Apocalypse Now (1979)

Written by CinemaSerf on June 5, 2023

This is, I think, the definitive Vietnam war movie. Martin Sheen is "Capt. Willard", a war weary veteran who is sent on a top secret mission to track down and stop the rogue Colonel 'Kurtz" (Marlon Brando) who is operating independently from Cambodia. With only a small crew of rookie squaddies, he sets off along the treacherous Nung River where, along the way, they alight on "Kilgore" (Robert Duvall) and face all sorts of dangers against both man and nature as they seek their quarry. The sheer intensity of the journey, and of the challenges it throws up cause "Willard" to re-evaluate his whole perspective, and not just on the war, as the horrors of this conflict manifest before him. It's a stunningly strong depiction of war; the humanity and vulnerability of the characters - even those who are outwardly strong - and the casting is inspired. It's bloody and gory at times, but never gratuitously and the closely shorn Brando is in a class of his own as the megalomaniac "Kurtz". Though fictional in fact, it doesn't pull it's punches and leaves us all with a bitter taste in our mouth and some seriously thought-provoking questions.