Analyse the methods used to make the opening battle sequence of 'Saving Private Ryan' both shocking and realistic, and say how effective you find it as an introduction to the film.

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GCSE English Media Coursework                /

(Saving Private Ryan)

GCSE English Medias Coursework (Saving Private Ryan)

Analyse the methods used to make the opening battle sequence of ‘Saving Private Ryan’ both shocking and realistic, and say how effective you find it as an introduction to the film.

The film ‘Saving Private Ryan’ was released in September 11th 1998, a joint production from Paramount and DreamWorks pictures as it was directed by a popular director called Steven Spielberg.  Steven Spielberg directed some great well-known films e.g E.T the Extra-Terrestrial (1982), Jurassic Park (1993), Jaws (1975) and ‘Saving Private Ryan’ is a good example.  Some of the leading actors in the film are Tom Hanks (Captain Miller), Tom Sizemore (Sergeant Horvath), Edward Burns (Private Reiben), Barry Pepper (Private Upham) and Matt Damon (Private Ryan).  The Film is about a war between Germany and USA as private Millar carries out a mission. The film is about approximately two hours and 50 minutes long overall but the first sequence is only twenty-four minutes long.  The film won five academy Awards (Oscars) including the best director award in 1999.

Steven Spielberg wanted this film to be realistic as possible we know this because he said ‘’the last thing I wanted to do in this picture was use the war simply as a springboard for action-adventure.  I was looking for realism all the time.’’ Steven Spielberg also wanted the audience to fell as if they are the soldiers in the film, we know this because he said ‘’I wanted to put chaos up on the screen, I wanted the audience to feel the same as those green recruits that were just off those Higgins boats and had never seen combat before.  Ninety-five percent of them hadn’t.  It was complete chaos.’’ Steven Spielberg wanted the film to be so realistic that he wanted the cameras to look like as if there was a camera man following the solders in to the war and we know this because he says ‘’I wanted to hit the sets much like a newsreel cameraman following solders into war.’’

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The first scene starts as an elderly James Ryan visits the grave off all the U.S solders that died during the war at Colleville-Sur-Mer in Normandy, France.  Then there is a flash back to June 6th 1994 as the U.S Army prepares to land at Omaha Beach.  Steven Spielberg does a great job with the camerawork in the first scene the camera slowly zooms in on Ryan’s face to a big close up of his eyes as then the camera cuts and takes us back to the past in a flash back as the camera cuts to a deep focus ...

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