Saving Private Ryan Movie

In terms of graphic horror and shocking visual images, there's never been a war movie quite like Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan." The film, which opens today, is a far cry from the majority of war films--especially the propaganda movies of World War II--which were made to boost the country's spirits and encourage young men to enlist. But over the decades, there have been numerous films that attempted to capture the intensity, carnage, fear and unbridled heroism of war.

Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" has stormed through its first week in German theaters to become one of the biggest films of the year, but viewers and reviewers alike attribute its success more to the director's reputation than groundbreaking reflection on Germany's role in the war.

A number of ABC affiliates announced Thursday that they would not take part in the network's Veterans Day airing of "Saving Private Ryan," saying the acclaimed film's violence and language could draw sanctions from the Federal Communications Commission. Stations replacing the movie with other programming Thursday included stations owned by Cox Television in Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C., and three Midwest stations owned by Citadel Communications.

As Steven Spielberg's epic "Saving Private Ryan" storms the $100-million box-office hill in the U.S. this week, plans are underway for its launch in Europe next month. When the film strikes the key countries of France, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany, the turnout could rival and possibly surpass North American box-office results, some in Hollywood estimate, and the experience of viewing it could be even more emotional among Europeans than it has been for American veterans.

"Saving Private Ryan" looks as if it could be at least as strong a performer as Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List"--in fact, Tom Hanks' appeal could very well boost "Ryan" much further. A better fix on the film's ultimate potential won't be possible for a week or two, however. The production cost a modest (by today's standards) $65 million, with the total investment overall a bit over $100 million when worldwide marketing is factored in.

Every so often a film comes along that demands to be seen by a general audience, despite demanding subject matter and presentation. Based on its powerful $30 million opening weekend, Steven Spielberg's "Saving Private Ryan" seems to be striking a similar nerve to his 1993 "Schindler's List." Opening weekend crowds in Los Angeles and Orange County were largely impressed, though the film's graphic violence sickened some and angered others.

In a delivery glitch that could hurt receipts for what is expected to be the highest-grossing film this weekend, prints of the Steven Spielberg film "Saving Private Ryan" didn't make it to hundreds of theaters in time for the first showings on Friday. The problem appeared to be most severe in California and Arizona. Many moviegoers in the Los Angeles area hoping to be among the first to see the highly anticipated DreamWorks film starring Tom Hanks were disappointed Friday afternoon.

The weekend began as a war on two fronts for "Saving Private Ryan," battling the formidable Jamie Lee Curtis in the scare-fest "Halloween H20" on one side and Nicolas Cage in the thriller "Snake Eyes" on the other. Neither had the chops to unseat the champ and were left to duke it out for second place. A dead heat developed and, with Sunday business only estimated, the final outcome is still in doubt. For now it's "Snake Eyes" in front with an estimated $16.

On the island of Malta in the Mediterranean Sea, Hollywood is building a submarine. When completed, the 400-ton, full-sized U-boat won't be able to dive beneath the water's surface, but it will withstand 9-foot seas and serve as the centerpiece in producer Dino DeLaurentiis' "U-571," a World War II thriller about U.S. forces who try to steal a top-secret decoding device from a German sub.

With its stunned membership not knowing whether to blame blond ambition or just the vagaries of the democratic process, the venerable and always unpredictable New York Film Critics Circle gave every indication of being a certifiably split personality at its annual awards vote Wednesday. For best picture? "Saving Private Ryan," the much-lauded and very popular World War II drama by prolific one-man-industry Steven Spielberg (which also won the nod of the Los Angeles Film Critics Assn.