HACKSAW RIDGE ***

To say that "Hacksaw Ridge" is Mel Gibson's best film so far may not be much of a stretch since Gibson has never really been in the front rank of international directors. However skilled he may be as a film-maker his choice of material has always remained suspect. Did he choose to make "The Passion of the Christ"and "Apocolypto" simply so he could dwell on the excessive onscreen violence or, in the case of "The Passion of the Christ", was he simply displaying an overt 'Christian' ethos bordering on Anti-Semitism?

"Hacksaw Ridge" isn't necessarily free of these charges either. His hero is Desmond Doss, a real-life conscientious objector who nevertheless went into battle and became the only man ever to win the Medal of Honour without firing a shot so it does, to a large degree, play to Gibson's Christian beliefs and by virtue of its being a war film is also extremely violent. However, it also has a strong narrative and feels, (if only marginally), less like torture porn than we might be used to from Gibson, (though if you pay close attention to those battle scenes you may be inclined to disagree with that last statement). These may be the most realistic battle scenes ever filmed or they may simply represent the best use of special effects.

As Doss, Andrew Garfield continues to show why he is considered one of the best young actors in movies today even if, on a psychological level, this role is a lot less demanding than his part in "Silence"
while technically the film is something of a marvel. Like Gibson or loathe him this is his show and his achievement here has its own grandeur. He may still not be able to handle scenes of simple domesticity but on the battlefield he is his own master. The events in this film may have actually happened. Whether or not they happened quite like they do here is entirely a different matter but on this occasion I am willing to allow Gibson his poetic licence.