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  • Walter's Blog.
  • Home
  • Introduction
  • About Walter
    • 1980 Joining Up - Grafton Street >
      • Arrival and First Impressions
      • First Week
      • Training
      • Passing Out
    • Yaumati Cowboy >
      • Getting on the Streets
      • Tempo of the City
      • Jumpers, pill poppers and the indoor BBQ
      • Into a Minefield.
    • Why Tango in Paris, when you can Foxtrot in Kowloon? >
      • Baptism By Fire
      • Kai Tak with Mrs Thatcher.
      • Home; The Boy Returns
  • 1984 - 1986
    • PTU Instructor & Getting Hitched
    • Having a go: SDU
    • Starting a Chernobyl family
    • EOD - Don't touch anything
    • Semen Stains and the rules
  • 1987 to 1992 - Should I Stay or Go?
    • Blue Lights, Sirens & Grenades
    • Drugs, Broken Kids & A Plane Crash
    • 600 Happy Meals Please!
    • Hong Kong's Best Insurance
    • Riding the Iron Horse
  • Crime in Hong Kong
    • Falling Crime Rates - Why?
    • Triads
  • History of Hong Kong Policing
    • History 1841 to 1941
    • History 1945 to 1967
    • Anatomy of the 50 cent Riot - 1966
    • The Fall of a Commissioner.
    • History 1967 to 1980
    • Three Wise Men from the West
    • The Blue Berets.
    • The African Korps and other tribes.
    • Getting About - Transport.
    • A Pub in every station
    • Bullshit Bingo & Meetings
    • Godber - The one who nearly got away.
    • Uncle Ho
  • Top 20 Films
    • 2001 - A Space Odyssey.
    • The Godfather.
    • Blade Runner
    • Kes
    • Star Wars
    • Aliens
    • Ferris Bueller's Day Off
    • The Life of Brian
    • Dr Strangelove.
    • Infernal Affairs
    • Bridge on the River Kwai.
    • This Is Spinal Tap.
    • Chung King Express
    • An Officer and a Gentleman
    • PTU
    • Contact
    • Saving Private Ryan
    • Family Guy Star Wars
    • Zulu
    • Hard Day's Night
  • The Long Read
    • How The Walls Come Down
    • War in Ukraine - the narrative and other stuff.
    • The Hidden Leader
    • The Big Game
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Saving Private Ryan

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Carnage, mayhem, unrelenting slaughter for the first 20 minutes places this movie on the list. And its places you on the beach with soldiers. It’s visceral and tactile. You feel the hits, the explosions and get carried up the beach towards the German positions. A soldier staggering around holding his blown off arm drew laughs from young guys behind me. I turned in anger at their inappropriate reaction to find faces contorted in horror. The laughter an uncontrolled expelling of air. My wife was below the seat taking cover. With 1,500 extras the reenactment of the Omaha beach landing was stunning.
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After that opening salvo, the movie settles to the search for Private Ryan. With his brothers killed in action, the top brass are keen to get Ryan home given the sacrifice his family has made. I know the story is not accurate, whilst the portrayal of events is augmented for dramatic effect. The role of the other Allied nations gets ignored except for a tiny dig at General Montgomery.

Whilst searching for Ryan the dynamics in the group of soldiers are explored. Captain Miller, played by everyman actor, Tom Hanks, keeps his battle-trauma in check. He plays a game of ‘guess who I am’ with his men only to reveal his background at a critical moment as a distraction.
 

At times the pacing slows, but never enough to drag. You’ll always remember those first 20 minutes.

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