Some Thoughts & a Question about ‘Saving Private Ryan’

I know I’m about 10 years too late to be commenting much about the movie Saving Private Ryan, but I finally saw the movie the other day and there was something in it that didn’t seem quite right. 

You may remember that at one point the American squad assaults a German machine gun nest, kills two of the three Germans (and captures the other) and suffers one casualty themselves.  The American soldiers are enraged that one of their comrades has been killed, and they want to kill the German who surrendered.

They almost do it, but Cpl. Timothy P. Upham, a translator with the unit, intervenes on the German’s side.  The German begs for his life.  In the end, Captain Miller (played by Tom Hanks), prevents his soldiers from killing the German, and tells the German to march back to the American lines and surrender to the next Allied soldier he sees.

Later on they are in a battle against a larger German unit in a nearby town.  Most of the Americans are wiped out. The German soldier who had surrendered earlier is back with the Germans, and shoots Captain Miller during the battle.

Upham, who had been cowering and too afraid to do his duty during the battle, ends up accidentally being behind several of the Germans, including the soldier they had let go. He takes them prisoner.  The German soldier tries to talk to Upham, but Upham shoots him and kills him. 

This seems to be portrayed as a good thing, or as justice, but it didn’t seem like it to me.  Why should the German soldier have been executed?  He was only doing his job.  He came across some German units after he was released by Captain Miller.  What was he supposed to tell them — “Gee, Colonel, you know I would like to fight for you, but I can’t because I promised an American officer that I would surrender to the Americans.”  I don’t think so. 

I would add that the soldier was probably just a draftee, not a volunteer, and more importantly, he was part of the Wehrmacht, the regular German army, not the SS, who committed most of the atrocities against civilians and Jews.  I don’t see why he should have been executed — am I wrong?

My favorite part of the movie was just a little scene.  It is after the Americans have gotten a foothold in northern France, and they have captured a German unit.  Some American soldiers are marching the German prisoners of war in a column, and Private Stanley Mellish, a rifleman, stands by the column and taunts the German soldiers, pointing to a Star of David around his neck and saying, “Juden, Juden” (Jew).

Mellish kind of reminds me of a relative of mine who escaped from a German camp, somehow made his way to the United States, and volunteered. He came back to Germany as a soldier in the American army and helped guide his unit through Germany because he spoke the language and knew where everything was.   

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