Film
Hacksaw Ridge
- Director
- Mel Gibson
- Running Time
- 139 mins
A film about a conchie from Mad Mel Gibson? Surely some mistake? Look closer and you’ll see that this actually ticks all of Mel’s other boxes – patriotism, religious faith, etc – making it not too far removed from his usual territory.
It’s the true tale of devout Seventh Day Adventist Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield), who insisted on his right to serve as a medic and not carry a gun when he enlisted in the US Army for WWII. But then they only went and packed him off to the bloodiest battle of the entire war – the Battle of Okinawa. Having saved 75 lives without firing a shot, he duly became the first conscientious objector ever to be awarded the US Congressional Medal of Honour. Mel stages the action with his usual aplomb, but is less adept at subtely or nuance, making this more of a treat for the American Sniper brigade than pacifist audiences. Go here for our full review.
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