Saving Private Ryan Film Analysis

Decent Essays
Stephen Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan (1998) takes the audience on an emotional journey set during World War II. There are multiple reasons about why this film conveys the emotions that the characters are feeling, and places them on the viewer almost as if they are experiencing the events themselves. This aspect ultimately makes it the great film that it is today. Some techniques used in the film to make this happen are an excellent use of sound, representation of theme, and use of colour to invoke certain emotions in the viewer. All of these methods Spielberg uses in a way that the audience doesn’t even realize that these techniques are having a massive impact on them emotionally. These are just some of the reasons that make Saving Private …show more content…
Spielberg’s use of sound within Saving Private Ryan is highly important strictly because the film is set during the war; an event that most people have not experienced. By placing the right sounds in the right sequence of events it can make the viewer feel as though they are experiencing war. For example, at the beginning of the movie when the story starts to unfold at Omaha Beach, the first thing that is brought to the viewer’s attention before the dialogue is sounds: waves crashing, humming of ships, Captain Millers shaky canteen, and vomit hitting the floor. After a few commands are given from Captain Miller the audience is engulfed with the immense reverberation of bullets flying and machine guns firing. Suddenly, sounds then begin to overlap each other, causing the viewer to feel extremely uneasy and overwhelmed. Whilst classic war sounds of bullets continue to play in the background, Spielberg begins to introduce disturbing noises. It starts with the audience watching captain Miller, and all the sounds are drowned out (8:50). This leaves the viewer in a state of shock, so that when the sound comes back fully it is even more devastating. The viewer then begins to hear grown men yelling “Mama! Mama!” (10:51). It is the use of realistic sounds of war that leave the audience in a captivated and traumatized …show more content…
Different colours conjure up specific emotions subconsciously in the audience. This allows the art direction team to use colour theory to their advantage and manipulate how their viewer’s feel in specific scenes. This concept is executed beautifully in Saving Private Ryan. Examples include how throughout the most of the film everything is shown in neutral colours and dull blues, yellows, and greens. The only use of colour in most of the film is red: the colour of blood. Red is associated with things such as fear, danger, war, and even passion. In many of the scenes blood is clearly visible on the hands of the soldiers and all over the dead bodies in the shot. These constant pops of red throughout the film make the viewer feel the emotion that Spielberg intended to summon in his audience. On the other hand, the only scene that has a colour other the red is when Captain Miller and his troops finally find Private Ryan. The scene opens with the troops walking through this beautiful field of yellow flowers. Yellow makes people feel a sense of comfort and optimism, and by adding this to the scene it sets the viewer up for what events are about to unfold by finding Private Ryan. It is these creative colour choices made by the art director that adds a subconscious layer of emotion and

Related Documents

  • Superior Essays

    Over a few centuries, post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) has been known by plenty of names: at first, it stood as “irritable heart” during the American Civil War; later during the First World War, the symptoms were called “shell shock” or “hysteria”. When the Second World War and the War in Korea occurred, the symptoms were labeled as “war neurosis”, “battle fatigue”, and “exhaustion.” Lastly, during the War in Vietnam, “Post Vietnam Syndrome” remained as the last occurrence of names given before PTSD was officially branded and categorized as a war mental illness. (Coleman 19) Although Hollywood has created numerous of films regarding WWII, Spielberg’s film, Saving Private Ryan, a war film praised for the realism of violence and battles—most…

    • 1685 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ex Machina Film Analysis

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Another great example for production design in science fiction movies is the movie Ex Machina. To begin with, production design includes the design of sets which makes set design one of the most important aspects while producing a movie. For example, one of the points set design deals with is the location where the film is going to be shot. Funderburg (2015) explained that in the movie Ex Machina, they used two Norwegian locations both designed by the architects Jensen & Skodvin. One of the locations is a private mansion and the second one is the Juvet Landscape Hotel, which consists of single suites secretly linked to the fjord and forest around them (para. 2).…

    • 455 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Gettysburg Movie Analysis

    • 832 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Also, whenever a cannon shot it created a type of smoke which made it difficult for the opponents to see. Gettysburg showed violence in a clever way which I love. The significant and most important thing that I got out of the film was greatly enhanced respect for the bravery of all the individuals involved in the battle. Seeing it acted out by talented actors is so much more powerful than reading about it.…

    • 832 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Glory, it is set in Boston in the 1860’s during the American Civil War. Captain Robert Shaw is injured in the Battle of Antietam and sent to his hometown of Boston. As he is there recovering, he meets Frederick Douglas and is convinced of the mistreatment of African Americans and becomes interested in wanting to be the first Captain of an all African-American regiment of soldiers. Soon after he finds his second in command and receives enough volunteers to have a regiment, the Emancipation Proclamation is released. That requires all African American soldiers on the Confederate side of the war to go back to slavery, and then for the Union side, all soldiers were given a free pass to leave and go live a normal life, but all volunteers under Captain Shaw stayed with him.…

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Deliverance Film Analysis

    • 328 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Deliverance is definitely a film that alternates between “Man vs Man” and “Man vs Nature”; the way the themes are explored makes the film a little unique. Many of the scenes depict “Man vs Man”, for instance Ed’s inability to shoot the arrow without his hands trembling, despite him being an “excellent shot” at inanimate objects, he can’t shoot any living being whether animal or human without his conscious, hence the hand trembles, fighting back. Even when experiencing and witnessing the humiliating, cruel, shameful crime committed against Bobby and his own near miss; he still couldn’t shoot the men responsible, nor could he fully make eye contact with Bobby afterwards. Another representation would be the change in character or personality…

    • 328 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Saving Private Ryan: Negative Argument Historical films matter, because for a lot of people, such films are where they get much of their knowledge of history from. After 300 came out, I noticed an increase in the number of my students who thought that Thermopylae was the reason the Persians lost that war, and Braveheart has certainly given people the idea that medieval Scots wore great kilts, when in reality the Scottish kilt is a late 16th century development. Small historical inaccuracies probably aren’t too serious, and I doubt that it really matters that many Americans think that the kilt was a medieval garment, but how a film presents history can have very powerful affects on how people understand the past and their people’s place in…

    • 619 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Jaws Sound Analysis

    • 1338 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Williams said the theme was “so simple, insistent and driving that it seems unstoppable, like the attack of the shark. ”3 Music is an important part of any film, as it is used to subconsciously guide our emotions and help our brains guess what may come next or not be caught completely unaware. Music was also used to cover up budget setbacks. Without the use of digital editing or computer generated imagery, or even without a passable mechanical 2 Freer, Ian. "…

    • 1338 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Marcelo Cedano Mrs. Jiruska War Stories 10 October 2016 “Older men declare war. But it is youth that must fight and die.” (Herbert Hoover). Although All Quiet on the Western Front and Saving Private both shows brutality of war and rough conditions, the novel shows more compassion it’s more realistic in that the emotion and feeling toward the enemies.…

    • 1066 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    The movie The Green Berets starring John Wayne was directed and written by him and Ray Kellogg in 1968. The film is about a group of Green Berets who are led by Colonel Mike Kirby, played by John Wayne, along with a skeptical journalist who go into south Vietnam to help with humanitarian effects and to stop the spread of Communism from the north Vietnamnese people. George Beckworth, the skeptical journalist, comes along with the Colonel and his group of special forces to see if these is a need for American soldiers to intervene in Vietnam’s Civil War. This film was influenced by American politics because it was designed to change the public’s opinion on an unpopular war and vetern. According to Alex von Tunzelmann, this movie was made “during…

    • 1856 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the 1920’s silent movies were the biggest thing to happen. In spite the fact that they are called silent movies they weren’t always necessarily silent. As said, “Silent Movies were accompanied by music that conveyed the drama and emotion of each scene. The music was played on a piano or an organ”(Alchin).…

    • 1154 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Departed Film Analysis

    • 1348 Words
    • 6 Pages

    1. Over a hundred people were involved in the production of this film. The entire cast and crew are not given equal credit in most films. The majority of the camera crew and other production workers are not given as much credit for their work as the actors and director/producers, even though they play a huge role in the development and production of the movie. The making of a huge blockbuster like ‘The Departed’ involves the use of an immense crew.…

    • 1348 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Realistic weapons, gore, and emotions of World War II soldiers. Not to mention, this film used actually objectives, and strategies used in World War II. Steven Spielberg really wanted to make the audience feel like they’re actually there in the moment. The actors were put through a 10-day boot camp session to get more into acting like they were a soldier in World War II.…

    • 1430 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    American Sniper is a movie about love, family, and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder). The main character is named Chris Kyle and his wife is name Taya Kyle, they have two children together and live in Texas. This paper will include a movie review and discuss how the movie used interpersonal communication. When the movie first begins they take the audience back in time to when Chris Kyle was a little boy and he gets his first kill (a deer) in the woods.…

    • 926 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The movies Foreign Correspondent (1940) dir. Alfred Hitchcock, All the President’s Men (1976) dir. Alan J. Pakula, and Spotlight (2015) dir. Tom McCarthy all emphasize different characteristics about journalists through their portrayals of investigative journalism, both in substances and style. These demonstrate the varying perceptions of journalism over time as well as in response to different situations.…

    • 944 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Name: Seyede Yasamin Surname: Hashemi Student number: 138489 Course code: PSIR421 Movie: Bridge of spies The movie bridge of spies which is based on a true story is in the period of cold war, and about espionage. Using spies and spying on the opposite country became part of the Cold War game.…

    • 1314 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays