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‘Ryan’ Leaves Them Speechless

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SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

There was an excellent reason for holding the reception for Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan” before the premiere screening: Afterward, the audience was too shellshocked to talk. The intensely depicted war scenes, especially the first 25 minutes of kinetic carnage, tend to stun viewers into speechlessness.

With this in mind, the traditional premiere schmoozing took place at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday when 200 guests gathered in the Geffen Playhouse’s airy lobby / courtyard before shuttling over to the Village theater to see the film.

“This isn’t the kind of movie you see and then go to a bistro and break bread talking about it--you have to go home and deal with it privately,” said Spielberg. “I think the audience leaves the theater with a little bit of what the veterans left that war with, just a fraction.”

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As a way of honoring the World War II veterans, and especially historian Stephen Ambrose, who founded the National D-Day Museum, the reception was pretty much for them. The requisite industry execs and cast were on hand, but septuagenerian vets and their wives predominated. With a quartet playing Django Reinhardt compositions and hors d’oeuvres being served, the event had the feel of a wedding party for a couple in their 70s who had invited all their friends.

“I think it’s a good thing that the American people have a look at what war is,” said Ambrose. “I think they’d be a little more hesitant to send the kids off.”

Of the veterans present who had already seen the film, Len Lomell, a WWII Ranger lieutenant, said, “People can complain all they want. but there’s no justice in the complaints. Spielberg did a good job--considering he’s never been in service.”

Bob Slaughter, who was a sergeant, said, “The vets want it to be real. War is not glorious.”

Dick Winters, a 101st Airborne major, offered the less-than-PC view that women shouldn’t be in battle and, “It should be a requirement that all the ladies in the service go see this picture and then they’ll realize what it means to be in combat.”

In between having his picture taken with the formidable number of guests who had brought cameras, star Tom Hanks took time to say, “This film is not like a big blanket that is palpable to everybody. There are going to be some folks who are going to get up and leave and that’s all right. They’re getting up and leaving for the right reasons.”

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The reception lasted until just past 7, when guests including Kate Capshaw, Rita Wilson, Sid Sheinberg, Mike Myers and DreamWorks and Paramount execs Jeffrey Katzenberg, David Geffen, Terry Press, Sherry Lansing, Jonathan Dolgen and Rob Friedman left for the screening.

It was a jolt to leave the Geffen’s relative tranquillity and arrive at the Village, where thousands of fans surrounded the theater entrance and a classic film premiere in all its star-filled, media-frenzied glory was underway. On hand were Sylvester Stallone, Penny Marshall, Rene Russo, Bill Paxton, James Brooks, Chevy Chase, Debbie Allen and Oliver Stone.

After the screening, many of the guests declined to comment on the movie. However, Marvin Davis called it “a helluva film.” Dennis Hopper said it was the best war film he’d ever seen, and John Singleton said, “It’s like a big shell landing in a town of fluff. This is going to inspire a whole generation of filmmakers.”

But perhaps the best compliment came from the industry savant whose comment was: “Well, there goes Jim Carrey’s Oscar.”

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