Perhaps the best movie of all time

Rating: 10/10 (7 May 2002)

I am not even a Coppola fan. I believe that most of the films he did (including 'Godfather') are laughable. But 'Apocalypse Now' is a work of art, an untouchable piece of film making, that will never lose any of its values.
The story is about two men who discover their weaknesses as well as their strengths in the hellish background of war. Coppola treats his audience with total respect. He doesn't attempt to moralize or even take sides. He leaves the decision to us.
But what is so magnificent about the script is the way it plays with the war element. 'Apocalypse Now' starts as a typical war movie, but then it becomes a film noir type of thriller. Suddenly the war element returns and then you have no idea where this will lead. You are left at the hands of the director, who ultimately takes the audience, exactly were he wanted to take them.
The production is huge. Totally breath taking. At a time were everything is computer generated, the Redux version is here to destroy everything that was released in the last 20 years. Can you handle the power of the explosions? The flares the burst in front of you? The whole reality element is printed on film and is there to prove that nothing can replace authenticity.
Coppola's direction is phenomenal. Dark, slow, captivating and Gothic. This is an absolute work of art, the explosion of Coppola's talent in one film. He could retire right after that movie.
Sheen is great and Brando is simply the best actor of all time. Notice in 'Superman, the Movie' how he says '...this fortress of solitude'. Everyone else would be ridiculed saying something like that, but not Brando.
The Redux version is not another re-release with some unnecessary extra scenes. When you watch the original version, you get the feeling that a lot of aggressive editing took place. The new version is simply amazing, 3 hours of excellence, nothing is redundant, the editing is beautiful, the sound track is perfect.
'Apocalypse Now - Redux' is perhaps the best movie of all time and I haven't said that for any other movie yet.

10/10