world war ll

In the last set of movies we watched, we were learning how film could treat the same events in different ways. We watched two Steven Spielberg films. One was a drama and the other one was a comedy. Even though World War ll was the back drop for both movies, Spielberg conveyed very different points in each one.

I believe the point in Saving Private Ryan can be stated in two words, loyalty and sacrifice. Throughout the movie all of the characters displayed both of the traits listed above. Private Ryan’s mother sacrificed losing two sons. Obviously, the Ryan family was loyal to the country because they raised sons who strongly believed in military duty. The two brothers that died in battle sacrificed there life for their country. They were loyal patriots. The eight men that were sent to bring Private Ryan back sacrificed their lives to save Private Ryan. They were loyal soldiers that followed commands. Upon reaching Private Ryan to bring him home, they discover he wants to remain with his platoon. He also is loyal to his fellow soldiers and is willing to sacrifice what his mother wants. Out of the two films I believe that saving Private Ryan has the more poignant message because it is found in almost every major character.

 

The message in the movie 1941 was to show the range of feelings faced by the people in California following the Pearl Harbor bombing. Spielberg showed the emotions of fear, loyalty, and hysteria. Because Spielberg chooses to illustrate this through comedy, his message was less poignant. For example loyalty was shown by Mr. Ward because he lets the military put a rocket launcher in his front yard.  Jon Belushi’s character, “wild Bill”, spent the movie hysterically chasing down a plan he thought was Japanese. He did a lot of damage and as it turns out the plane he was chasing was American. An example of fear in the movie would be Zoot Suit Riots.