“Lord, just let me get one more.”
Hacksaw Ridge follows the story of World War II medic Desmond Doss. Doss grew up in a home with a drunk abusive father, and a godly mother who taught Doss that taking another man’s life was the biggest sin of all.
When Doss enlisted into the Army, he refused to carry, or even touch a gun. This caused Doss to become a target to his comrades and his superior officers.
After facing many trials, Doss was finally granted the ability to become an Army medic, and not carry a gun on the front line. Doss was then sent to Hacksaw Ridge in Okinawa, Japan.
When too many Americans got injured during this battle, the Americans retreated leaving several injured men on the ridge to be captured or die. Doss stayed back by himself for 12 hours and saved the lives of about 75 people, saying “Lord, just let me get one more.”
Hacksaw Ridge was produced by Summit Entertainment with a $40 million budget. The movie was directed by Mel Gibson. Hacksaw Ridge follows the signature story line that Gibson brings to most of the movies he directs. His movies often involve a hero who fights for honor, and against an opposing enemy. Directing war movies allows Gibson to bring his love for gore to the screen. Similar movies directed by Gibson are Braveheart (1995), Apocalypto (2006), and The Passion of the Christ (2004).
I went into the movie expecting it to be all war all the time, but the first 45 minutes of the movie were all back stories and romance, which really surprised me. Although surprising, the back story really helped you get to know the character, and understand why Doss made the decisions he made in the war.
Private first class Desmond Doss is played by British-American actor Andrew Garfield. Garfield is best known for his most recent performance as Spider Man in The Amazing Spider Man movies. Since Garfield speaks with a British accent, I was surprised he was chosen for the role of a Virginian with a southern accent.
The accent did however end up working for the movie. Most of the people that Doss came in contact to in the military thought that he was a conscious objector that enlisted into the army. This made Doss look confused or even stupid to his bunk mates. Choosing to have Garfield use an accent that is slow and maybe less southern than you would expect, allowed the audience and his fellow soldiers to underestimate his abilities.
Vince Vaughn was also an unusual choice for a war movie. He is most known as being in comedy movies. Vaughn plays Sergeant Howell, who is in charge of Doss’s unit. Vaughn’s character adds a lot of humor in just a few minutes that the audience meets him. Throughout the story, Vaughn’s character targets Doss, encourages him to quit, and eventually is grateful to Doss for saving his life.
One thing this movie utilized is special effects. There were crazy explosions, legs being blown off, and rats and other entomology eating the insides of severed limbs and bodies. Gibson was not shy in showing the audience a bloody, gory battlefield. This part of the movie was very graphic, and if you don’t like gore, you should definitely not see this movie.
Overall this movie was a great watch. Be sure to check it out when it is released on DVD on February 21.