Stunning

Rating: 9/10 (26 October 2005)

Last year at school, everyone was talking about this movie and everyone was saying how good it was so I had to see it. My friend burnt me it and I hated it, I thought it was boring. I was some what disenchanted after watching it expecting a really action packed movie. The first hour didn't disappoint but after that it was boring. I was only 15 then and I never really got over what a let down it was.
So, for English I picked this film as a related text. This time I knew what to expect and this time I was really impressed and touched by the film. I think it had something with me being an age older. This time I actually listened to what they said and it made the story much more fascinating and bearable to watch, in fact it even moved quickly.
The storyline of this film is very simple. Based on on the book Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad. Captain Willard, played by Martin Sheen, who has lost all hope in humanity is given the unenviable mission of traveling up the Nang river in order to bring the wayward Kurtz (played by Marlon Brando) under control. As the film progresses the viewer is confronted with numerous scenes raging from insanity to chaos, which not only shock, but make you reflect and sometimes even disturb you. An example is when they come to an outpost, the soldiers jump in the water screaming to be taken away from their perspective of hell. Another scene, is when Lance puts war paint on. When questioned about it he says "they're everywhere", which is ludicrous when you think about it, because he is not in the jungle and could easy been picked off in the boat.
Some of the films concepts are hard to be grasped and I wont go into them here. Suffice to say, it is better left for you to find out yourself. Apocalypse Now is sometimes said to be an inaccurate film about Vietnam and that films like Platoon are more accurate. That is not true though. The film accurately shows Vietnam, as a place literally gone mad. A war without any purpose other than the evil motivations of politics and the army. It is hard for the characters and the viewer to find hope in this film, because in Vietnam, there was none for the soldiers. This film is beautiful it really shows what the human mind is capable of, and if you can understand it, you will be changed forever by this powerful and moving film.
Simply STUNNING