abdcskins Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 I have become increasingly interested in the Vietnam War(what a catastrophe, what were we thinking?). I watched The Deer Hunter the other night and loved it. I think it did a great job showing the moral/psychological effects of the war on the soliders and their families. It explored the meaning of honor and friendship. Anyways, what is your favorite Vietnam War movie, and why? If you wanna recommend a book that would be cool too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forehead Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 I think this discussion begins and ends with either Platoon or Full Metal Jacket, and I'm partial to the latter; Kubrick was a genius. Howver, Platoon did win best picture in its year, I believe. Good argument for either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forehead Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Oh, I should also say, R. Lee Ermey, the drill instructor in the first half of FMJ, took the movie from really good to beyond awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G.A.C.O.L.B. Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 I've always loved Apocalypse Now. Just a hardcore movie. I'd take it over Deer Hunter. And I'd take Full Metal Jacket over Platoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zguy28 Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Boy, that's tough. I liked Platoon. Many of my Dad's friends from Nam said it was pretty close to real. Apocalypse now was good as well. Who can forget the 1st Air Cavalry coming in to the sound of Wagner's "Ride of the Valkyries"? Or the quote "I love the smell of napalm in the morning." Also, in the same vein as Platoon, I'd say Casualties of War with Michael J Fox and Sean Penn was pretty outstanding. So sad though. But the favorite? IMHO, the Green Berets w/ John Wayne. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldskool Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 The first half of Full Metal Jacket is the best 'Nam War movie. The rest of the movie I could do without. The best, most complete 'Nam movie is Apocalypse Now Redeux without a question and by a landslide over the full FMJ and Platoon, et. al. by a great distance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zguy28 Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 The first half of Full Metal Jacket is the best 'Nam War movie. The rest of the movie I could do without.The best, most complete 'Nam movie is Apocalypse Now Redeux without a question and by a landslide over the full FMJ and Platoon, Thin Red Line, etc by a great distance. Thin Red Line was about WWII in the Pacific. :2cents: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldskool Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Thin Red Line was about WWII in the Pacific. :2cents: My bad, your right. Forgot about that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SUSkinsFan Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 I loved Apocalypse Now. Sheen was great and Brando was equally as great. Need to see all of FMJ, but the half I saw was really good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRAVEONAWARPATH Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Apocalypse Now Redux hands down. Hamburger Hill wasn't bad either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abdcskins Posted March 5, 2008 Author Share Posted March 5, 2008 Yeah, the general public consensus seems to be Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket, or Platoon, for good reason. I love all those films. I'd probably take Apocalypse Now because of the cinematography, story, and overall symbolism. I love how the whole trip is sort of a continued journey into the darkness of the human soul. It vividly depicts the insanity of the war and the destruction of morals. Coppola clearly shows the death and destruction that result directly from U.S. involvement, like killing innocent civilians. American hypocrisy and imperialsim at its worst. I've heard Platoon is the most realistic. There are a lot of other movies though that I haven't seen that I heard are good(Coming Home, Hamburger Hill, Born on the Fourth of July). I'll check out The Green Berets, Zguy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redskinss Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 i agree with the others about full metal jacket and platoon, but i would like to add the movie we were soldiers. that was a pretty good one too. i remember when i was a kid one of my favorite tv shows was tour of duty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midnight Judges Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Gotta go with Platoon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bang Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Platoon is excellent, Apocolypse now is as well, but it's less about the war,, the war is more the backdrop for the story. The Killing Fields is about Cambodia, and is excellent. Go Tell the Spartans is a good movie about the early part of the war the Green Berets is a classic, but in viewing it now it is obviously a very transparent propaganda film meant to portray our involvement as positively as possible. ~Bang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SUSkinsFan Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 If you want a good Vietnam book, read "The Things They Carried", I had to read it in HS and college and really enjoyed it each time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRAVEONAWARPATH Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Platoon is excellent, Apocolypse now is as well, but it's less about the war,, the war is more the backdrop for the story.The Killing Fields is about Cambodia, and is excellent. I'd completely forgotten about The Killing Fields. Good one Bang. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
illone Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Missing in Action. :paranoid: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyansRangers Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 well it really depends on what your looking for. Having served in the military and my father serving 2 tours in vietnam I can tell you that full metal jacket, platoon and we were soldiers are not an accurate depiction. Your best bet is to watch the military channels documentary on the war. However if your looking for sheer entertainment - Hamburger Hill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GibbsFactor Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Apocalypse Now was the best movie about Vietnam, but it really wasn't a Vietnam movie. Platoon wins this argument for me, with Hamburger Hill, the Deer Hunter close seconds. FMJ is best during boot camp so that's why that isn't recommended for straight Vietnam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zguy28 Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 the Green Berets is a classic, but in viewing it now it is obviously a very transparent propaganda film meant to portray our involvement as positively as possible. ~Bang I think though that during the time it depicts our involvement was a positive thing. When we only had advisors "in country." :2cents:You should read the book by Robin Moore. Its thousand times better than the movie. Another good one is "We Were Soldiers" with Mel Gibson and also Bat21 with Gene Hackman. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chief skin Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 PLATOON was very good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyansRangers Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Platoon is excellent, Apocolypse now is as well, but it's less about the war,, the war is more the backdrop for the story.The Killing Fields is about Cambodia, and is excellent. Go Tell the Spartans is a good movie about the early part of the war the Green Berets is a classic, but in viewing it now it is obviously a very transparent propaganda film meant to portray our involvement as positively as possible. ~Bang The sad thing is if the President and Congress had let the generals fight that war it would have been over in 3 years and we would have walked out victorious and half the baggage veterans have wouldnt be so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Ted Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 Born on the Fourth of July is a very good movie i suggest watching it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rincewind Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 "How can you shoot women and children?" "Easy. You don't lead them as much." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DjTj Posted March 5, 2008 Share Posted March 5, 2008 The sad thing is if the President and Congress had let the generals fight that war it would have been over in 3 years and we would have walked out victorious and half the baggage veterans have wouldnt be soI am less inclined to believe this now that we have seen what is going on in Iraq.I think we could've defeated the North Vietnamese army relatively quickly if we moved quickly with a large force. ...I think we would have spent the next decade trying to protect the Republic of Vietnam from the insurgent attacks of the Viet Cong. China would have supported them. Who knows what would have happened in Cambodia and Laos. It would have been a lot fewer lives lost, but I think the baggage would still be the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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