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Just the movie you want to see when you're feeling depressed, right (not)?
Anyhow, I thought it might be interesting to discuss this film if you've seen it. Masterpiece or crap? A megalomaniacal director's pompous attempt after the enormous success of two Godfather movies to conquer the jungle? Or a visionary director's attempt to understand the human psyche and soul, that happens to be played out over the particular, peculiar madness of the Vietnam war?
I happen to think the film is a masterpiece, but it's not for the faint of heart if you're already feeling forlorn. It's got a good fair-share of death and destruction. On the surface, it's a journey up river toward Cambodia in a mission to assassinate a Green Beret Colonel who has presumably gone insane. At its deepest level, it's really a journey into the abyss of self.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snDR7XsSkB4
Anyhow, I thought it might be interesting to discuss this film if you've seen it. Masterpiece or crap? A megalomaniacal director's pompous attempt after the enormous success of two Godfather movies to conquer the jungle? Or a visionary director's attempt to understand the human psyche and soul, that happens to be played out over the particular, peculiar madness of the Vietnam war?
I happen to think the film is a masterpiece, but it's not for the faint of heart if you're already feeling forlorn. It's got a good fair-share of death and destruction. On the surface, it's a journey up river toward Cambodia in a mission to assassinate a Green Beret Colonel who has presumably gone insane. At its deepest level, it's really a journey into the abyss of self.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snDR7XsSkB4
I have watched the film numerous times and wrote several papers about it in college. It is a cinematographic masterpiece. The central theme is the dichotomy between reconciling being a good and nurturing family man figure with the savagery and malevolence of killing others during war. It goes one step further into the darkness of engaging in psychological warfare, i.e., mutilation of the enemy, much like what the real Vlad Dracula engaged in to deter the Turks, or what took place during WWII in the Pacific.
Still, how does one reconcile such things in their minds and go back to normal life when the war is over? How far is too far? Can a warrior assimilate back into regular society? Can they move on are are they doomed to be haunted by the moral horrors of their actions?
Willard was going down a similar path as Kurtz. I have never seen the version of the film where the air strike is called in at the end to level Kurtz's compound. I prefer the predominant version. Willard went to the edge of darkness and backed away. Perhaps he went back to the French compound shown in the Redux, and was able to live a normal life? Maybe he was promoted to Major but cycled out of the army? His life went on.
He and Lance left, and Lance's storyline is the most interesting. It is the one with the most innocence lost. Actually, Clean and Chef were well on their ways too. Willard didn't lose any innocence during the film.
Anyway, I never considered the movie depressing - more thought provoking than anything else.
Marlon Brando was the perfect pick because he was notorious for never knowing his lines thus he pausing and ad-libing of lines actually becomes what would be more realistic emotional reactions from his characters.
Yes, that's right, the film is screenwriter John Milius' and director Francis Coppola's adaptation of Joseph Conrad's book Heart of Darkness. In Milius' original script, Willard doesn't kill Kurtz, and they become embroiled in an all-out battle against the Viet Cong, win the battle, and then when the American Bell Huey comes down to rescue them, they say "This land is ours. We fought for it." and shoot down their own helicopter, presumably to live out the rest of their days in the jungle!
It's also interesting to note that, according to Francis' wife Elanor's documentary Hearts of Darkness on the making of Apocalypse Now, Francis Coppola WANTED Brando to ad-lib his lines, because Francis didn't like Milius' ending for the movie and Francis couldn't come up with what he felt was a satisfying ending himself, so he hoped in Brando's ad-libbing, he might gleam some magical inspiration. Brando actually came up with a lot of great dialogue of course, some of which was used in the film, some of which we see in an outtake in Hearts of Darkness which I found really interesting: "Napalm and phosphorous are not to be feared. But to look inward, into the twisted mind that occupies all humans, and say 'yes, I embrace you, I even love you, because you are part of me, you are an extension of me...that is true courage."
"Still, how does one reconcile such things in their minds and go back to normal life when the war is over?"
I don't think one can. Mostly the guys did a lot of drugs to keep the monster in them at bay.
"Can they move on are are they doomed to be haunted by the moral horrors of their actions?"
Only if they find a new cause that is more powerful than the beast within. I like how Stallone's Rambo was working in a Chinese monastery in Rambo III.
"I have never seen the version of the film where the air strike is called in at the end to level Kurtz's compound."
Actually, if you listen to Coppola's commentary on the Apocalypse Now blu-ray, he merely intended that footage to be an aesthetic visual backdrop for the end titles. He never meant that footage to imply that the air strike was called in and levelled Kurtz's compound. When he got word that that was the public opinion, he cut out the destruction backgrounds from all subsequent releases.
"Willard went to the edge of darkness and backed away. Perhaps he went back to the French compound shown in the Redux, and was able to live a normal life? Maybe he was promoted to Major but cycled out of the army? His life went on."
Yeah, who knows? That's what's great about the ending. It's ambiguous. He just keeps going upriver with Lance, presumably into Cambodia? As he said "They were gonna make me a Major for this...and I wasn't even in their fuckin' Army anymore." so obviously he didn't care about being promoted Major.
Lance was so spaced out on acid he didn't know what the fuck was going on. Maybe when he came down from his acid trip, he'd assimilate into Vietnamese society and help out somewhere? It's never explained, but is fun to theorize about. Thanks!
I like that. Maybe Willard, despite the fact that he fulfilled his mission and killed Kurtz, realized the temptation of power, to become the new god to the montanyard villagers, and there was still a shred of nobility and decency in Willard? I thought it was a really cool ending when Willard, after killing Kurtz, drops his machete and is then at the mercy of the villagers that he walks down into, who we think are going to cut Willard to ribbons with their own machetes for sure...and then they all drop their weapons, allowing Willard to take spaced-out Lance by the hand and safely walk out of the compound. That was so cool! It shows that there can be peace in war.
All through seeing Willard abducted by the villagers, he just had this big shit-eatin' grin on his face! He seemed to interact with the Kurtz compound villagers, especially the children, very well.
Maybe he was so spaced out on acid that he didn't know what was going on. Either way, I have no doubt that Lance would've assimilated into Vietnam society perfectly and helped out, because he had peace and love in his heart.