Steven SpielbergÆs Saving Private Ryan opens during the D-Day invasion of Normandy at Omaha Beach in its opening scenes. After witnessing the enormity of the chaos and carnage in this scene, Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) is put in charge of locating Private James Ryan. One of four brothers, RyanÆs other three brothers have recently been killed in action. Trying to save Ryan, Miller and seven other men are sent deep into enemy territory to bring him safely home. The film revolves around many ideas and themes. One of these is the value of life. We see that many died to secure liberties for others. The film and the eight men sent in to save Ryan also question whether the life of one man is worth their own. Sacrifice is another major theme in the film. The final words of Captain Miller to Ryan are ôEarn this. Earn itö (Spielberg 1998). He is saying to Ryan that he must earn the sacrifices of the men who saved him, but this is a difficult goal to achieve considering six men die in his rescue. The film questions the value of human life and what is valid to sacrifice for it. We discover that only by placing value on the life of every human does a society achieve its own value.
Winner of two Academy Awards for Sound (Best Sound and Sound Effects Editing), sound represents a major character in the film. Dialogue, special effects sounds and a soundtrack of tunes such as Duke EllingtonÆs Solitude and Edith PiafÆs Tu Es Partout greatly enhance the realism, chaos and humanity of combat. Many films use fake gun sounds for sound effects that mimic gunfire, but Spielberg rented weapons from an east coast collector that represent each weapon used in the film. The realistic effects of the gunfire and the innovative placement of sounds create a rich cinematic experience.
If we examine one scene in particular, we can see how the use of sound is effective in helping tell the story of those who lost
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