Saving Private Ryan Omaha Scene
The second scene of Saving Private Ryan is one of the most famous yet jarring and emotional scenes in any epic film, depicting the sheer gruesomeness and despair that took place on the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944. Steven Spielberg directs the Americans’ taking of the beach with such accuracy and emotion that it brings the viewer into the scene, and provides an all too real sight into a situation that most people could never imagine in their worst nightmares.
In taking on the challenge of depicting such a historic and important battle, accuracy has to be one of the primary concerns. First and foremost, if the viewer sees inaccuracies in the scene, the film will not as easily draw them in. Accuracy in a battle scene like this can range from having a factual plot, to having authentic military attire and weaponry for the time period. In essence, the scenery is extremely important when it comes to the viewers’ experience.
To begin with, the lighting of the first scene is very dark and grim. There is no early morning sunrise, or really sun at all, from the time the soldiers arrive on the beaches. In terms of the props, the accurate military uniforms and weaponry of all the soldiers is clearly relevant as they are heading into one of the bloodiest battles in history. The props extend past the standard military gear however. While we would expect every soldier to have a canteen with water, it is the focus on little props like the canteen, with Tom Hanks’ shaking hands wrapped around it, that set a tone for the whole film only seconds in. The sound is also extremely important to the tone of the scene. While the props, costumes, and lighting all factor in to creating a tone for a specific scene, music relates to the viewer like props, costumes, and lighting cannot. The opening seconds of the scene start with ONLY diegetic sounds, most notably, the humming of the boats’ engines only to be interrupted by the sound of soldiers’ nervous vomiting. As the scene progresses, there is still only diegetic sound in the form of gunfire and soldiers barking orders.
The scenery serves to create a very grim tone, which is very fitting for the gruesome invasion. While the lighting, costumes, and props do help to create a grave atmosphere, the lack of non-diegetic sound in my opinion really drives home Spielberg’s intended tone. In many other epic films, a grand, sweeping soundtrack is essential in the movie’s most memorable scenes, however, the sole sounds of gunfire, explosions and painful wailings of injured soldiers is more than enough to set an unsettling tone.
Tom Hanks, who was nominated for Best Actor in this role, is brilliant in playing Captain Miller, a former schoolteacher who throughout the film has the task of finding and sending home the last surviving of the four Ryan brothers. In this scene, Hanks is the first face we see, with the camera focused on his shaking hand gripping his canteen. Hanks undoubtedly helps develop the tone of the scene, not only with his facial expressions of fear and shock, but on top of this his ability to portray the fear that any captain would be feeling at this time, while also having to bark out orders for his men to advance despite men going down left and right.