I'm watching Canadian TV on Satelite. Normally the ABC affiliate is from Boston, but any Canadian station showing the same thing normally takes over the signal. Tonight, the guide listed Private Ryan, but the screen showed Far and Away.

And no, I don't think the movie is too violent for prime-time network TV. War is violent. It's just typically Corporate-American - it's fine for the country to send someone to die, but the people will just be too offended to see anything that paints even a remotely realistic picture. I suppose we're talking about Disney (ABC) here though...

I also don't know if there's a question about preserving the movie "experience" so much as the integrity of the film and its subject matter. That film, if shown, should not be toned down for any audience. If parents don't want their kids watching it, then watch another channel. Or let the kids go play Doom3 on the computer (they can practice for when the next G-Dubya clone sends them off to war in a few years).

Bruno