SAVING PRIVATE RYAN 275
machine- gun position, announces that he is going to desert, but after a confronta-
tion and intervention by Miller, Reiben changes his mind and stays with his unit.
Before they reach Ramelle, Miller and the soldiers encounter a unit of paratroopers
ambushing a German Sd.Kfz. 251 half- track. One of them turns out to be Pvt.
James Ryan (Matt Damon). Miller breaks the news about Ryan’s deceased brothers
and informs Ryan that he has orders to bring the private home. He also tells Ryan
he has lost two men trying to find him. Though bereaved at the loss of his brothers,
Ryan refuses to be led back to safety, so Miller relents, joining his team with the
paratroopers to defend the bridge. Miller sets up defenses throughout the town.
Tanks and infantry from the 2nd SS Panzer Division arrive. The American sol-
diers put up a valiant fight, but the majority of the paratroopers, along with
Horvath, Mellish, and Jackson, die. Upham is frozen in fear and avoids the fight.
Miller makes an effort to blow up the bridge, but he is shot by Steamboat Willie,
who has arrived on the scene with his comrades. As a Tiger tank comes up to
the bridge, an American P-51 Mustang suddenly appears in the sky and blows
up the tank, and American armored troops appear and push back the Germans.
Having witnessed Miller’s shooting, Upham confronts Steamboat Willie and his
group as they attempt to retreat. Steamboat Willie raises his hands in surrender,
believing that Upham will let him go because of their earlier encounter. Instead,
Upham, having seen Steamboat Willie shoot Miller, finds Willie and shoots him to
avenge Miller. Reiben and Ryan are close to Miller as he dies and take in his final
words: “James... Earn this. Earn it.” Flash- forward 50 years to the pres ent day,
late 1990s: the el derly James Ryan, accompanied by his family, visits the American
Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville- sur- Mer, Normandy, and discovers Capt.
John Miller’s gravestone among the thousands of others. A tearful James Ryan
mentions how grateful he is to Miller and his unit for saving his life. He won ders
whether he is worthy of their sacrifices, and his wife comforts him and confirms
that he is indeed a “good man.” Ryan then salutes Miller’s grave. The final image is
of the American flag fluttering in the wind over the cemetery.
Reception
Saving Private Ryan had its world premiere on 21 July 1998 and went into wide
release in North Amer i ca three days later (widest release: 2,807 theaters). Stag-
gered releases in foreign markets took place that fall. During its initial 17- week
domestic run, the movie earned $190.6 million at the box office. After Saving Private
Ryan garnered 11 Oscar nominations in February 1998, the movie was re- released
(widest release: 1,140 theaters) to take advantage of its enhanced profile. It ran
until 27 May 1998 and earned another $25.7 million, bringing the total domestic
gross to $216.3 million— the highest- grossing film of 1998 in the United States.
Foreign ticket sales came in even higher, at $268.7 million. Overall, the movie
grossed $485 million versus a $70 million production bud get, making it a block-
buster hit. Though it lost the Best Picture Oscar to John Madden’s Shakespeare in
Love, Saving Private Ryan won five Oscars: Best Director (Steven Spielberg); Best
Cinematography (Janusz Kamiński); Best Editing (Michael Kahn); Best Sound
(Gary Rydstrom, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson, and Ron Judkins); and Best