Hacksaw Ridge

Name: Hacksaw Ridge
Genre: Biography, Drama, History, Romance, War
Released: November 4, 2016
Duration: 139 min
Rating: 71
Cast: Andrew Garfield, Luke Bracey, Sam Worthington, Teresa Palmer

2016

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 47 Critic Reviews

See All

USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 836 Ratings

See All

8.2

VOTE NOW

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

8.2	Your Score
8.2	User Score Universal acclaim based on 836 Ratings

Would you like to write a review?

There is a 75 character minimum for reviews. If your review contains spoilers, please check the Spoiler box. Please do not use ALL CAPS. There is no linking or other HTML allowed. Your review may be edited for content. 0/5000

Check box if your review contains spoilers

Play Sound

Please enter your birth date to watch this video:

You are not allowed to view this material at this time.

Hacksaw Ridge

Now Playing: Hacksaw Ridge

Movie Details & Credits

Summit Entertainment | Release Date: November 4, 2016 | R

Starring: Andrew Garfield, Luke Bracey, Sam Worthington, Teresa Palmer

Summary: In Okinawa during the bloodiest battle of WWII, Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield) saved 75 men without firing or carrying a gun. He was the only American soldier in WWII to fight on the front lines without a weapon, as he believed that while the war was justified, killing was nevertheless wrong. As an army medic, he single-handedly evacuatedIn Okinawa during the bloodiest battle of WWII, Desmond Doss (Andrew Garfield) saved 75 men without firing or carrying a gun. He was the only American soldier in WWII to fight on the front lines without a weapon, as he believed that while the war was justified, killing was nevertheless wrong. As an army medic, he single-handedly evacuated the wounded from behind enemy lines, braved fire while tending to soldiers and was wounded by a grenade and hit by snipers. Doss was the first conscientious objector awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.… Expand

Director: Mel Gibson

Genre(s): Biography, Drama, History, Romance, War

Rating: R

Runtime: 139 min

See All Details and Credits

Watch Now

Buy on

Stream On

Expand

Metascore

Positive:

Mixed:

Negative:

Critic Reviews

100

Mick LaSalle

Nov 3, 2016

Hacksaw Ridge is one of the best films of 2016. And the victory is all the more sweet for Gibson in that he succeeds on his own weird terms. Read full review

Tirdad Derakhshani

Nov 3, 2016

Garfield melts into his Doss character in a performance that seems impossibly still and tranquil. He’s mesmerizing. It’s almost impossible to imagine he ever played Spider-Man. Read full review

David Edelstein

Nov 2, 2016

Say what you will about Mad Mel Gibson, he’s a driven, febrile artist, and there isn’t a second in his war film Hacksaw Ridge — not even the ones that should register as clichés — that doesn’t burn with his peculiar intensity. Read full review

Richard Roeper

Nov 2, 2016

Hacksaw Ridge is faithful to the story of Desmond Doss in every sense of the word. Read full review

Joe Dziemianowicz

Nov 2, 2016

It’s gripping, eye-opening and when it comes to heroics, thought-provoking. But it also suffers from grisliness, sentiment and self-indulgence. Read full review

Peter Rainer

Nov 4, 2016

The war scenes in Hacksaw Ridge, which take up almost half the screen time, are almost on a level with the D-Day invasion sequence from “Saving Private Ryan.” Read full review

The Playlist Jessica Kiang

Sep 4, 2016

Along with screenwriters Robert Schenkkan and Andrew Knight, Gibson, whose lack of directorial subtlety but skill with action both reach an apex here, is not content to tell the true story of Desmond Doss and his unshakeable, courage-giving faith. He wants to convince us that his faith was, in fact, the truth. Read full review

SEE ALL 47 REVIEWS

Write a Review

User Reviews

TLHG

Nov 5, 2016

Wow! What a movie! Honestly, there is no reason to get into details, this flick is just an amazing movie experience from the first second! It starts a little bit dramatic, becomes a romance, turns into a comedy, spends a few minutes in the drama again, and then just dives into a bombasticWow! What a movie! Honestly, there is no reason to get into details, this flick is just an amazing movie experience from the first second! It starts a little bit dramatic, becomes a romance, turns into a comedy, spends a few minutes in the drama again, and then just dives into a bombastic war-action, with everything working perfectly together to get you involved with the story (which is clever, isn't real life a blend of different genres too anyway?) Just sit, avoid distractions and enjoy!… Expand

15 of 18 users found this helpful153

Bitash

Jun 3, 2018

Absolutely fantastic, so impressed with the acting and Mel Gibson Is a genius, great story teller and fantastic battle scenes which I had a hard time to watch. Movie made me emotional and I was glad no one was around as I was crying. Very powerful movie, touched me deep. This should have wonAbsolutely fantastic, so impressed with the acting and Mel Gibson Is a genius, great story teller and fantastic battle scenes which I had a hard time to watch. Movie made me emotional and I was glad no one was around as I was crying. Very powerful movie, touched me deep. This should have won an academy award for best movie.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

coltrev

May 19, 2017

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. My wife and I sat glued to the screen last night. What a jaw-dropper. Boy those Australians can act, and what about Hugo's performance at the dinner table. That trembling lower lip is a classic and really portrayed his hatred for what war did to him and his dead mates. We will watch this many times. It is better than Saving Private Ryan, and that is saying something.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

zkl

Jun 20, 2020

A great movie about how a man sticks to his morals and tries his best to not deviate from them. Really touching and inspirational, an immersive experience full of heart.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

TVJerry

Nov 7, 2016

This film is based on the true story of a conscientious objector (played by Andrew Garfield) who saved the lives of 75 men during the bloodiest battle of WWII. Before hitting the battlefield, the narrative sets up the events that formed his beliefs, the woman back home who supported him andThis film is based on the true story of a conscientious objector (played by Andrew Garfield) who saved the lives of 75 men during the bloodiest battle of WWII. Before hitting the battlefield, the narrative sets up the events that formed his beliefs, the woman back home who supported him and the intense antagonism he faced from the Army. His rich, yet subtle performance once again proves that Garfield is one of the finest actors of his generation. As for director Mel Gibson, the romantic and emotional elements are richly told (albeit in a traditional structure and style), but it's the staging of the battle that makes the strongest impression: The most gruesome and violently brutal depiction of the horrors of battle since "Private Ryan." Even though it could easily lose 30 of its 131-minutes, this remains a potent drama and an affecting portrait of a brave and principled man.… Expand

6 of 8 users found this helpful62

saintdecky

Feb 6, 2017

Hacksaw Ridge is a 50/50 movie for me. I didn't particularly enjoy the first hour of the movie, but boy, did the second hour make up for it.

Plot: As I mentioned, the first hour of the movie was very melodramatic as well as cliched and borderline boring. It's a typical love story,Hacksaw Ridge is a 50/50 movie for me. I didn't particularly enjoy the first hour of the movie, but boy, did the second hour make up for it.

Plot: As I mentioned, the first hour of the movie was very melodramatic as well as cliched and borderline boring. It's a typical love story, everything works out conveniently, and some of the line delivery and scenes are cheesy. However, the second hour is pure brutality and war violence, that is so well done and filmed excellently. It was like watching two completely different movies (like Full Metal Jacket but not executed quite as well). But, the advantage of having the first half so happy and dandy, it makes the second half so much more brutal, which I'm not sure is intentional or not. Otherwise, the second half was done well; shot perfectly, great sound editing and mixing, good enough story. It's just the first half that brings the score down a bit.

Characters/Acting: Andrew Garfield did an excellent job, earning the Oscar nomination. Do I think he should win? No, but he deserves the recognition. Otherwise, the acting from the supporting cast was good, but it was mainly a showcase of Garfield's character and acting. I didn't like Vince Vaughn's portrayal of an army sergeant. I didn't think he was fit at all for the role, and didn't seem menacing enough to be a drill sergeant. The problem is, when he insults all the privates when prepping them, it feels very Hollywood and doesn't match the lighthearted tone the first half of the movie had. Full Metal Jacket actually had a matching tone and, although funny, it made you feel uncertain about whether or not you should laugh. Vince Vaughn just looks like too funny or nice of a guy to be seriously shouting insults as a sergeant.

Cinematography: The cinematography was great in Hacksaw Ridge. It captured the sheer brutality of war, and the action was amazingly directed. As controversial as Mel Gibson may be, he knows how to direct action and warfare.

Other: The movie was a bit heavy-handed; there were plenty of Jesus allegories throughout the run-time of the film that can be seen as propaganda. For example, there's a scene of Garfield having water poured onto him as he looks up at the sky, arms at his side, being cleansed of the blood that cakes his skin, all in slow-motion, while emotional music plays. I also didn't enjoy the depiction of the Japanese. They are portrayed as absolutely ferocious, disgusting, ugly creatures that MURICA must defeat. Their caricatures are exaggerated and Gibson really tries to get the point across that the Japanese are the bad guys, and you should be rooting for MURICA.

Overall, Hacksaw Ridge is half cheesy-cliche, half brutal, well done, action. This is not a movie for the squeamish.… Expand

3 of 4 users found this helpful31

Waltex

Nov 21, 2016

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. An important movie, solidly told and directed

Yes, there are directing gaps (for example why are the boys' clothes so crisp and clean when they have been playing in the forest at the start of the film). I mostly loved Mel's direction of his other films ... he surprised me in those films ... he made creative decisions that were awesome and innovative, clever ... however few surprises in this one. Directing is good, but there are gaps ... the directing is somewhat "colouring in by the numbers" but he does a good job and one feels emotional involvement throughout the film.

I would actually say the war scenes were more genuine and better than Saving Private Ryan ... well done Mel! A mixed patch of acting performances ... but somehow the story is so powerful that it rises above all of these inconsistencies or deficiencies ... What an amazingly brave man ... it shows us that you can't judge a book by its cover. I'm also glad that he rescued some Japanese soldiers too. It made me think that maybe I could aim to do something significant and important with my life too, God willing… Expand

3 of 14 users found this helpful311

SEE ALL 143 REVIEWS

26	#26 Most Discussed Movie of 2016
42	#42 Most Shared Movie of 2016