Back to trending
Saving Private Ryan

Saving Private Ryan

War · Drama · History · 1998

As U.S. troops storm the beaches of Normandy, three brothers lie dead on the battlefield, with a fourth trapped behind enemy lines. Ranger captain John Miller and seven men are tasked with penetrating German-held territory and bringing the boy home.

Movie details

Saving Private Ryan

“The mission is a man.”

1998 War · Drama · History 2h 49m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

8.2 / 10

Community rating

As U.S. troops storm the beaches of Normandy, three brothers lie dead on the battlefield, with a fourth trapped behind enemy lines. Ranger captain John Miller and seven men are tasked with penetrating German-held territory and bringing the boy home.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over Saving Private Ryan?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Schindler's List

Schindler's List

Drama · 1993

The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.

Full Metal Jacket

Full Metal Jacket

Drama · 1987

A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the U.S.-Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.

The Thin Red Line

The Thin Red Line

Drama · 1998

The story of a group of men, an Army Rifle company called C-for-Charlie, who change, suffer, and ultimately make essential discoveries about themselves during the fierce World War II battle of Guadalcanal. It follows their journey, from the surprise of an unopposed landing, through the bloody and exhausting battles that follow, to the ultimate departure of those who survived.

Flags of Our Fathers

Flags of Our Fathers

War · 2006

There were five Marines and one Navy Corpsman photographed raising the U.S. flag on Mt. Suribachi by Joe Rosenthal on February 23, 1945. This is the story of three of the six surviving servicemen - John 'Doc' Bradley, Pvt. Rene Gagnon and Pvt. Ira Hayes - who fought in the battle to take Iwo Jima from the Japanese.

Enemy at the Gates

Enemy at the Gates

War · 2001

A Russian and a German sniper play a game of cat-and-mouse during the Battle of Stalingrad in WWII.

Heartbreak Ridge

Heartbreak Ridge

War · 1986

A hard-nosed, hard-living Marine gunnery sergeant clashes with his superiors and his ex-wife as he takes command of a spoiled recon platoon with a bad attitude.

Ike: Countdown to D-Day

Ike: Countdown to D-Day

Drama · 2004

The story of the senior-level preparations for the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944 from the time of Dwight D. Eisenhower's appointment as the Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, to the establishment of the beachhead in Normandy.

A Midnight Clear

A Midnight Clear

Drama · 1992

In 1944 France, an American Intelligence Squad locates a German Platoon wishing to surrender rather than die in Germany's final war offensive. The two groups of men, isolated from the war at present, put aside their differences and spend Christmas together before the surrender plan turns bad and both sides are forced to fight the other.

Saints and Soldiers

Saints and Soldiers

War · 2003

Five American soldiers fighting in Europe during World War II struggle to return to Allied territory after being separated from U.S. forces during the historic Malmedy Massacre.

The Big Red One

The Big Red One

Drama · 1980

A veteran sergeant of World War I leads a squad in World War II, always in the company of the survivor Pvt. Griff, the writer Pvt. Zab, the Sicilian Pvt. Vinci and Pvt. Johnson, in Vichy French Africa, Sicily, D-Day at Omaha Beach, Belgium and France, and ending in a concentration camp in Czechoslovakia where they face the true horror of war.

Where it lives

Watch in your region.

Cinema release signals and current streaming, rental, and purchase options for your region.

Streaming availability data supplied by JustWatch.

Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Steven Spielberg

Written by

Robert Rodat

Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks

Captain Miller

Tom Sizemore

Tom Sizemore

Sergeant Horvath

Edward Burns

Edward Burns

Private Reiben

Barry Pepper

Barry Pepper

Private Jackson

Adam Goldberg

Adam Goldberg

Private Mellish

Vin Diesel

Vin Diesel

Private Caparzo

Giovanni Ribisi

Giovanni Ribisi

T/4 Medic Wade

Court is in session

Put Saving Private Ryan on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Form is the argument.”

Every composed frame and deliberate cut is evidence that control can be thrilling in its own right.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Technique in search of a pulse.”

Immaculate construction is still construction. The film may be too busy proving its craft to feel alive.