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9 comments
3 comments
Rank This Matchup or Comment/Reply Below
on 12/14/2009
two of the best WW2 movies of the last dozen years or so. I gotta go with SPR
on 7/10/2010
The pianist has the better performance. SPR is the better all around movie, and arguably the best WWII movie ever.
on 7/11/2010
Interesting match-up. While I agree on an intellectual level that "Saving Private Ryan" is probably the best WWII movie ever (though I think "Band of Brothers" is, overall, a better production), a lot of it just left me cold. I mean, the storming of the beach at Normandy is phenomenal, but after that I just had a hard time connecting with it emotionally. Plus, I totally couldn't understand Tom Hanks' last line to Matt Damon, which kind of ruined the end of the film for me. I also have never seen it in widescreen, so maybe that has a little to do with it. "The Pianist," on the other hand, was emotionally resonant from start to finish, second only, I think, to "Schindler's List" in its depiction of the Holocaust. And I love that one of the characters was a Nazi officer who had compassion on him.
on 11/8/2010
Powerful powerful films dealing with the same era's horror. Both deserving of most of the praise.
on 11/9/2010
I would argue that although both are good, neither are the best examples of their respective genres. Saving Private Ryan wins this match up because of the battle scenes. The Pianist has the disadvantage of being both a tough watch and relying heavily on the lead to carry us through the final portions of the film in near silence. Adrian Brody seems passive and somehow impervious to the shocks and horrors that surround him.
If you discount the Normandy beach scene Private Ryan is not that emotionally stirring. The Pianist is a great story of survival and with Adrian Brody to anchor it an emotional powerhouse. The Pianist wins.
on 7/18/2011
They're both incredible, imo. But I think I'll vote for SPR.
It really depends on what mood I'm in. I'm more likely to be mooved by The Pianist but Saving Private Ryan is action packed from start to finish... Now the only question is: Am I most often in the mood for crying or constant epicness? Believe it or not, I choose The Pianist.
on 2/17/2012
I felt emotionally detached while watching SPR.The Pianist was more engaging and of course,Brody was stellar.
on 8/18/2013
the pianist only has really interesting character and even then he spends the last hour of the film just watching things happen but not doing anything .saving private Ryan is much better.
on 12/18/2014
The Pianist captured my emotions a lot better than Saving Private Ryan did.
I'd lean SPR, but both are dynamite...
on 12/5/2021
Roman Polanski should answer to his crimes. That said, as a film, The Pianist gripped me and is uncompromising in its story. Saving Private Ryan has one of the best openings in any film, but the second act doesn't quite live up to that momentum for me.
