Hello, all! Today, we’ll be moving from flicks “The Forgotten War” to those about one that some might try to forget: the Vietnam War. It’s interesting how Hollyweird sometimes pumps out films with similar themes in the same year, or at least within a calendar year of one another… ARMAGEDDON and DEEP IMPACT [both 1998 releases], DANTE’S PEAK and VOLCANO [both released in 1997], and the list goes on. In fact, it goes on today, with the first movie recommendation being perhaps the seminal film about the Vietnam War. Fans of FULL METAL JACKET [released only a few months later] may disagree, but PLATOON was first… and, using “Ricky Bobby Rules,” I’ll have to give the edge to Oliver Stone’s classic, the trailer for which is embedded below:
Rather than saying some might “try to forget” above, it may have been more apropos to say some want to forget the Vietnam War. The term “Vietnam Syndrome” likely wouldn’t exist if that weren’t the case. For whatever reason, this film came along at a time – perhaps precisely the right time – that the country was willing once again to wrestle with the experience of the Vietnam War. Granted, the cultural ground had been made a little more fertile with the release of a series of films that dealt with the issue of POWs from the war – UNCOMMON VALOR [1983], MISSING IN ACTION [1984], and RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II [1985] – all perhaps conditioning the casual movie-goer to think about the war. Hot on the proverbial heels of these fictitious takes on the war, PLATOON framed itself squarely within the confines of as much realism as a film could muster. Only moments into the film, Chris Taylor [played by Charlie Sheen, but also serving as a proxy for Oliver Stone, a Vietnam War veteran who wrote and directed the film] steps off the C-119 and immediately sees body bags being carted by. It’s not exactly a subtle introduction to the brutal calculus of war, nor a subtle analogy to how replacements were used. In this sense, then, Sheen’s character isn’t simply a proxy for Oliver Stone, but a vehicle by which the audience experiences the war, from being a raw recruit who doesn’t know what to carry on patrol to the seasoned veteran at the end of the film. To me, this is one reason why the film endures so well – it isn’t merely some Jingoistic, sensational film that attempts to expiate whatever zeitgeist might have lingered from the war, it’s a film that requires the viewer to confront the realities of the war, particularly for those who fought it.
Clever as the dualistic role Chris plays may be – first-person surrogate for the audience as well as narrator of the film – the film really excels through the characters who serve as the angel and devil on his shoulders, Sgt. Elias [played (and very well) by Willem Dafoe] and SSgt. Barnes [played by Tom Berenger], respectively. Just as the members of the platoon are drawn to one or the other of the two sergeants, so, too, is Chris… until a scene that seems clearly to have been inspired by what happened at My Lai. While Chris’s character arc is determined during this scene, it’s almost a purgative cultural moment encapsulated on-screen. To wit, while some who get thrown into the maelstrom of war [or any dire circumstance, really] embrace the more base elements of humanity, some follow the better angels of our nature, instead. This one scene allowed an entire country to approach what had theretofore only been an embarrassing, tragic event with at least the thought that not all of those who fought were “baby killers.” It didn’t kill the ghost of what Lt. William Calley did at My Lai, but it also didn’t let it define any longer the service of a generation of soldiers.
There’s a lot to like about the film, inherently depressing subject matter notwithstanding. [Maybe I should say there’s a lot to appreciate rather than to like, but I digress.] For me, it’s just a naturally authentic film about the war… and not just for me – in the commentary for the film, Capt. Dale Dye [who served in multiple combat operations in Vietnam] talks about how the scene following the major battle in the film’s final act was one in which he was back in Vietnam and not on a film set, as it were. Stone, also a veteran, must have seen that in Dye’s expression during that scene, because he focuses on Dye in that moment. It’s simply a compelling scene, and far from the only one to be found in the film.
[If you want to see the scene I alluded to above, it's in the YouTube clip I've embedded below. Skip ahead to 0:31; it lasts until 0:43.]
Much as other films tried to show grim realities of combat in Vietnam, they almost invariably miss the mark and end up feeling like a movie. That could be due to the actors being prepped in a fairly Stanislavski-ish way, from the two-week “boot camp” Capt. Dye put the actors through [and during which he held a gun to the back of Johnny Depp’s head after he’d fallen asleep at his “post,” saying, “You’re dead, Johnny.”] to the scene where the troops were getting stoned… and were actually high. It never feels like the film is trying too hard, however, and the result is a film that was nominated for and deservedly won the Oscar for Best Picture. It’s an authentic, compelling, emotionally draining film. If you haven’t seen it, please do so; it’s a bucket list kind of movie. Enjoy!
Other films recommended:
[Day 1 - KINGDOM OF HEAVEN (Director's Cut); Day 2 - GLADIATOR; Day 3 - TROY; Day 4 - SPARTACUS; Day 5 - BRAVEHEART; Day 6 - MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD; Day 7 - GLORY; Day 8 - GODS AND GENERALS; Day 9 - GONE WITH THE WIND; Day 10 - CAPITAINE CONAN; Day 11 - ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT; Day 12 - GALLIPOLI; Day 13 - PATHS OF GLORY; Day 14 - SERGEANT YORK; Day 15 - DAS BOOT; Day 16 - SAVING PRIVATE RYAN; Day 17 - PATTON; Day 18 - CROSS OF IRON; Day 19 - SCHINDLER'S LIST; Day 20 - FURY; Day 21 - MASH; Day 22 - TAE GUK GI: THE BROTHERHOOD OF WAR]
Rather than saying some might “try to forget” above, it may have been more apropos to say some want to forget the Vietnam War. The term “Vietnam Syndrome” likely wouldn’t exist if that weren’t the case. For whatever reason, this film came along at a time – perhaps precisely the right time – that the country was willing once again to wrestle with the experience of the Vietnam War. Granted, the cultural ground had been made a little more fertile with the release of a series of films that dealt with the issue of POWs from the war – UNCOMMON VALOR [1983], MISSING IN ACTION [1984], and RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II [1985] – all perhaps conditioning the casual movie-goer to think about the war. Hot on the proverbial heels of these fictitious takes on the war, PLATOON framed itself squarely within the confines of as much realism as a film could muster. Only moments into the film, Chris Taylor [played by Charlie Sheen, but also serving as a proxy for Oliver Stone, a Vietnam War veteran who wrote and directed the film] steps off the C-119 and immediately sees body bags being carted by. It’s not exactly a subtle introduction to the brutal calculus of war, nor a subtle analogy to how replacements were used. In this sense, then, Sheen’s character isn’t simply a proxy for Oliver Stone, but a vehicle by which the audience experiences the war, from being a raw recruit who doesn’t know what to carry on patrol to the seasoned veteran at the end of the film. To me, this is one reason why the film endures so well – it isn’t merely some Jingoistic, sensational film that attempts to expiate whatever zeitgeist might have lingered from the war, it’s a film that requires the viewer to confront the realities of the war, particularly for those who fought it.
Clever as the dualistic role Chris plays may be – first-person surrogate for the audience as well as narrator of the film – the film really excels through the characters who serve as the angel and devil on his shoulders, Sgt. Elias [played (and very well) by Willem Dafoe] and SSgt. Barnes [played by Tom Berenger], respectively. Just as the members of the platoon are drawn to one or the other of the two sergeants, so, too, is Chris… until a scene that seems clearly to have been inspired by what happened at My Lai. While Chris’s character arc is determined during this scene, it’s almost a purgative cultural moment encapsulated on-screen. To wit, while some who get thrown into the maelstrom of war [or any dire circumstance, really] embrace the more base elements of humanity, some follow the better angels of our nature, instead. This one scene allowed an entire country to approach what had theretofore only been an embarrassing, tragic event with at least the thought that not all of those who fought were “baby killers.” It didn’t kill the ghost of what Lt. William Calley did at My Lai, but it also didn’t let it define any longer the service of a generation of soldiers.
There’s a lot to like about the film, inherently depressing subject matter notwithstanding. [Maybe I should say there’s a lot to appreciate rather than to like, but I digress.] For me, it’s just a naturally authentic film about the war… and not just for me – in the commentary for the film, Capt. Dale Dye [who served in multiple combat operations in Vietnam] talks about how the scene following the major battle in the film’s final act was one in which he was back in Vietnam and not on a film set, as it were. Stone, also a veteran, must have seen that in Dye’s expression during that scene, because he focuses on Dye in that moment. It’s simply a compelling scene, and far from the only one to be found in the film.
[If you want to see the scene I alluded to above, it's in the YouTube clip I've embedded below. Skip ahead to 0:31; it lasts until 0:43.]
Much as other films tried to show grim realities of combat in Vietnam, they almost invariably miss the mark and end up feeling like a movie. That could be due to the actors being prepped in a fairly Stanislavski-ish way, from the two-week “boot camp” Capt. Dye put the actors through [and during which he held a gun to the back of Johnny Depp’s head after he’d fallen asleep at his “post,” saying, “You’re dead, Johnny.”] to the scene where the troops were getting stoned… and were actually high. It never feels like the film is trying too hard, however, and the result is a film that was nominated for and deservedly won the Oscar for Best Picture. It’s an authentic, compelling, emotionally draining film. If you haven’t seen it, please do so; it’s a bucket list kind of movie. Enjoy!
Other films recommended:
[Day 1 - KINGDOM OF HEAVEN (Director's Cut); Day 2 - GLADIATOR; Day 3 - TROY; Day 4 - SPARTACUS; Day 5 - BRAVEHEART; Day 6 - MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD; Day 7 - GLORY; Day 8 - GODS AND GENERALS; Day 9 - GONE WITH THE WIND; Day 10 - CAPITAINE CONAN; Day 11 - ALL QUIET ON THE WESTERN FRONT; Day 12 - GALLIPOLI; Day 13 - PATHS OF GLORY; Day 14 - SERGEANT YORK; Day 15 - DAS BOOT; Day 16 - SAVING PRIVATE RYAN; Day 17 - PATTON; Day 18 - CROSS OF IRON; Day 19 - SCHINDLER'S LIST; Day 20 - FURY; Day 21 - MASH; Day 22 - TAE GUK GI: THE BROTHERHOOD OF WAR]
