Hacksaw Ridge

Most of these men don't believe the same way you do, but they believe so much in how much you believe. Hacksaw Ridge is directed by Mel Gibson and written by Robert Schenkkan and Andrew Knight. It is based on the 2004 documentary The Conscientious Objector. It stars Andrew Garfield, Sam Worthington, Vince Vaughn, Luke Bracey, Teresa Palmer, Ryan Corr, Hugo Weaving and Rachel Griffiths. Music is by Rupert Gregson-Williams and cinematography by Simon Duggan. Film is a depiction of the real life heroics of Desmond Doss, an American pacifist combat medic in WWII during The Battle of Okinawa. How great to have Gibson back directing, more so when he's tackling the brutalities of war and the critical human interest stories within. The story of Desmond Doss is inspirational stuff and Gibson and his team have done his story proud. First half of the picture details Doss' upbringing, getting to know his family background, his beliefs and the forming of his loving relationship with Dorothy Schutte. Then after Pearl Harbour he enlists in service and we are then witness to boot camp, which comes with the horrors of bullying and ostracization due to Doss refusing to even touch a rifle - let alone use one! After the military based political thunder has exhausted its armoury, Doss and the rest of the 77th Infantry Division are sent to Okinawa to try and capture the Maeda Escarpment (Hacksaw Ridge). From where a true legend is born. As is a Gibson trademark, the battle scenes are terrifyingly real and bloody as can be, the horrors of war laid bare for dramatic impact. Amongst the carnage, which is magnificently framed in smoky hazes and a landscape obliterated by weaponry, Doss (brilliantly brought to life by Garfield) comes to the fore. From within the madness comes humanity in its purest and most genuine form, and it makes for edge of the seat viewing whilst stirring the blood of those invested fully in this remarkable story. 9/10