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Becca Shanks
Ms. Holmstrom
Intro to Psych
11/18/14
Psychological Disorder Movie Review-Saving Private Ryan
Saving Private Ryan is an American war story set during WWII opening with the
Invasion of Normandy. The soldiers struggle against the German defenses, but Captain John H.
Miller played by Tom Cruise survives this initial attack. Miller rallies a group of survivors to
fight the German artillery. Soon after this opening war scene, the movie transports the audience
home to Washington D.C. at the U.S. War Department where General George Marshall, the Chief
of Staff of the Unite States Army learns that three of the four brothers of the Ryan family were
killed on the battle field and that their mother is to receive all three death telegrams in the same
day. Marshall also learns that there is a fourth Ryan brother, Private First Class James Ryan, a
paratrooper, is missing in action somewhere in Normandy. To save Mrs. Ryan another heart ache,
Marshall orders Private Ryan to be found and sent home as soon as possible. Miller receives
Marshalls order and assembles his men to find him. After some mistaken identity, the group
eventually finds Ryan and tells him of his brothers death and the mission of bringing him home.
Although distressed at the losses of his brothers, Ryan does not feel that its fair that he went
home and asks Miller to tell his mother that he plans on staying in battle referring to the other
soldiers as the only brothers that he had left. Millers group now including Ryan continues in
battle throughout the movie where in the closing scenes, Miller is fatally wounded and Ryan is

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with him as he passes. The movie concludes in the present day with elderly Private Ryan visiting
Captain Millers grave and gives a military salute to his dear friend.
The movie highlights many detailed war scenes, and those scenes are as intense as any
war scene not just WWII. Every veteran experiences some sort of trauma and life changes when
they return to normal life back home. This trauma is known as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or
PTSD. When a person may feel that they are in danger, the bodys natural response is to feel
afraid. This fear triggers many split-second changes in the body to prepare to defend against the
danger or to avoid it. This fight-or-flight response is a healthy reaction meant to protect a
person from harm (1). In a PTSD victim, that reaction changes or gets damaged. PTSD is
developed after a traumatic event that involved physical harm. It is mostly affiliated with
veterans, although there are other PTSD cases like rape, robbery etc The symptoms include reexperiencing symptoms like having flashbacks or bad dreams, avoidance symptoms which
includes any amount of emotional numbness, any feeling of guilt or depression or even staying
away from places, events, or objects that may be a reminder of the experience, and hyperarousal
symptoms such as being easily startled, feeling constantly tense or having difficulty sleeping/
having angry out bursts. Captain Miller and Private Ryan really highlight symptoms of PTSD
throughout the movie.
Captain Miller shows symptoms during many battle scenes. Although filled with valuable
information, he often remained quiet. He was a mystery to his men. Miller was a teacher before
he went to war, and it took forever for him to speak about his prewar life. He was married, and
also the baseball coach for his local baseball team. When he went to war he had served a few
other battles before the real setting of the movie giving some time to acquire PTSD symptoms.
Another characteristic of PTSD is uncontrollable shaking and just before the Rangers embarked

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at Portsmouth, England, Miller's right hand began to shake uncontrollably for unknown reasons.
He kept this a secret from his men. (2). He really shakes all throughout the movie, but this is a
major point that he shakes showing that he experienced PTSD.
Private Ryan is the other soldier that highlights the symptoms of PTSD. The movie
begins with him walking to Captain Millers gravesite. He has a depressive look, does not walk
with his family and just looks like he is mentally not with the rest of the world; that his mind is
elsewhere. And of course the most obvious symptom is at the opening of the movie, when he
experiences the flash back on the Omaha Beach. Ryan, at the end of the movie also asks his wife
of an approval in the hope that he had lived up to the sacrifice made by Miller and his men (2).
It just shows such uneasiness in Ryan and his family and the family of all PTSD victims really
are affected by that. Ryans wife had to deal with a new husband after returned. Yes he
functioned in society, but had many moments that are hard for family to cope with.
I would say that PTSD was very clearly and accurately portrayed in this movie through
Private Ryan and Captain Miller. I know someone closely who was a veteran of Desert Storm
and he speaks of many times he continues to get flashbacks. Hes very skittish and on the edge
all the time and scares easily as described in many PTSD victims including Captain Miller. I
watch him and theres not a time I have seen him where he is not shaking, much like Captain
Miller. I definitely could see the hardships that Ryans family dealt with when he came back
from war because family of the person I know did not know how to handle someone
experiencing PTSD. There is a lot of help out there for PTSD victims and it wouldnt be
surprising to me if a lot of veterans including the person I know were hesitant to watch this
movie for fear that it would bring back flashbacks and give them uneasy feelings again that they
long to diminish.

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Works Cited
1. http://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/index.shtml
2. http://savingprivateryan.wikia.com/wiki/Capt._John_H._Miller
3. http://articles.philly.com/1998-08-06/news/25724660_1_omaha-beach-va-center-nearest-vafacility