Classic ! Testimony to the Insanity of War ! Not the Redux version !

Rating: 10/10 (25 May 2008)

For everyone who knows of War, but has never felt or tasted its affects, then this film is REQUIRED viewing !
From the Heart of Darkness comes "Apocalypse Now!" A truly visionary film , about the realities, and insanities that take place , inside the Red Zone of war.
The time is mid to late 1960's and the War in Vietnam is near its height of escalation, Capt. Willard is assigned to go to Cambodia, and assassinate Gen/Col. Walt Kurtz(Marlon Brando), a combat veteran who has become an embarrassment to the U.S., because he has gone insane, and is conducting his OWN war.
When Joseph Conrad wrote his book, it was originally to take place in the Congo of Africa, under different circumstances. Coppala reassigns the action to Southeast Asia, under dubious circumstances, and uses the Vietnam War as the backdrop for this insane asylum.
Capt. Benjamin Willard(Martin Sheen) is brilliant as the subdued young soldier, struggling with his own demons, as he tries to justify his mission of assassination.
Each sequence has its own reality, and the deeper they go up the river, the farther they remove themselves from civilized thinking , and the gray area between right and wrong, and moral justification, wow !
Truly amazing, each character has their own way of dealing with the daily horrors they face, and the viewer is drawn in with them, what a film ! From Col. Kilgore to Col. Kurtz, they all show the affects of the horrors of war, whether they recognize it , or not !
Beautifully framed and photographed, Coppala connects on a deep and personal level, about the value of life, and man's mortality.
This is one of the most visceral and moving films, not for the squeamish. I do not recommend the Redux version, it is not the same film. It does not remove you from civilized society like the original release, this is one time a director should not have final cut.
Dark and moody, you get a real feel for the soldiers and their families , that fought in Vietnam. The feeling of isolation and hopelessness, and abandonment !
Dennis Hopper is the reporter who embraces the view of Kurtz, and is terrific. Required viewing , for everyone on how not to fight a war, our enemies ARE watching.
Watch the Original release before viewing the bastardized version Redux, you won't be disappointed.I gave the original a 10, !
No faults, it does have 4 endings, but I have as yet to know of their release.