I’ve just completed a chapter of my forthcoming evolution of quality TV book (fifthcoming, at the very latest), a chapter devoted to TV war series, from Combat! to Generation Kill and The Pacific. This 1998 Steven Spielberg-Tom Hanks movie is an important part of that continuum, and not only because they collaborated once again for Band of Brothers and The Pacific. Spielberg’s Saving Private Ryan, starring Hanks, redefined the intensity of war dramas, and the masterful opening sequence changed everything. Watch for yourself – and see the difference.

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