War is hell. Unfortunately, thousands of United States military personnel had to find this out firsthand in the battles of World War II. Steven Spielberg brings this sad reality to the big screen in his latest film, “Saving Private Ryan”. Spielberg is known for his excellent direction and ability to make films realistic and accurate. In short, he is good at what he does. In the case of this film, however, he may have been a little too good. Saving Private Ryan is an extremely gruesome, sad, graphic and emotion packed film that will wrench both your heart and your stomach with its depiction of the terrible battles of WWII. For reference, if you couldn`t handle watching Full Metal Jacket, then Saving Private Ryan is probably not for you.This is not to say that the movie is not incredibly well acted and directed. The story is extremely compelling and contains all of the elements that directors hope for in a film – great action, great acting and a very moving story to tell. But “Saving Private Ryan” isn`t for those who can`t handle a depressing subject matter as the slaughter of thousands of American soldiers.The gripping story begins with an extremely real depiction of D-Day – the deadly battle on the beaches of Normandy – Omaha Beach to be exact. When the American troops arrive, they realize that a past airstrike to clear the Nazis in the area had missed its target, and the beaches are heavily fortified with enemy troops. These scenes are nothing short of an absolute slaughter, which gets a bit graphic, and men are literally dropping by the thousands. Spielberg said in a behind-the-scenes special that aired on HBO that he intentionally opened the film with these scenes in order to set the tone and mood of the film for the audience. It worked. To see the grimaces on the faces of the moviegoers showed that Spielberg indeed shocked and horrified them in preparation for the sad reality of war.The film then moves on to the plot it is named for. A group of soldiers, led by Tom Hanks` character, Captain John Miller, are sent to find and retrieve Private James Ryan, played by Matt Damon. Private Ryan gets a ticket home after it is discovered that he is the last survivor of the four Ryan brothers who were sent into combat. It was a public relations mission ordered by the Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army to keep from having to deal with the attention they would receive when forced to inform Mrs. Ryan that all of her sons died in battle.As touching as this sentiment was, the members of the team sent behind enemy lines to find Private Ryan were not afraid to vocalize the criticism they all felt: How was one life worth risking eight others? Captain Miller expressed the only rebuttal that could be offered – orders are orders and a soldier must follow them.Throughout their journey, the eight members of the special team searching for Private Ryan encountered numerous combat situations, all of which showed the gruesome reality of war. Spielberg captured well the fear and emotion of the soldiers, and transferred these feelings to the audience. Moviegoers found themselves gripping the arms of their chairs hoping that the imminent doom in front of them would somehow not consume the characters. Unfortunately, as in all wars, a lot of soldiers die in this film. For this reason, the movie may be especially hard to take for anyone who has a son or a brother. Looking at this film one can`t help but think about the soldier that just died on some remote combat field could be their loved one someday. The thought brings even more emotion to an already depressing subject matter. “Saving Private Ryan” is an extremely well made movie. But don`t go expecting a happy, heartwarming film. It is anything but.