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Recently I wrote about PULP FICTION, which I called the most influential film since its debut in 1994. SAVING PRIVATE RYAN is second. Steven Spielberg’s ode to the soldiers of World War II brought a level of realistic violence to mainstream media that hadn’t been seen previously. BRAVEHEART had been bloody, but not like RYAN. The opening Normandy invasion sequence changed the way battle sequences have been filmed since. Gritty and brutal reality has become paramount in depicting the true nature of warfare. Many films have since copied the look with its faded colors and streaks of light across the screen, but none have matched its impact. But the visceral blood and gore isn’t to shock per se, but to transport an audience into the reality of warfare where training and luck save lives, rarely does heroics.

The film begins with an old man visiting a cemetery where he flashes back to the landing on Omaha Beach. The hand of Capt. John Miller (Tom Hanks, PHILADELPHIA) shakes as the boats approach the shore. Pitted against dug-in Germans, the savage slaughter begins the second the gates of transport boats open. Dozens upon dozens of soldiers die before even hitting the sand. The carnage is real with dazed soldiers searching the beach for missing limbs. As we watch Miller and his men try to advance up the beach, who lives and who dies seems based on who was in the right place at the wrong time. Upon succeeding at Omaha, Capt. Miller is given his new orders. The military has discovered that three of the four brothers of the Ryan family of Iowa have all recently died in battle and in an effort to save more heartache to their mother, Miller and his men will be sent to bring the youngest son James Ryan (Matt Damon, GOOD WILL HUNTING) home.

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Check Out the Trailer

Recently named by Entertainment Weekly as the best film of the past 25 years and by the American Film Institute as the 7th best gangster film of all time, director Quentin Tarantino’s masterpiece, PULP FICTION, is not unaccustomed to accolades. Tarantino and co-writer Roger Avary won an Oscar for their innovative screenplay. Stars John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson and Uma Thurman were all nominated for acting by the Academy, which also gave nods to Tarantino as director, editor Sally Menke and producer Lawrence Bender for Best Picture. To say PULP FICTION is beloved is truly accurate, ranked near the top among movie fans on IMDB. But for filmmakers, the most important distinction is its influence. No film since has been more influential to the world of cinema.

The interlocking stories move forward and backward in time, telling the tale of wayward criminals. The story begins with low-level thug Ringo (Tim Roth, THE INCREDIBLE HULK) and his girl Yolanda (Amanda Plummer, JOE VS. THE VOLCANO) planning an impromptu robbery of a diner. As they spring to action, we spring to another story. Hitmen Vincent Vega (Travolta, SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER) and Jules Winnfield (Jackson, JACKIE BROWN) are headed to an appointment. On the way, they discuss the delicate issue of foot massages as it applies to their rash gangster boss Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames, BABY BOY) and the feet of his wife Mia (Thurman, KILL BILL). This interchange sets up the tension of Vincent’s next assignment — taking Mia out and showing her a good time. However, the good time ends with Vincent rushing an overdosing Mia to the house of his dealer Lance (Eric Stoltz, MASK).

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