Posted by NightSky on February 24, 2000 at 16:22:34:
In Reply to: Re: Saving Private Ryan vs The Thin Red Line posted by MMMMarcia on February 24, 2000 at 14:40:54:
: Hi, Joe & Brent,
: While I have virtually NO expertise at all regarding costume accuracy in "historical" or pseudo-historical films, I can't resist a comment on The Thin Red Line. I have to say I agree almost completely with Joe, on this one. I know it received it's share of critical acclaim, but I really did NOT like TRL, even though I thought I would. And for some of the same reasons Joe has already mentioned...it seemed to me it was trying too hard to be intellectually clever & artsy, while not coming even close to pulling me into the lives & emotions of the characters in the film. I was far more moved by Saving Private Ryan. I guess by the standards of some critics that would make me shallow or dim-witted, but...I saw it that way then, and I see it that way now.
: Not to put down your taste at all, Brent, as we are all affected differently by these things, and many people apparently agreed with you. I DID think Nick Nolte gave a strong performance, but that was about all I liked. I'd be interested in hearing some comments from others on these two war movies, Private Ryan and TRL. Which did Mohicanlanders like better and why? I wonder if many people would be fans of BOTH films, as they seem so vastly different...?
: MMMMarcia
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For what it's worth, here's my two cents. For those of us who waited 20 years for a new film from Terrance Mallick, TRL was not a disappointment. I think the last thing ever on Mallick's mind is historical accuracy, he's much more interested in the human heart. If you haven't seen Days of Heaven, you certainly should. BUT TRL ranks up there with Breaking the Waves, Hillary & Jackie, and The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter, and one viewing is enough for a lifetime. I couldn't take the emotional wringing out a second time through. As for the rain drops slowly trailing down a leaf, it's been my lot in life to interview quite a number of people regarding extremely stressful experiences, and those are the types of things that invariably stand out in their minds. The sounds of passing traffic, a fly crawling on the wall, the wind moving branches in the trees. The mind tends to focus on things it can understand and quantify during times when the world around them becomes unreal. I just hope we don't have to wait another 20 years for the next Mallick film.
Saving Private Ryan: Wonderful the first 30 minutes and hack Spielberg for the rest of the movie. It always amazes me that someone who could make The Color Purple and Shindler's List, could then revert to a Hollywood formula war movie. Certainly it was one of Tom Hanks lesser efforts, with a true wasting of Tom Sizemore, Ed Burns and Matt Damon.
All in the spirit of opinion, and that love of film we all share. YRH