MMG - Rate This Movie... Apocalypse Now

[Scott Rose]

Today's movie is Apocalypse Now. Please vote in the poll and reply to this threads with your thoughts about the movie. What you loved... or hated about it. Thanks.

[Scott Rose]

All I can say is the Air Cav assault is amazing.

[shrike]

What happened to the puppy?

[CDF]

never get off the boat

[phil65]

"The horror ... the horror ..."

[The Inspector]

Liked both versions, much prefer the recut with the added content.

[K5DH]

I saw Apocalypse Now a LONG time ago, and ever since, whenever I hear "Flight of the Valkyries", visions of Hueys crossing a beachhead fill my brain! Great film.

[Chris Brame]

VERY intense experience for me - saw it on its first run when we were all given programs instead of the movie having credits. Seeing the helicopter attack on the big screen was a jaw-dropper - although the spell was broken for a moment when the jets flew in: "F-5s?? We didn't use F-5s in Vietnam!" (and they weren't camouflaged, either). Of course I realized they were limited to what the Philippine armed forces had on hand.

True story: a Filipino buddy of mine was in high school in the late seventies and one day a casting director came to the school and was looking for extras for a big American war movie to play American soldiers. He was looking in particular for boys that didn't look too Asian; my friend fit the bill (he actually looks like Jerry Seinfeld!) so he was one of those chosen. Unfortunately, his father nixed the idea; don't remember why. So that's why you don't see my friend Emmanuel among the troops in Apocalypse Now.

[Steve Nelson]

Maybe it's just one of those cases of "you had to be there," but to me the movie was a pretentious depressing mess (but then from all accounts so was the real war.) It took me several attempts to get all the way through it. Yes, the action sequences were great, but much of the movie was just a boring disjointed slog. I couldn't really manage to care about any of the characters..all were either batcrap insane, or at best unlikeable jerks. I realize it was supposed to be deep and philosophical, and packed with all sorts of symbology..more like a Greek epic than a war movie, but personally I just found it three hours or so that I'll never get back.

Ducking for cover,

Steve

[svengi]

Maybe it's just one of those cases of "you had to be there," but to me the movie was a pretentious depressing mess (but then from all accounts so was the real war.) It took me several attempts to get all the way through it. Yes, the action sequences were great, but much of the movie was just a boring disjointed slog. I couldn't really manage to care about any of the characters..all were either batcrap insane, or at best unlikeable jerks. I realize it was supposed to be deep and philosophical, and packed with all sorts of symbology..more like a Greek epic than a war movie, but personally I just found it three hours or so that I'll never get back.

Ducking for cover,

Steve

That's about word for word how I felt about it

[John Dupre]

Maybe it's just one of those cases of "you had to be there," but to me the movie was a pretentious depressing mess (but then from all accounts so was the real war.) It took me several attempts to get all the way through it. Yes, the action sequences were great, but much of the movie was just a boring disjointed slog. I couldn't really manage to care about any of the characters..all were either batcrap insane, or at best unlikeable jerks. I realize it was supposed to be deep and philosophical, and packed with all sorts of symbology..more like a Greek epic than a war movie, but personally I just found it three hours or so that I'll never get back.

Ducking for cover,

Steve

That's about word for word how I felt about it

Agree completely. The movie had its moments all of which have been mentioned but ultimately it sinks from its on pretentiousness.

[tom d. friedman]

it's a riveting movie but off the wall at times. vietnam was not 1 big smoking doobie!!!

[WallyB]

Some interesting views but I'll still give it 5.
For those who haven't done so, yo should read Conrad's http://www.online-literature.com/conrad/heart_of_darkness/ book of which the movie was a (loose) adaptation. Preferred the original version myself, Redux just seemed to add sex; a subject better covered in various other films .

Brando was as usual OTT but there are so many memorable vignettes and quotable lines that it belongs in everyone's library. IMHO.

[John Kerr]

Having worked with project 404 and spending 3 years in Bangkok and assigned to a spook unit, all I will say is that I know most of the real names of the characters played. The White Rose looked amost like the real thing. Lot of truth in the movie, but movie did take some artistic liscense. Landing on the side of a moutain in a U-10 or a Pilatus was a real rush. LOL. Long live Continental Air Service. Also the Lima sites were all over the place.

[viking73]

I think this film is an uneven masterpiece, one I watch once again every few years. I really like the long director's cut as well. Martin Sheen is just incredible in this.

And, when I first saw it in the early 80s, it turned me onto to the music of The Doors

-Derek