Cinematic Art

Rating: 9/10 (5 October 2005)

Apocalypse Now is a movie bordering on a masterpiece, created using a canvas even the most legendary painter would be envious of. The striking elements of the film are the exceptional usage of colour, the clever manipulation of lighting and the start contrast of each and every frame. Marvel at the picture postcard presentation of the jungles of Vietnam, before suddenly all hell breaks lose and it becomes a torrent of machine gun fire and blood. Apocalypse Now aims for the gut and skewers the viewer, assaulting the senses with a masterful display of cinematography, lighting and direction. Unlike so many "Hollywood" productions of today, "Now" is a labour of love, each frame expertly crafted by a man at the very pinnacle of his film-making career. Very few films would be right at home next to a Monet or a Van Gogh, yet this is one of the few exceptions, displaying some of the most beautiful photography ever seen on the silver screen.
While the look may impress, "Now" is rendered complete by its phenomenally powerful story, based on Joseph Conrad's novel "Heart of Darkness". The full horror of war is explored to the depths, with the absurdities of war emphasised by the central plot of eliminating the enemy, not the Vietcong rebels, but an American Colonel with delusions of grandeur. The movie takes many unexpected twists and turns, always flirting with the bizarre and surreal, and always coming off as a fresh and invigorating slice of life behind enemy lines. Martin Sheen is superb as Captain Willard, a man who knows no other world, who lives and breathes war. Brando is suitably chilling as Kurtz, the object of his mission, and Dennis Hopper, as a hippy photojournalist, gives a typically neurotic turn, converted by Kurtz's seemingly infinite words of wisdom. And who could forget Robert Duvall, as the gung-ho Lieutenant Kilgore, lover of Wagner and napalm.
"Now" is a remarkable film, a breath of fresh air amidst PC modern day film-making. Even 26 years on, its impact is spellbinding and its message is timely. Coppola, as a filmmaker, should be applauded for having the courage to make a movie about the truth and not a fabricated Hollywood tale where the true horrors and inhumanities of war are neatly swept under the carpet. I doubt we'll see another war movie of its calibre for a very long time to come.