen his father cry.
But i still cant help the fact that the guy casually walking looking for his arm
@@ilyaszaim6494 Shock does strange things to the mind and body. I worked with Aeromed in the States for a while, and saw some pretty crazy things.
In an interview with Mark Ormrod (Royal Marine IED triple amputee) he said he watched the medic put his severed foot on his chest. The NCO that raced him back to [relative] safety for EVAC was an old schoolfriend of mine. Amazing people.
Respect to your grandad
@@PPKwazz999 Thank you. He was (will always be) my hero. Visited Normandy with him many times before he passed away. His stories were both incredible and humbling. And often extremely funny!
My grandfather’s friend was on omaha beach in the initial wave. He left the theater because it was too emotional and accurate for him. He never tried to watch the movie again.
This movie despite being released in 1998 still to this day is better than most movies that come out. Does not look or appear “old” in anyway. Hands down the best war movie over all that was ever created
Watch Tae Guk Gi. It’s a very close to being my favourite war film just behind Saving Private Ryan
Fury was an attempt at becoming another saving private Ryan lmao trash
@@jcbetancourt4316 lol yeah that movie was mediocre at best
@@evankearney4865 100% it’s incredible how ahead of its time this movie was and band of brother and also Gladiator !
@@ScentsOfSouthJersey Right on!
I had a patient that was born in 1919. He fought in WW2, Korea, and Vietnam. He refused to watch any war movies regardless how accurate they were. He stated “why would I want to relive the horrors that I’ve spent decades to forget?” He sadly passed away in 2017. I enjoyed listening to the stories he had to say from all the wars but specially WW2. It was better than any movie I could ever watch. We forget that they were the greatest generation. RIP John.
So you forced him to relive the horrors by making him tell stories for your own amusement? Classic.
@@salazam I didn’t force him to do anything. He never told me anything he didn’t feel comfortable talking about. We would meet for lunch weekly and talk about various things including politics and family. He always told me the stories on his own terms. Not every visit was a discussion of the war. It was more about how life was during that time and how it has effected us today. Perhaps you should take the time to listen to a vet. Many don’t share their stories because they feel like nobody cares. Often it can be their only way of dealing with what they went through. As long as they don’t feel forced to tell their stories.
@@salazam lol nice mental gymnastics 🤸
RIP John
@@WWTormentor But, do you not see this contradiction? He didn’t want to relive, yet he willingly continued to relive?
He spent the same decades actively engaged (WWII, Korea, Vietnam) doing what he spent the same decades trying to forget? Then after that, relived (yet again) with you?
My dad (1925-2002), a WWII veteran who saw action in the Battle of the Bulge, said this is the most realistic depiction of the war he had ever seen.
Bless your dad, this movie has made me even more thankful for our troops even though I greatly appreciated them before.
Yeah, I’ve read many WW2 vets have all said this movie was incredibly accurate to the point many of them had flashbacks
I saw the movie with my uncle a veteran of Patton's Third Army. He said the same thing.
My father Igor Bensen (1917-2000) served as a test pilot during WW2 and never really talked about his service. He later as an Aeronautical Engineer started Bensen Aircraft Corporation and designed, built and sold in kit form the Gyrocopter plus other small aircraft from 1958 to around 1996. His B8-M GYrocopter is displayed in the Air Museum at Smithsonian in Washington D.C. and another one is on display in Raleigh N.C.at the Museum of History. His history bio is documented in Wilkipedia and other history formats. Throughout his life he appeared on several T.V. shows like ''To Tell The Truth'' and others. Sadly my father passed away in 2000 from complications of Alzheimer's and Parkinson Disease. He was my childhood Hero but I'm sure he is in a better place.
I enlisted in 96' as a Combat Medic. I saw this movie and the part that affected me the most was when they were asking "doc" how to fix him. My first Combat tour was in 2002, then in 2008, and finally in 2011. It still haunts me to remember those I couldn't save.
I was in back in the 80s
Ya may be was back like that then but I know theirs were called cat eyes but were not painted on like helmets were like back in ww2
thnik of the ones you did save brother. as long as you did the best you could, and i know you did
@@aegismule13 yup all the vets have to live for all that did not for their are many of them that did not come home or get that welcome home that so many got after ww2
Did you watch this and almost had ptsd
Those guys being sentenced by a judge to watch this movie after destroying veteran memorials is probably one of the best examples of justice I have ever heard of
The question is...did they LEARN anything from it or was it just a waste of time?!
@@paulmorris6177 if they didn't learn then they would when they get drafted
@@aleksmilenkovic3552 You know that there is no more draft, right? In my almost 30 years in the military, I didn't know one, single person that was given the choice of "the military or jail".
@@paulmorris6177 if another world war kicks off and they get drafted, if they survive, they would learn their lesson is what I'm saying. Personally I think all young men should have military training
@@aleksmilenkovic3552 I agree. We have done very well with our all-volunteer force but compulsory service would be beneficial to some. WWII was a very different time. If you just look at the people that refuse the COVID vaccine, flat-earthers, Qanon, etc., drafting people (or making them serve in the military) would be a VERY tall order! I can't IMAGINE what horrendous world disaster would have to befall us in order to make some of these people think of OTHERS before THEMSELVES!
When my wife and I saw this movie we were both physically ill afterwards. Her grandmother, whose husband was a paratrooper on D-Day, said the movie was as perfect as any she’d seen about WW II.
I think this movie is easily among the 10 best ever made, all genres, and had a superior cast, totally top notch!
God Bless the Greatest Generation!
As a photographer that did his end thesis on Robert Capa when I studied. And someone who has worked in The film industry for over a decade. Thank you for including the information about him and his work in this video. His work was so integral to bringing the gritty realism to the film. It often gets over looked. I literally watched the whole video hoping you would have a spot for him.
I remember when “Saving Private Ryan” came out and there were many calls to tone down the graphic violence, especially at the beginning. Some of the loudest voices to leave it in came from World War Two veterans who had landed at Normandy. They said “That was what it was like.”. I have never heard of, much less seen, a censored “Saving Private Ryan”,so I guess they carried the day.
A censure of that movie would be to disrespect the veterans who went through the actual fighting depicted in it. This movie brought home the horror of combat. The opening scene on Omaha beach is gut wrenching in it's realism. I have never seen it's equal. Several vets who were there stated as much.
And so they should. Was them who were there, not us.Tone down the violence???!!! Did the Germans tone down there machine guns??? After seeing your mates get mown down like wheat, are you going to ' shake that German gunner's hand? I don't think so.
@@larrygarrett724 The Pacific is by far worse than this.
My grandfathers both fought in WWII while they were British they spent a lot of time with the Americans. Also, they both fought in Europe and in the Pacific. When I was very young and still very naïve I asked each of them separately which was worse. Interestingly, despite being asked at two different times and in two different places their answers were quite similar. I’m paraphrasing but basically they each said hell is hell no matter which part of hell you are in you are still in hell. I feel that I was uniquely blessed to have two grandfathers both of whom would tell me about the war. I’m sure they left some parts out when I was still very young but as I grew older they shared more and more details. A lot of people mention that their relatives wouldn’t talk about the war for various reasons.
By the time I was almost a man my grandfathers had told me a great deal about what the war was like, friends that were lost, having to kill a man with their knife, D-day with so many bullets flying around that the air tasted like lead, men you had trained with and fought side by side with in other places floating face down in the water, men calling out for help not realising that from their belt down was gone and many more things that happened in many other places such as the jungles in the Pacific.
At no time were they ever bragging or boasting, in fact they usually spoke in a very matter of fact sort of way. I also heard about war from my uncle who served in Korea and my father and another uncle who served in Vietnam. They all recounted their times in combat in that same unemotional matter of fact way.
Years later when I was serving in a far away place enduring my own time in combat it occurred to me what a great thing the men in my family had done for me. By sharing with me the realities of war, however reluctantly, they had stripped it of its romanticised appeal you get from most war films and recruiters as well as playing soldiers as boys. In doing so they helped me to understand it and cope with it better than most of the young men I was serving with.
When the SHTF moments occur you aren’t fighting for your country or your flag or your family back home. You’re fighting for that man 3 feet away laying in the dirt with you and the men off to your right laying down covering fire with the saw. You’re fighting for them just as they are fighting for you because in that moment they are all that matters. You, without them, are not making it home and they, without you, aren’t either.
Men of my family from every generation have served our country going back to a time long before William the Conquerer crossed the channel in 1066. That’s more than a thousand years of serving and fighting and yes sometimes dying. It must be in our DNA, its what we do.
My son grew up listening to the men of our family speak of war as it is, without glamour and rather matter of fact like. He’s finished his tour now and oddly it was at the end of the same war that I was in when it was just beginning. Now my grandsons are growing up listening to all of us just as we listened to those who came before us. It is my sincere hope that when my grandsons or maybe their grandsons grow up that there aren’t any wars to fight. That our long line of service will come to an end. I hope.
@@prepperjonpnw6482 Thank you for your service. Even if your from another country. War is hell.
I worked as a police office near the airfield where they filmed a lot of the movie, I remember on night shift being called out to a report of a dozen men with firearms in the nearby farmers field. We went around and couldn't find them so went to the airfield and spoke with the production staff (they worked 24hrs during the making of the movie) and they said it was their actors doing their roughing it training. They then gave us a guided tour around the outside sets and all the inside departments including prosthetics, the horse blown in half was so realistic and they had the best canteen i have ever been into. We were invited to go back many times and one time included watching a scene being practised in the town set standing about 10 metres behind Mr Spielberg, great memories brought back to me by your video, thanks :)
amazing
That’s so cool
Bullshit. It was a closed set with security on the perimeter.
@@CadillacDriver I give the man the benefit of the doubt. Why question him & immediately be offensive by calling "bs" on him. We weren't there so we can't disprove him; I'll just choose to be kind instead of being triggered by something trivial.
@@seppeisenmann8710 indeed. Short research gives away that they indeed travelled around to make a movie. There is then a chance that the story is right. If the man had seen this all could be given credeibility by mentioning the location where the story has happened. Even if that is not on the list of offically named ones it may still be true. I guess this goes tnen to Mr Speilberg that can do fact checking. Other than this is impssible to tell.
Not that it makes a huge difference. It is a nice story. Looks possible for me.
I remember going to see this movie in the theaters with my wife. I’ll never forget when I looked over to my left there was a older gentleman sitting by himself. I remember looking over at him and seeing him with tears in his eyes. There was no doubt in my mind that he had served. When it was over I went over and thanked him for his service. He nodded and tried to smile. He gave me a silent thank you and walked off. I’ll never forget that.
Just before the movie was released Spielberg invited a whole load of WW2 vets to a private screening . When they showed the 1st 30mins of the movie they had to stop due to many of the VETS crying . Some leaving even some soiled themselves becuse it brought back so many bad memories. As they had turned up the volume in the movie theatre very loud .many VETs who stayed spoke to Spielberg and told him they was back on them beaches ..
@@vlratcliffe1 It disturbs me that he did that. I know he and others felt like it was a treat, but it feels terrifying for me to watch it and I am not a vet, just related to them. I am sobbing uncontrollably just watching clips. I cannot bear thinking about what these poor men felt.
Parker get out!!
@@vlratcliffe1 watched that movie on my giant screen with the 12 speaker set-up...but forgot we had ordered a pizza..so in the middle all that screaming and shouting and things going off....we started hearing "PIZZA".....took us awhile to realize he wasn't on Omaha Beach but was pounding on the door. trying to be heard over all the din!.....bizarre...
Watched it for the second time this past weekend! There is something about war films that makes me break down every time I see one- and Saving Private Ryan was right up there with the rest. Our greatest generation!
It's true that Spielberg didn't storyboard the beach scene, but he didn't just "set up cameras and hoped he caught something" as you said. He made up his shots on the fly before takes. The scene was properly orchestrated, just not in the traditional way with a storyboard. Spielberg would have never spent all those millions and 25 days for that scene just to "hope he got it". The beach scene shows his brilliance as a director because he was able to give the chaos clarity, which would have never worked had he just let things happen on their own.
Imagine a kid that's younger than the movie telling us all about it. The internet is wild these days.
At the very least, the film crew has to plan out the shots involving any explosives embedded in the sand that give the impression of bullets impacting the ground. The actors have to know where these charges are laid, so that they know where to walk or run safely. One does not point a camera and "hope for the best". This stuff is planned out well beforehand.
Not all these are true...the two original landing crafts didn't exist
@@carlboudreaux they were WW2 landing craft but were the type used in the Pacific. Also the British were driving their landing boats that the rangers did use and I think those are all gone.
Although that opening scene is truly horrific, the one that sticks with me is Pvt Mellish’s death at the hands of the SS soldier. I’ll never forget the blade slowly sinking into Mellish's chest as the SS soldier says in untranslated German: "Give up, you have no chance. Let us end this. It's easier for you, way easier. You will see, it's over in a moment." I can’t recall a most disturbing scene ever.
That scene was truly haunting, really made it look so real
Brutality of war
Humans turn into savages!
yeah, i skip that whole scene too.
yep...this hit pretty hard
Spielberg invented the character Mellish and his death that didn't exist in the original 1994 script, I suppose to make the Germans even more hated in the movie.
I went to see this movie in the theater. It was very powerful. Surroundsound was perfect! Perfect! The whistling sound of the rounds made you duck. That’s how good it was. There were a bunch of World War II veterans near the front row with their families. When we found out, a bunch of us went over to shake hands with them at the end of the movie. Wasn’t a dry eye among us. Some of them visibly shaken with their grown kids and teenage grandkids having their arm around them for support. You must understand. This was shockingly realistic to us all. One old fellow among the veterans said that it was so realistic, he felt he could smell the diesel. Spielberg really nailed it with this one.
Just lost my grandmother recently, she was 97 years old. During the funeral, I learned quite a bit about her younger years that I had never heard before ... makes me wonder if my grandfather hadnt died in 1994, and made it to my adult years or even teenage years, how much I could've learned about his war experience. Normandy, Battle of the Bulge, and what it was like upon his return home....
Propaganda has always led us to believe that we, "The Yankees" (And your Grandfather), beat Hitler. But, I have news for you Mr. Phillyred: The US did not win the war against Germany. The Russians won it. The Allied Army of the US, UK, Canada, Belgium and France (and Poland, and other countries), was able to reach Normandy, thanks to the Soviets destroying the Nazis in Stalingrad, Leningrad and in Kurks, in 1943. It took them 289 days but the Russians won and without the help of nobody… OF NOBODY! Normandy was until June 1944, and Mr. “Hollywood” Patton did NOT manage to set foot on Germany until January 1945, when the Red Army was going over Berlin. General Patton was able to enter Germany only when the Russians were 180 kilometers from the Oder River (LOL). The Allies were defeated at Arnhem (Market Garden Sep. 25-1944), and at The Battle of the Bulge (Jan. 25-1945). General Patton was paralyzed without fuel, while the Red Army was preparing for its last offensive. Look: It took the Allies 8 months to advance only 550 kilometers from Normandy to Arnhem, and from there, start the Withdrawal to the border of France (What?), facing a virtually defeated German Army cuz USSR. Well… The US has been defeated in Korea, Vietnam, Cuba, Lebanon, Somalia and now, in Afghanistan. However, the powerful US Army defeated the tiny island of Grenada, as it faced a fearsome army of 287 Police Officers, since Grenada does NOT have an Army nor Navy. Less Air Force. In fact, they were half this number, since the Policemen on the afternoon shift had not yet come to work. What seems incredible is the fact that the US was defeated by Viét Nam. What? Did the US lose the war against Nam? OMG! Against a poor country, underdeveloped, malnourished, without Navy, without Air Force, NO Marines, Green Berets, SEALs, Rangers, Delta Force, USMC, Rambos or Chuck Norris. Defeated by a country of peasants without strategic plans, no B-59 Bombers, PT-Boats, Atomic Submarines, without Aircraft Carriers, NO Continental Missiles, nor tanks, choppters, Gatlin Machins, Flamethrowers, Napalm, Agent Orange... and to top it off, defeated by an army of teenagers who had no shoes… WITHOUT SHOES!!! Army that fought with bamboo sticks!!! Charlie Kicked Our Asses and even invaded our Embassy.
I'll never forget seeing this film when it was first-released and the stunned silence at the end of the movie. I will also never forget seeing an elderly man - probably a veteran of that war - sitting alone and weeping silently to himself. Shortly afterward, a brief but impactful volume came out, called "Now You Know," which was guys reflecting on what they had experienced in the invasion and their reactions to the film.
Sounds like a made up story
I watch and make my 15 year old twins watch the Omaha beach scene on D-Day every year.
@@ViktoriousDead I don’t think so. When I came out of the cinema, there was a veteran literally leaning against a lamppost sobbing his heart out.
@@MrT------5743 *Thank* *You* we must *never* *Forget!!!*
@@MrT------5743 They're 15 every year? Weird.
The scene where Ryan talks about his brother with the ugly girl is so fucking genuine. It's the exact type of story real soldiers tell. The number of stories like that I've heard while in the military is insane
That entire scene made me cringe. Apart from the opening scene the whole move is forgettable.
Dude, EVERY time I watch that movie I always think about how well Matt acted that scene out, it genuinely feels as if he is remembering the story as he tells it, and I can’t help but laugh along with him as he tells it.
That whole scene was great.
@UCJca3bM1PWXpsW9sDb_ICRw I believe it, it make sense. Incredible movie with an incredible cast, seen it countless times.
What branch were you in?
This is one of my favourite movies and just thinking about the scene where Ryan visits the grave with his family makes me shred a tear
Shred it dude.
I am so glad Billy Bob Thornton did not end up playing Horvath. Tom Sizemore was perfect for the role.
I'm not advocating drug use but speilburgs hubris is epic. I don't really care about you, but I do care about my success.
Agree. Bill who?
@jon smith obviously not.
Yeah me too
Agree. Sizemore is perfect for the part.
This was a excellent movie,the war scenes are second to none, it's almost like it was real....we shall NEVER forget!! To ALL those Brave Young men and women who paid the ultimate price... I thank you
It was a good movie but second to none. I think band of brothers surpassed that! I will give you one was a movie the other was a mini series.
The only WW2 cinematography that is equal of serpasses is Band of Brother's, The Pacific, and Midway(2020?)
And Black Hawk Down also gets the gritty chaos of a firefight as the Normandy Beach Landing
@@maddhattergaming6863 midway was ehh 6/10 the other ones you listed were amazing tho!
I saw this movie when it first came out and I told my mum that I saw it and she had said that every generation should see this movie and she also said that Steven Spielberg did a great job on reacting it
@@deez128 yup I agree that band of Brothers was awesome as well and I think that they both belong as the two best war "programs" ever!
The Normandy shot had me in shock on what our soldiers went thru,it was so realistic that movie theaters had bulletins all over the theater for vets warning them of the scenes and phone numbers to call if they needed counseling
Really? Cant Imagine That!
Even worse than what the film shows.
I still have all my receipts from Saving Private Ryan. 27 times, in the theater. Obviously opening night, was the most chilling, horrific, surreal turnout. Others were close for about a month, but damn. That night....so many vets, young and old. Teens, and seniors left, softly weeping. Those who never seen war, ( and most realistic experience to date) and those who seen too much first hand. There was no cheering, just moments of moans ( including the "ryan" mix up). When I left, there was a bench, with two couples. A young serviceman in camo uniform (bdu??), and his wife, and WWII vet, in all veteran memorabilia, with his wife. The old vet, head into his knees, holding his wife's hand. The young soldier, on his knees, his head, in his wife's lap. Both ladies looking at each other, lost, not knowing what either man had seen, or been through. Tears coming from both wives, visually "consoling" each other by looks, as thier men wept. It was a Norman Rockwell moment for sure. I wished I had a camera, but it was such a private moment. I'm glad I didn't. Some things, just shouldn't be photographed. But it will always be burned into my soul.
First time I saw Saving Private Ryan was with my dad. We were watching it at my house on pay per view. During the invasion of Normandy Beach my dad got up and went outside. At first I thought he couldn't take it because he served in Korea. I went outside and asked him if he was okay. He was looking up at the sky and with tears in his eyes he said, I lost my brother over there. My uncle Ernest died in WW2. He was at the invasion of Normandy Beach.
This film should be mandatory viewing in high school. I think it would be a great lesson to kids of the last few generations as to what it looks like when you fight ACTUAL fascism, and not what is imagined by these generations. Not to mention what it is to be willing to sacrifice for something greater than yourself. The Greatest Generation will hopefully be honored rather than forgotten for the sacrifices they made both home and abroad.
Agreed 100% this movie and the movie Glory. Although I did watch Glory in my AP US History class...
Mandatory, Yep. That will kill antifa, blm and crt in an instant. Let them see what REAL MEN DO so the Flag of The United States of America has more meaning then they ever imagined.
100% agree as well kids today have no idea
agree.
I watched it at school when I was around 15-16 in the UK. I'm sure most of my classmates also watched it. It NEEDS to be watched by that age group to understand what they went through for US, and what they sacrificed for us to be free today.
One of the greatest films ever made, that was beaten by “Shakespeare in Love” for best picture. It was the last time I watched the Academy Awards.
We owe those men who stormed those beaches a debt we can never repay. RIP.
I still vividly remember seeing this film in the theatre… I don’t think there is a better example of the impact that the power of film can have on us.
This remains the most impressive movie I have ever seen for so many reasons. The production, sound, acting, atmosphere are all so incredibly spot on it’s almost unreal and you feel like you are actually on the battlefield with the actors.
Gtr
After watching Saving Private Ryan in the summer of 1998, I knew right away that this was THE BEST war movie ever. And I went back to the cinema the next day to watch it again. Never happened before or later.
Wasn’t old enough for Ryan, but 1917 is the only movie I’ve seen multiple times in theater
@@The_SmorgMan Yes, and Dunkirk, I also thought was excellent.
@@The_SmorgMan 1917 wasn't entertaining enough to me
@@Cogic too slow paced? I’m just curious. We all have different tastes
@@The_SmorgMan I was just expecting more trench warfare but It still was a ok movie
My Great Uncle Vernon fought in Burma throughout WW2, one of his first jobs was blowing up the oil wells so the Japanese invading forces could not get the oil. He then went on to become a proto Special Forces Guerrilla, setting traps, mines and causing general mayhem. He never talked about it much and would refer to is as "Playing soldiers". He did say once that the only respect the Japanese had for any opponent was the Gurkhas - who could be every bit as ruthless. My Uncle caught a Japanese soldier and tied him to a tree to interrogate later, a passing Gurkha shot him dead without even pausing. I read the novel and then saw the mini series "Band Of Brothers" - that was powerful stuff, and based on true events. I guess there is simply no way to prepare for the theatre of war and any film however realistic, isn't ever going to get it across.
I worked with an older guy who would constantly tell us about the horrible things he saw and did during the war. We'd invite him to sporting events but he would always refuse, stating that he's always irrationally paranoid of being in an enclosed space with a lot of people because he was certain the enemy would blow everything up and kill everyone.
13:24 I think they did the same in Band of Brothers, and the guy who played Webster was allowed to go on holiday for the part where his character was wounded while everyone else stayed in training to increase the resentment the characters were supposed to show towards him.
Saw SPR with my VFW group when it was released. This group included 11 guys who actually landed at Omaha and Utah beaches on D-day…2 ended up needing to leave partway through the opening beach scene and went with guys to help them out, the rest stayed and endured the scene. We made sure to have discussions later and this helped draw out a lot of long buried hurts n fears.
It’s a good thing this movie was so realistic as people need reminding what that generation did and endured for not only our Country but the world.
The VFW and Legion did nothing for Viet vets in the 1970s, so the Viet Vets of America had to be formed
I first saw this film in the theater. The opening sequence was gut-wrenching! I was openly crying hard with-in the first minute The realism really got me. It was as close to being there as you would ever want to get. That's when you realize the sacrifice our Sons, Dads, Uncles, and Brothers made for us.
Watched this in the theatre with my dad. An old man sat behind us, and wept (as quietly as possible) during the Omaha Beach sequence and also during the final battle. I'll never forget that.
As a proud U.S. NAVY veteran I salute all those young men who didn't come home, and I salute all the old ones that are among us now. 🇺🇸
What about those that did come home but are no longer among us? lol jk
Proof that freedom is not free it's paid in blood
I'm an Army Special Forces veteran, but never had to experience anything even close to what these heros did. Thank you for your service truly. Thanks to Tom Hanks for doing this great tribute.
Thank you sir for your service. It is appreciated. I wish you every blessing.
Tom gets around..was here filming not too long ago...said hi to everybody....
Great video. Just rewatched it again this Memorial Day. Every time I watch it, I'm just teared up and silent for about 10 minutes afterwards. God Bless the iron men who fought that war for us.
I was fortunate to be able to witness several interviews of WWII vets for a library that was being complied and these men had such amazing character. They went through being born into the great depression then going to WWII in their prime hence being honed by difficulty. I've heard said our younger generation will be like them because of all they have been born into. I believe it because I've just starting catching up with their music and they have surpassed my GenX beloved music; something I would not have thought possible, but the talent and insight of some of these guys is just amazing - maybe we are still evolving - God speed young ones you are what the vets fought for.
Well said! :)
I watched on the first release in my home city with my dad and dozens of wives and ex-servicemen and women who served. Was a super heavy vibe, but an honour to watch it with with them. Quite a few of the wives had to leave after the landing scene.
My dad was in WWII, the 5th Armored Division. He was in the Anzio invasion as well as France. After the war he collected military guns from several campaigns as well as being a NRA instructor and was on the Army National Pistol Team in the late 50's and 60's. At any given time we had possibly 125-150 guns inside our home, mostly from WWII. He passed away in 2003, but he did see Private Ryan and stated some of the rifles used in the beach scene had the wrong color gun stock. The lighter color on the M1 Garands and M1A Carbine were not used until after the invasion. We never knew of his involvement in the Anzio invasion until after he passed away when we found a coffee table book on the war. He had placed a bookmark on one page. On that page was a description of his unit going into Anzio.
I'll be honest, I never saw this movie as it came out as a kid and I don't recall even understanding any of what happened. This past June, I finally saw it in preparation to visit Normandy with my family. Seeing the movie from this perspective and then walking the beaches and seeing all the German bunkers now all covered in grass, dust, rotting away just blows your mind away. It's a sobering experience to be able to visit and see first hand the areas all the soldiers gave their lives at. It's a must visit to really appreciate your freedom, more so now than ever.
the cemetery brings it home....all those crosses....
I'm the 7th of 9 and my father only shared 2 things with me. He would accompany a pilot in an unarmed light-duty plane mapping the German countryside and he was pulled from his platoon for this duty the day his entire platoon was killed. Years later (65?) My oldest sister said he was with the men who liberated Auschwitz.
I almost turned away from your facts again but I'm glad I stayed. I watched Saving Private Ryan while my wife was at work so, yes, the volume was up. At one point I sobbed so uncontrollably my dogs thought something bad was up.
I Liked, Subscribed, & Ding!!! Thanks for sharing.
Everytime I watch this movie I get chills down my back realizing that men as young as 18 years old actually lived and experienced it.
I love the ending when Tom Hanks says earn it. It's like the Greatest Generation was saying earn it to us. That their sacrifices gave us the freedoms we take for granted and freedom isn't free. It's paid for in blood.
Some as young as 16, the youngest recorded being 12.
@@most_ardently_loved they were a better caliber of people in America back then.
We've been living high off the hog for too long. We're a spoiled people looking for problems where they don't exist.
My next door neighbour was 16 when he stormed the beaches .he never went back to the beaches ever again I asked him when this movie was on the TV and did you see it and he said yes and it was nothing compared to the real thing but was a real good attempt at it .I asked him did he ever go back and he replied I went there once NEVER LIKED IT and I'll never go back .
As for the ages listen to paul hardcastle song ...19 ... one part that song hit me hard .
!!! The average age of a combat solider in WW2 was 26 in Vietnam it was 19 !!!! I have a son 19 . That scares me .
It’s insane to think about what those men had to face. The bravery they showed is unmatched.
Most WW2 vets never say anything about it. My dad, his brother, both my neighbors were all in combat. none of them ever talked about their time in the war. What horrific things they must have experienced, I'll never know. I didn't learn until after my father died, that most of his unit died. He and his brother had been all gung ho to join up after Pearl. The letters they wrote back to my grandmother and aunt once they were in the thick of it, reflected what they were really going through.
Yup, my uncle too. A Marine in the PTO who fought face to face, if not hand to hand.
My father was in the armed forces one day. Drafted for military service. He probably got one of the worst jobs in the war. He had to wage war against the worst enemy that cannot be seen. Partisans.
My father only spoke to me once about this war, when I was around 6 years old.
He died a year later.
that was a war in which all peoples were incited against each other.
We all have to be careful that this doesn't happen again.
What is happening right now should make everyone sit up and take notice, because it starts again exactly the same way.
It always seems to me that the US population doesn't even notice certain things. This, too, is strongly reminiscent of the beginnings of the two world wars.
@@ohman3500, thank you for your vigilance.
The reference to hedgehogs is interesting 18:08
but a mistake of note usually overlooked is the other angled barriers mixed in with the hedgehogs. They are all placed on the beach backwards. The narrow end should face the ocean, the idea being that landing craft would ride up the obstacle's slope and tip over.
... or hit the mines placed on the high point, that the boat would hit as they drove up the log 'ramp'. :)
Watched this movie at home with my Dad, he was D3 landing, He followed Patton all the way from Normandy across to Paris, He was also at the Battle of the Bulge. we were able to stop the movie so he could talk about what he remembered!! I'd seen my Dad cry only 3 times in my life... That movie was the 3rd!!!
I was 18 and working my first job at AMC theaters….I can definitely confirm I saw many distressed old guys exiting the film weeping. You could tell from the first screening it was special.
This has to be one of my all time favourite films and it is still relevant as it was when it first came out. Can’t get over it came out in 1998. It’s one of those films that never gets old
17:55 I heard differently about the “Czech Hedgehogs” They still worked because the US had to decide do we go at high tide but risk getting the landing vessels caught on them or do we go at low tide and risk having the men have to go so much farther to storm the beach where they will be out in the open longer. So the Czech Hedgehogs weren’t a “mistake” or “huge miscalculation” by the Germans like you claim. They did exactly what they were supposed to do. Without them, the landing vessels would have been able to drop the soldiers off even closer. Forcing the US to make a decision on what to do. Risk the landing vessels getting struck by the hedgehogs or dropping the soldiers off a lot farther away making it harder for them to storm the beach and being stuck out in the open longer...
youre opinion is wrong. thanks for playing
@@bilbobaggins5962 Read and learn something, goofball. 🍬
I was working for the theatres when this came out. Veterans walked out of the movie when it was over saying that they were getting flashbacks and that it was the most realistic war film they'd ever seen as it felt like they were back in the war again.
02:59 Yes, I watched the movie in original with subtitles for the first time in around 2006. I was 15. I prepared sandwiches and tea, waited for my parents to go somewhere and played the movie aloud to enjoy the battle scene. I was sweating and genuinely scared. My ever-lasting passion for this part of history and respect to all those who took part in it sparked in that moment aaaand...I'm Czech. I started wondering what my grandfathers were actually doing around that time. When I heard these extras speaking the language of my 10mil nation in US world-known movie, I literally dropped my sandwich and the view of cheese and ham on our cork tiled floor will forever be stitched with "Look, I washed for dinner."
I’m sorry about your bad personal exp with the movie. I’ve been to Czech myself and I find some the most beautiful ppl in the world. It is the war that is bad, and made everything so random and chaotic. Still, Dekuji Vam for sharing
damn
@@tonyzhang492 don't get me wrong, it was not bad experience. It was just so surprising. I like my country too, but I live in Latin America since the outbreak of the pandemics and I find local people much nicer than my own kind. Still, thanks for kind words.;)
The opening sequence still gives me goosebumps, my hair stands on end, it's almost too much for me, to know that our brave men had to face such brutality and violence and to keep pushing forward into that and worse.
I love England, I'm very proud of our soldiers past and present, thank you so much for my freedom and my home.
To fact 44: it's actually very important it's refered to "shooting fish in a barrel" because the US choose Omaha Beach very carefully. The attending german military in that section was not only be assured that there won't be any invasion for the next days, but it also was one of the worst battalions in the defense line made up of wounded soldiers and POWs that have been denied heavy artillery and a proper weapon arsenal since germany expected the invasion about 200km to the east. It was probably the worst fight in human history while only being defended by a crippled, non functioning and poorly equipped army.
As a german I can still only be grateful it happened that way since I wouldn't wanna know how the world would look like if the Nazis plans would have worked out.
Appreciate the true factual information of this incredible movie I've seen many times and love. FYI I was born 5/14/45, days after Germany surrendered, visited Germany in 1965 with my family and stayed with some German relatives, visited and "touched" the Ziegfried Line, and my cousin,Major Hugh Michael Fanning, a USMC fighter pilot during Vietnam and shot down and captured, and executed as a prisoner, on Oct. 30-31, 1967. He was the only US military pilot shot down in all of Vietnam that day, his bones returned to Hawaii years later, and his remains are interred in Arlington National Cemetary. Hugh would appreciate this video, and thank you. My cousin can be read about by Googling Hugh Michael Fanning. R.I.P Hugh...
Honestly, the Indian PM deserves a lot of credit. Hands on approach, taking iniciativ, accepting responsibility for the outcome (people could claim it gave them ptsd etc) and doing what he did because he believed it was the right call. That's a politician I respect.
@Dow John A 'Statesman'...in the singular.
iniciativ? Seriously?
@@mwilliamshs Yeah, some Czech spilled over there. English is my 3rd language mate. 🤣
@@mwilliamshs we're checking spelling now instead of understanding context and message? Seriously??
I'll never forget walking out of this movie, and seeing all the older crowd bawling their eyes out. Speaks volumes.
My Mom and Aunt took my grandfather to see it. He was a POW and on the last prisoner exchange of the war. All he said, "That's what it was like." and had tears in his eyes. Never talked about the war or the movie again. Wish my kids could have met him.
I've seen this movie so many times! I can't help but watch it again after watching this.
When this movie was released. I had just started boot camp. I was in Nov of 98. While watching this movie. I was in total and complete aww. My grandfather fought in WWI and in WWII. To survive in the battle of the BULGE.
Must respect for him and his brother's that gave so much for all of humanity. In secret I cried without any of my fellow soldiers knowing.
To my past brothers, current and into the future. Thank you.
Having visited the Normandy beaches about a month before the release of the film, I went to see it with the same two buds I walked with on those beaches and the cemetery shown.
At the opening scene we all looked at each other spooked...
The first 25 minutes of this film should be mandatory large screen viewing and loud surround sound system with no talking or interruption. Vets I spoke with who were there said Spielberg nailed it.
The film speaks for itself.
I watch it every June 6th.
I walked those same beaches, and stood on point Du Hoc looking out over the landing. Everytime I see the photos I think it was a wonder that anyone made it off of there, much less were able to advance to the top. That is a trip that I will never forget, went there for the 60th anniversary as a member of the 29th Infantry Division (ARNG). Spielberg did get it right.
I did a 2 day hike along those beaches in my teens in the late 90's. But I feel like I cheated a bit because I'm from the UK. It was a £30 ferry that I'd taken loads of times.
My great-grandfather was alive growing up and served in WW1 and I feel a lot more connection to that war. He had Alzheimer's and was still a sweet man no matter how confused he was.
Between the two sides of my family we lost 18 men in the trenches. WW2 my family was short adult men to serve. My grandfather became an orphan when his mother died in London at 23 years old, he was 15 when the war ended. My Nan was with her aunt on a farm when her baby sister died when their house was bombed in London, her Mum survived. In the last days of the war, Nan lost another younger sister playing in a shelled house.
While you're taking note of all the soldiers who died, remember why they were there. The civilians are real people. My Nan still can't talk about seeing her sister die when she was little even at 83 years old. An entire generation of children saw shit no child should see.
@@runningfromabear8354 Believe me sir, we have not forgotten them either. Thank you for reminding all of us why we serve.
It wasn't those beaches though, did you even watch the video? The very first fact is that it was filmed in Ireland, you dolt.
Visited them as a kid as well, even then (coming from a military family and watching / learning about countless films and battles) I got chills and just wanted to stand there and take it all in. The number of craters is surreal, and a few of the concrete reinforced gun emplacements. You can close your eyes and imagine it all coming back to life - the things that happened there and the number of lives which were extinguished all around you is completely surreal.
One of the best films I have seen . Another was Schindlers list .Both of these films nearly reduced me to tears
All correct! I'm so thrilled that you did your research, most of YT posters don't. Much appreciated!
My grandfathers both fought in WWII while they were British they spent a lot of time with the Americans. Also, they both fought in Europe and in the Pacific. When I was very young and still very naïve I asked each of them separately which was worse. Interestingly, despite being asked at two different times and in two different places their answers were quite similar. I’m paraphrasing but basically they each said hell is hell no matter which part of hell you are in you are still in hell. I feel that I was uniquely blessed to have two grandfathers both of whom would tell me about the war. I’m sure they left some parts out when I was still very young but as I grew older they shared more and more details. A lot of people mention that their relatives wouldn’t talk about the war for various reasons.
By the time I was almost a man my grandfathers had told me a great deal about what the war was like, friends that were lost, having to kill a man with their knife, D-day with so many bullets flying around that the air tasted like lead, men you had trained with and fought side by side with in other places floating face down in the water, men calling out for help not realising that from their belt down was gone and many more things that happened in many other places such as the jungles in the Pacific.
At no time were they ever bragging or boasting, in fact they usually spoke in a very matter of fact sort of way. I also heard about war from my uncle who served in Korea and my father and another uncle who served in Vietnam. They all recounted their times in combat in that same unemotional matter of fact way.
Years later when I was serving in a far away place enduring my own time in combat it occurred to me what a great thing the men in my family had done for me. By sharing with me the realities of war, however reluctantly, they had stripped it of its romanticised appeal you get from most war films and recruiters as well as playing soldiers as boys. In doing so they helped me to understand it and cope with it better than most of the young men I was serving with.
When the SHTF moments occur you aren’t fighting for your country or your flag or your family back home. You’re fighting for that man 3 feet away laying in the dirt with you and the men off to your right laying down covering fire with the saw. You’re fighting for them just as they are fighting for you because in that moment they are all that matters. You, without them, are not making it home and they, without you, aren’t either.
Men of my family from every generation have served our country going back to a time long before William the Conquerer crossed the channel in 1066. That’s more than a thousand years of serving and fighting and yes sometimes dying. It must be in our DNA, its what we do.
My son grew up listening to the men of our family speak of war as it is, without glamour and rather matter of fact like. He’s finished his tour now and oddly it was at the end of the same war that I was in when it was just beginning. Now my grandsons are growing up listening to all of us just as we listened to those who came before us. It is my sincere hope that when my grandsons or maybe their grandsons grow up that there aren’t any wars to fight. That our long line of service will come to an end. I hope.
Wow you should get a Pulitzer for your touching youtube comment. Using so many words to say so little is definitely an art form!
Cool story bro, didn’t read lol
Thanks for sharing your story. My father in law served in WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. I like to hear stories; not because I think its cool or fun (its not) but because I love history and learning about the men and women who gave me the life I have today. He did tell me two stories, but then he said "I dont really like to talk about it. I know some folks do, but I dont" I respected him for that, and I never ever asked him. If he shared, I would listen. If he didnt, I never asked.
You could not have said it better. I, too, come from a military family going back many generations. The men folk that survived imparted in me a sense of duty and honor. As a child, I asked my one uncle, who served in Pacific theater, what he did during the war. He just stared off into space a few moments then quietly replied, " I survived." He never shared with any of family his experiences in WW2. I was drafted in 1970 and served stateside. I have the greatest respect for any soldier, Marine or sailor that served honorably and survived.
Thank you for taking the time to share this… it was very much appreciated… Much respect to the men of your family and you… 😔
I went to see this movie at the theater on a Sunday morning early showing.
I ended up sitting between 2 WWII veterans.
I can't begin to try to express the level of gratitude I felt with each of these American heroes on each side of me during this event.
In the opening scene we all had tears quietly running down our faces.
God Bless America.
And God Bless all those who have given their oath to protect what so many of us take granted for.
"God bless America" yes I get what you are saying, but good luck telling that to the Japanese Americans of the time, or the fact that in the South, blacks still couldn't vote. Where was god for them? It was a troubled time, these guys went through hell, but America was not a beacon of hope and good.
The German sniper scene had the American sniper saying "don't venture out there fellas, this sniper has got talent" because not so long ago that same German was on The X-Factor 'dressed in his Wermacth uniform' and when Simon Cowell said "what are you going to do tonight for us Heinrich?" And the kraut replied "ach vell Simon tonight I'm gonna juggle with these stick grenades" so Private Jackson 'played by Barry Pepper' was spot on?
So many fake ass stories like this in the comments. Shit the fuck up lol
I'm not an emotional person but this is one of the few movies I will always cry during every single time I watch it.
Still one of the best WW2 movies to this day. I recall seeing this multiple times when it was out in the theater.
Fun fact:
On Kevin Pollack's chat show, Bryan Cranston states that when he got the role of the one-armed general(?), he learned how to hold both the saucer and cup with one hand while also stiring the sugar he placed in it with his tiny tea spoon at the same time.
Spielberg was impressed with the trick, but was like "nah, we don't need that. It bogs down the scene. Good job, though."
Well, guess I'm gonna be watching saving Private Ryan today. Thanks for reminding me how epic this movie is
Coincidentally I just watched it yesterday. Before watching this video. I was maybe the 10th time, just love it.
One word. Magnificent!!! Thank you so much for this brilliant war movie. Very realistic and all. Thank you very much for your effort by making this movie a masterpiece.. We salute all the war veterans of world War 2. May yous all rest in peace..............
Most of this movie was filmed on a disused aerodrome close to where I live. I remember watching them film the final scenes where the P51 Mustangs kept swooping down over the village. When I took my wife for a walk over the meadow there last year she couldn't believe that this was where it was filmed. It was a very sobering movie. I featured this in my video: Hertfordshire Village Walks: 'Wheathampstead to Bishop's Hatfield'.
I was a Texas Ranger background artist in the French village when the P51 flew over. Strange for me reading these comments as at the time I never expected that it would be a historic iconic movie. I was being paid £100 a day enjoying the experience.
A pure masterpiece of work ,and the actors deserve a lot of credit for there delivery of it.
I don't think I could watch this today. It makes me think of the men and women from that generation who I miss dearly.
11:39 that's exactly what I love about saving Private Ryan, it doesn't have violence for the sake of violence, but rather uses violence as a form of story telling. Truly amazing movie. Top 5 of all time imo
I went to a matinee showing of this with my brother which was full of pensioners, it was one of the most humbling & moving experiences of my life. What a movie.
Nice job on this. Like everyone who enjoys WW2 films, Saving Private Ryan ranks up there among my favorites. I think that you could easily say that SPR set the standard of realism for all future WW2 movies, a fact that is a benefit to us, the viewing public.
Parts of it were Hollywood silliness though such as machine gunning through the Tigers driver's visor. Oh and Tigers in the Cotentin Peninsula. Historical nonsense to be frank. The first half hour was great though.
Really? I thought it was terrible. The beach scene was okay but the rest was awful, some of it made me cringe.
Hey mate, have you ever seen a South Korean movie called 'Brotherhood?' It's not WW2, it's set during The Korean war and is excellent as long as you can handle reading subtitles. Check it out if you've not seen it.
@@36minutesago7 idk how you can find SPR awful.
Das Boot would like to have a word with you.
How the hell did this film lost to Shakespeare in love is beyond me.
Hint: Harvey Weinstein produced Shakespeare in Love
@@borismuller86 heard about that and after that, they change the rules.
I saw Shakespeare In Love at the movies, I've seen Saving Private Ryan at least 20 times. It still pisses me off when the Waffen SS soldier kills the Jewish American soldier and shoots Tom Hanks.
@@ralphalvarez5465 It's a movie. If you're pissed off, join the Army. Play catch up.
@@ralphalvarez5465 Not the same German. Guy who kills Mellish is Waffen SS and Steamboat Willie (who shoots Capt. Miller) was Wermacht. Their camo smocks are different & the SS guy’s hairline is different. Upham sees what showing him mercy at the radar station cost.
I cry in two places with this movie!! Beach landings and the cemetery scene at the end.... Such strong scenes!!
I saw this opening weekend to a packed theater, during the Normandy scene I could hear an old man in the audience crying...it still haunts me.
What an outstanding movie! I had 4 Uncles that saw heavy action in WW2 and they all made it back:
My Mom also had 2 neighbors, twin boys who went overseas to fight and were never seen again. Very sad indeed…
God Bless all those young men who gave their lives, limbs and minds
I like how a bunch of consumers thought there was something wrong with their TV because their gritty war movie didn't look colorful enough
Wow those revelations were great. I really enjoyed this. Thinking about streaming "Saving Private Ryan" again, Thanks.
My grandad served in the 'kings own Yorkshire light infantry' during ww2 and then became a pow towards the end of the war.
Him my dad and my Uncle watched this at the cinema when it first got released and he always said saving private ryan was the most accurate war film he watched.
Still the greatest war movie of all time. No matter how many times I’ve watched it, I still get goosebumps. The neck hairs standing up during the combat and that gut wrenching feeling realizing that men actually went through this hell.
Usually the lists of things you did not know are inconsequential. Thanks for the important “50”.
I dont know, saying that 8 men started the film and only 2 were alive at the end was kind of pointless.
Best war movie ever. I have watched it for more than 20 times. and band of brothers 20+times too. Love them!
I remember seeing this in theaters. It was the most powerful experience of my life. I was 10 and watched grown men crying, walking out of the movie. I have been studying ww2 for 20 years and I will continue to study it. Sadly my grandfather fought in the Pacific theatre, he took his own life after returning to the states. This will always be my favorite movie. It was a mandatory watch in my highschool, a long with the pledge of alligence. Seeing what America is turning into makes me struggle everyday to keep living myself, real talk.
I watched this at the first showing at the Ft. Hood, TX theater. I can't describe the experience watching this with a room full of active duty soldiers.
My sister stated that the Normandy scene was shown to her in basic training along with other battles scene from movies. The recruits were reminded that they could called upon to such an action in the modern day.
We watched parts this in our 8th grade history class! Our history teacher dressed in uniforms they wore during WW2 we spent a entire semester on WW2 wish we coulda took that class more than a year he had the weapons they used during the war and they fired but all the firing pins had been removed! Now the school made him remove all firearms swords crossbows spears that he had in his class the kids nowdays will never know what his class was like! He was by far the best teacher I ever had and the only one I really remember!He retired in 2019
A true historian thorough and thorough.
Nice
See that’s what students need now, a teacher who knows how to have fun.
Try Time Ghost History.
WW2.
@@sirsean1227 I believe Hickok45 taught English not history.
Growing up my great grandfather who was on Juno beach would try to explain to me what it was like for him being there but he never could. When this movie came out on VHS he let me watch it and told me the beach landing scene was so accurate he could still remember the smell when watching the film.
Best opening battle scene ever
This movie was like a little psychology experiment for me. I saw it on the opening day, Friday, and noticed that through the first frames in the French cemetery the other people watching did their usual movie shit...eating, crinkling bags, little chatter...
Then, when the soldiers started getting slaughtered as the landing craft doors opened...not one, single, solitary sound for the rest of the movie...NOTHING. Had never experienced that in a theater before.
I went the next day Saturday and then Sunday wanting to see the movie again of course, but if the audience would react the same and the same exact sequences played out...
Spielberg, I think with that movie, was the first director to make theater audiences shut up and finally respect a movie.
Lol people eat snacks at movies. Get over yourself
@@TheTrueNorth11 you're a dope
I literally saw that movie 7 times in the theater. And I remember the scenes of the Higgins boats made my knees shake.
This is the best war movie ever ive seen it so many times that every time it still wows me.
Soldier: “Where’s the rallying point?”
CPT Miller: “Anywhere but here!”
Classic infantry response!
i just rewatched this on monday and it holds up, still as good now as it was then, there was even a few shots that still made me a little uncomfortable, like when the soldier is laying on the ground with his guts sitting next to him, and when Tom Hanks is trying to pull a guy to safety only to realize the lower half of his body is gone, 100 years from now this movie will still be shocking and wowing audiences
I came back from Iraq and watched Saving Private Ryan. Unfortunately my parents didn’t explain their surround sound system to me. Hit the deck pretty hard !!
My favourite movie of all time and certainly the best war movie ever. The battle scene at the end was actually an old WW2 aircraft factory in Hertfordshire, England where they built the Mosquito aircraft. The tiger tank in the final scenes was actually a mock up built on the chassis of a Russian T34. Looking forward to Spielberg's series about the 8th. Airforce in WW2. Doubt you will ever better this movie no matter how hard anyone tries!
Band of Brothers is one helluva movie/series...
Listening to the guys being interviewed throughout was heart grabbing.
This holds up incredibly well if not better than most movies released today