Review of Hacksaw Ridge (2016) by Jamie J — 07 Feb 2017

Hacksaw Ridge is really two films, Godfather 2 style almost, the first being a low key, sweet and very funny introduction to the character of Desmond Doss (brilliantly played by ex Man Spider Andrew Garfield) and his Christian family. Followed by his initial boot camp training with a urprisingly brilliant turn by Vince Vaughn as his piss taking drill sergeant.

It's when the action moves inevitably to the ridge you see the real meat of the film. Violent, utterly disorientating and almost matching the heights of Saving Private Ryan's beach landing scene for raw brutality and showing the waste of human life. It's there that Desmond showed the real heroics that got him the medal of honor after the war. Saving 75 soldiers plus himself.

Hacksaw Ridge isn't perfect though, it does unintentionally come across as far fetched and a bit silly in places, but really hits you where it matters most.