Hacksaw Ridge

I happened upon a movie on TV the other day. That shouldn't be news, but for me it is. I rarely watch movies on TV and even more rarely would I go to a movie theater to see one. My view of film today is that most of it is shallow, mere special effects and shock, little substance and poorly written. But when I am bored and in front of a TV I will sometimes turn it on an d peruse the listings. I saw that 'Hacksaw Ridge' was just about to begin and, having read good things about it as being an "adult film" in genre that has become a world for pre teens and teens, I found the station in time to watch.

What a powerful film it is. It is the story of Desmond Doss, a poor farm boy from Virginia and practitioner of the Seventh Day Adventist religion, one that does not allow its members to kill other human beings. In 1942 Doss had a military deferment, but after the United States entered W.W. II, Doss felt patriotic and decide to enlist in the army as a medical corpsman. Joining an army during a war as an avowed conscientious objector is about as appropriate as a Hollywood star making sense (about anything remotely complicated). But Doss wanted to save lives, not kill. He joined the army was harassed in boot camp and labeled a coward by all.

The movie is complicated, as good movies are, and I do not want to tell you the outcome. Instead, I urge you to see the film and learn why Doss became America's greatest war hero, without ever firing a shot or perpetrating a single violent act against another human being. I think you will be inspired by the film and perhaps will see humans as having greater potential for good than evil after watching. Imagine, a so called "war film" doing all that? But it does. The critics say the actor who played Doss and the film itself will win the Oscar for best actor and best film of 2017.

The film is popular with many people of all ages and demographics, a good sign I think, that there is still a market for serious film. In our superficial, throw-a-way culture we need more substance and less. 'Hacksaw Ridge' provides a little of that.