At the recent Academy Awards, one of the most talked-about pictures was Hacksaw Ridge, the true story of a Christian war medic during World War 2 who refused to carry a weapon on the battlefield–yet saved 75 men on the front lines. Nominated in six categories–including Best Picture–the Mel Gibson-directed biopic won Oscars for Best Achievement in Film Editing and Best Achievement in Sound Mixing.
One of the film’s producers, Terry Benedict, told the Christian Post that the film’s success shows that people “want to see and hear” stories that dramatize faith.
“I think inspirational stories that are told with a standard of excellence can appeal to a very diverse audience. It’s not about preaching to the choir as we so much hear about.”
Hacksaw Ridge is the extraordinary true story of Desmond Doss [Andrew Garfield], the first conscientious objector awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. Serving in Okinawa during the bloodiest battle of WWII, Doss 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.
The film also stars Sam Worthington, Luke Bracey, Teresa Palmer, Hugo Weaving, Rachel Griffiths, and Vince Vaughn.
Hacksaw Ridge is rated R for intense prolonged realistically graphic sequences of war violence including grisly bloody images.