The Saving Private Ryan Scene You Likely Didn't Know Was Completely Improvised

The audience gets a bit of a break between fighting in "Saving Private Ryan" shortly after Captain Miller's group locates Private Ryan. In a moment of bonding, Ryan starts telling Miller a story about how he and two of his brothers caught the fourth brother in the barn having sex with an unattractive woman. Eventually, the woman became aware of their presence and tried to get out of there with her shirt still over her head. Unable to see anything, she ended up slamming against a wall, and when that part of the story comes, Ryan can barely contain himself as he starts busting up laughing. 

It's a touching moment as the two men share a moment of levity amongst the horrors of war. And what's even more amazing is that Damon came up with the story on the fly. According to "The Gross" by Peter Bart, the speech first came off as rambling and uninteresting, but ultimately, that's why it works in the scene (via IMDb). Ryan wasn't some extraordinary figure. He was just a kid fated to play an integral role in the lives of Miller's company.

Steven Spielberg ended up liking the story so much he left it in the finished product. With one improvised speech, Matt Damon proved he was, indeed, worthy of winning the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for "Good Will Hunting" shortly before "Saving Private Ryan" came out.