Hacksaw Ridge

UK Release Date: 26 January 2017

Certification: 15

Director: Mel Gibson 

Cast: Luke Bracey, Andrew Garfield, Rachel Griffiths, Teresa Palmer, Vince Vaughn, Hugo Weaving, Sam Worthington

Rating: 90%

'One of the greatest American heroes never fired a bullet'

Review:

Hacksaw Ridge, directed by Mel Gibson, is based on a true story depicting the life of Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield), a man who refuses to touch a gun despite volunteering to fight in the war. The movie was a huge success upon release earning $180 million worldwide and receiving six Oscar nominations including best picture. 

The biggest takeaway from Hacksaw Ridge is that it cements Andrew Garfield as an extraordinary actor amongst some of the very best of this decade. I've loved absolutely everything he's been in. He's sensational and without doubt in my top five favourite actors of all time. The accent worked, his morals made sense and his performance was commanding and powerful. He steals absolutely every single scene receiving an Oscar nomination which was thoroughly deserved. Genuinely one of the most sincere and impressive performances I've ever seen on screen. 

It helps Garfield's cause to have a strong supporting cast surrounding him. Teresa Palmer was excellent as Dorothy, Doss' wife. Her chemistry with Andrew Garfield really made the movie a lot more personal as they care for each other and what they stand for. Vince Vaughn was amusing as the Sergeant who was harsh, charismatic and most importantly a good man. I thought that Sam Worthington gave one of the better performances of his career and Luke Bracey's character arc is really special for his limited screen time. But whilst everyone else is great, Hugo Weaving stands alongside Andrew Garfield. He's incredible. The pain and despair his character experiences is felt by the audience as well as his pride for his son. 

The 'Please lord help me get one more' scene, is in my opinion, one of the most incredible scenes ever put to screen. I was in tears whilst watching. The desperation felt by Doss bleeds through to the audience, he just wanted to save as many people as he possibly could. He even brought down Japanese and an already dead Smitty because he cared about humans. And that to me was beautiful.

Rupert Gregson-Williams' score is as good if not better than Hacksaw Ridge itself. The main theme 'Okinawa Battlefield' is exquisite and is spread throughout the movie's run time. 'I Can't Hear You' and 'Rescue Continues' are also two majestic pieces of music that have a real impact on the audience. 

A couple of times the action sucked me out as it kind of left Doss' story behind but the action was still terrific I just preferred the story. However, Hacksaw Ridge will go down as one of my favourite war movies of all time and I think everyone should experience it's beauty.