Hacksaw Ridge (2016) Movie Review

Have you ever watched a war movie that didn't have the usual war movie feel? Hacksaw Ridge is one of those. It's about this guy, Desmond Doss, who enlists in the army during World War II but refuses to carry any weapon. Now that sounds like trouble already, right? A soldier who won't fire a gun?

Thus, the movie starts with his childhood. He grew up in Virginia, and his father is a World War I veteran, who keeps fighting a battle of anger. That moment, Desmond almost killed his brother in a fight that makes him understand how dangerous violence can be. That moment sticks on him. Later on, he starts seeing a girl named Dorothy and decides to enlist in the army as a medic. But he won't touch a weapon because of his beliefs, which are based on Seventh-day Adventist principles.

Basic training is very tough for him. The other soldiers can't understand why he wouldn't even hold a rifle. To them, he is just a liability. They mock him, physically abuse him, and even his superiors try to have him drummed out. Once again, he is unyielding. He sticks to his faith, even when there are threats of court martial. After a long fight, he is eventually allowed to remain in the army and sent into combat without carrying a weapon.

Now, this is where the real fight will happen- Okinawa, at this place called Hacksaw Ridge. That is one bloody battle. The Americans had to flip these cargo nets to climb up over a cliff, and once they got to the top, opened up with heavy fire from Japanese soldiers. It's all chaotic, bodies are lying everywhere, and all things don't look good. This is the stage on which Doss performs his miracle.

When everybody else runs away, Doss stays. He goes back to the battlefield, one wounded man at a time. He then lowers them by rope down the cliff. He keeps saying: "Please, Lord, help me get one more." Again and again he makes this repeat, saving dozens of men, even some who he had been treated the worst during training. Next day, when those troops have to go back up, they even wait for him to pray before moving on. The same ones who doubted him now trust him.

By the end of it, he is honored for his gallantry and awarded the Medal of Honor. He is the very first conscientious objector in American history to receive it. The film, then, finishes with the real Desmond Doss as he aged, talking about how all his life he would never think of himself as a hero. He went around doing good and helping.

What makes Hacksaw Ridge so remarkable is the fact that this film is not only about war. It is about standing for what one believes in, even when surrounded by voices telling one the opposite. This is unlike most war films, which will concentrate on the fighting; this one greatly puts weight into the idea that courage isn't just killing the enemy. Rather, it is about standing firm in what you believe and seeking out other ways to make a difference.

You conceive of war films as filled with weapons, violent explosions, and active battle scenes; a spectator expects what these war films have to offer-hacks, rifles, a barrage of grenades, and battle scenes. But the focus is on Doss and his story. It makes you think-could you ever do what he did in war, out of war, or any time he had to stand alone against what seemed like the entire world?

Sometimes, it's one of those movies you will psychologically carry along with you for a while; it isn't solely because of its action but because of the message behind it.