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In Reply to: Apocalypse Now! posted by Bruce from DC on December 30, 2002 at 17:04:42:
Hi Bruce,
As the other poster pointed out, what you saw reflected the basic insanity of the conflict. I remember an Atlantic article about books and movies that covered Vietnam. The author, a veteran, was dismissive of the movie, as most people are. Nonetheless, for the remainder of the article, he compared almost everything to it. It was his reference, warts and all. And warts and all, I doubt you will get
a better Nam film. The ambush of the riverboat where everything goes silent; I had experienced that in a crisis situation; but I had never seen it portrayed before. It raised the hair on the back of my neck.
You are looking at this through an analytical prism, a bookish sort of approach. This attempts to throw a very particular sort of insanity in your face. It succeeds pretty damn well. Monstrous, but no monsters.
Follow Ups:
;-)Guilty as charged. I have the same expectation for cinema as I have for fiction or drama; if it's really good it has to survive being removed from the context of its own time. And I don't think AN! is going to do that, for the reasons I said.
It may be the "best 'nam film;" it may evoke Rufus' memories of his actual experiences there. But, when the time comes -- and it will -- when "'Nam" means nothing to anyone walking around, neither will "AN!"
Hi,
The Blues brothers movie, the first Muppet movie, and AN all came out at about the same time. I adored the BB, I loved the MM enough to buy the soundtrack LP,and Apocalypse Now was literally stunning. I wonder if you had seen it when it was fresh, if it wouldn't have made more of an impression. Seeing it in a theater,larger than life, also makes a big difference in a movie that is trying to convey an experience. While i have seen many attempts to analyse this film; I take most with a grain of salt. This is a big film, as the years have gone by, my sense of what the film is about has deepened. Btw, the Heart of Darkness bit has gotten way too much ink. You could aslo see the dinner as a Mad Tea Party, but the clever bit is that the viewer gets to be Alice.
But I digress. It's a family trait,I'm afraid. I doubt any of those films will be watched by future generations. Doesn't matter a bit to me. Life is topical. While there are great movies, and great lit-rah-chah, this boy just wants to have fun. So I have BB on dvd, I must have seen that film a hundred times. I still like to watch the first MM from time to time (the later ones are nowhere near as good), and I still approach AN with a caution borne from it's ability to awaken terrible ghosts.
I did see AN! in a theater when it came out. I thought it was a jumble at the time, even though it was much closer to my political views then than it is now.Yeah, BB and TMM are fun; but they're definitely generation specific. My kids give me strange looks when they watch BB as in "What's so funny about this, Dad?" (I give them the same looks when they're rolling on the floor at the latest Adam Sandler movie, e.g. "Mr. Deeds.") They watched TMM as little kids; of course they liked it then. We probably have it stashed around the house on VHS video.
Hi,
TMM has a bucket full of great lines. "I could have been gone with the Scwinn" "Yeah, but she's my myth" "I am the owner" The song "I'm going to go back there some day" is one of my favorites. Call me Gonzo, but when the Mothership gets built, I am outta here :) -or-
'Hope that somethig better comes along'(never seen a frog that green get the blues that bad).
Shit, Dennis, you made me go back and find the thing to watch it!Shame on you!
Destruction of the original tape and all copies? Is there one film on Earth that has not survived an army of critics?
the story of a lost Russian tank in Afghanistan? See it? Portrayed the Mujahaedin as simple-minded fanatics hellbent on revenge. The Russian crew a group of misfits worthy of any Viet Nam movie.
Yes, I saw it. Not a great film.
Point: do you think the Russian crew portrayl was "over propagandized" to suit our (USA) viewpoint? Murderous, discordant, maniacal, unwilling. Was it a cheapshot saying they hated being there as much as we did in VN?
Rufus, I presume you are asking whether or not that story would resonate with someone who served there - I have no problem with that. That, however, doesn't make the film better or worse. I could take any number of important stories and make lousy films based on them - as for instance Spielberg did with his Schindler's List, among the others. I perfectly understand that a Holocaust survivor would see that film differently from a Nebraska teenager.Regardless of their stories, the List, the Beast and the AN are all weak films, as far as films go.
No, it was a straight forward question. Based on your home-ties, and feeling for the history of your country--do you think it was a stab at painting an unecessarily negative picture of Russian attitudes during that campaign?No resonating here, not discussing merits, just what's your take.
Rufus, Russia is of course my *former* country, and my ties are not too strong anymore. But no, I don't think the brutality was unnecessary. I know full well how things often go in wars - there are enough accounts to that effect everywhere - so that in itself didn't strike me as gratuitous. Too bad the film was a weak one, and characters cartoonish, that got in the way of course. But there is absolutely no question the Russian army has commited its fair share of atrocities. And still is in the Chechnya war.
Hi Vic,
it is the fate of most film to be ignored. Just in Westerns there are hundreds, perhaps thousands, of films; most of them just sitting on a shelf somewhere, slowly rotting. Every once in a while, a film survives despite it's flaws. "It's a Wonderful Life' is a good example. Critics panned it, it wasn't popular either. But it definitely survived.
There used to be a website that sold movies, that was pure text. You could ask for all movies beginning with a letter,say F. I was surprised at how long the list was; and how most of the movies were bad. So I guess what not surviving means is no one watches.
...through your TV guide will reveal how wrong you are. There are thousands of trashy movies still around, being watched all the time.All this has nothing to do with the armies of critics, just with the armies of willing watchers.
Ever stood in line at the video store counter, watching what people rent?
Hi Victor,
hey, I'm one of those guys in line. I keep trying to find an enjoyable movie, and it seems 9 times out 10, I come home with dreck.
But that doesn't change a thing. There are,literally thousands,of movies, that go unwatched and just rot. Now that you're a rich guy, you could fund a grant for some young film grad to rampage through some of those old flicks looking for lost gems. Btw,Faroudja makes a box for plasma tv's. You should check into it.
***hey, I'm one of those guys in line. I keep trying to find an enjoyable movie, and it seems 9 times out 10, I come home with dreck.
Then YOU are not doing your homework. With good store and homework well done your success rate should be close to 70%.
***But that doesn't change a thing. There are,literally thousands,of movies, that go unwatched and just rot. Now that you're a rich guy, you could fund a grant for some young film grad to rampage through some of those old flicks looking for lost gems.Hardly any need for that. There are thousands of great movies waiting for all of us to see them, no need to dig deep until the top layer is done with. I am not even in the top 12" yet.
***Btw,Faroudja makes a box for plasma tv's. You should check into it.I don't think that is for me. I can watch the Fox News as it is now. I am not a video freak. Few minutes a week or good images is enough for me. My biggest issue is that many good films come in the 4:3 format, and there is nothing Faroudja or anyone else can do to remove THAT problem. There is nothing like watching the Wages of Fear on a 100" 4:3 projector in B&W...
Hi,
there is only one halfway decent video place in Maine. It's downtown, and the last time I rented a movie, I also got a parking ticket. Damn movie cost me nearly $50. The parking control goes around on these little 3 wheelers; and they are just too damn good.When the weather gets better I might go downtown on my bike. Easy parking,I just have to dodge those hideous metal boxes and stay alive long enough to get to the store. If I make a list,even they won't have any of the movies (or they will have one, and it's already rented). So for me, it's typically an impulse thing. Hey, Honey, let's rent a movie.
The fantastic store here - and Wilmington is NOT your NYC, you know - is not something you would find easily. It is out of the way and smallish, known only to those who care. There are some small chains around the country that do good job, but finding them can be hard.
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