Saving Private Ryan sequence

The sequence starts with a tilted angle looking at the beach, something seems wrong or unnatural at this angle prompting the viewer to question what may happen next. Close-ups of shaking hands, faces and a man praying are all there to make the audience feel uncomfortable, like the soldiers, building up to the massacre on the beach and show nervousness and pure fright. The director’s use of a handheld shot helps bring the audience into the film with its bobbing and shaking making you feel as if in the boat and on the beach with these soldiers under heavy fire. Blood appears on the lense as if in a P.O.V. of one of the soldiers. The director builds tension towards the opening of the boat door by using a close up of the handle as it turns wildly and opens, adding to the sense of foreboding in the first titled angle of the sequence.

Using a close up shot to show the German soldiers, covered in darkness, firing upon these soldiers from a higher position makes these soldiers look threatening and scary from this high angle and makes the American soldiers seem vulnerable and weak when compared. The shots of American soldiers being gunned down repeatedly creates a shockingly realistic portrayal of war. From Tom Hanks’ character’s perspective, the whole beach becomes slow – a technique to emphasise his character’s terror and his stillness makes him appear vulnerable and afraid of what is happening around him. This creates a realistic and moody scene trying to show the harsh reality of war.