A film that starts off well but soon turns into leftist propaganda

Rating: 4/10 (11 November 2005)

The first half of the movie is actually pretty good. A young high school athlete, Ron Kovic, proud of his country and eager to do his duty in Vietnam enlists and rises to the rank of Sergeant after a couple of tours. However, on a patrol gone haywire, he accidentally shoots another Marine, and things begin to go downhill from their. He is later shot and is sent to a Veterans hospital and learns that he will now be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. His friends and family begins to treat him differently and his own friends abandon him as they fall victim to the pro-communist rhetoric that comes with the peace movement.
This film is blatantly anti-war. Despite what others may say, this was Oliver Stone's intent. This is a man who, after September 11th said "I think the revolt of September 11th was about 'F-- you! F-- your order" Stone is a Vietnam Veteran and actually did more than one tour but said in his director's commentary in the Platoon DVD that the North Vietnamese Army were people who were fighting for their country, making it seem that they were reasonable people fighting for a truly righteous war and not as what they truly were, the sprouting tentacles of communism that was trying to spread like the plague throughout Asia. Something we were able to halt in Korea but too undermined from within by the anti-war movement to stop in Vietnam. His war films depict American servicemen as aggressive baby-killers who come from the lowest depths of society. Enough about Stone, let's address the movie's sole issue, Kovic's alienation.
When Kovic comes back to the States, his friends practically ignore what he had done and ignore his personal suffering. When I say suffering, I'm not just talking about his paralysis. I'm also talking about his inner-suffering as he sees American flags being burned and even being harassed by hippies at a parade he attends in full dress uniform. Slowly, time passes and begins to believe that the government has abandoned him and wonders around until the end of the movie when he becomes an anti-war advocate, something he abhorred at the beginning of the film.
If you want to see this movie, make sure you keep the director's intent in mind. Not all experiences in Vietnam were bad for every single Veteran. Most of the Vets I have met are proud of their service and don't regret enlisting. Do not listen to the folks here at IMDb that equate this movie with Iraq. Today, the commander-in-chief treats his servicemen with the utmost respect, something lacking 8 years prior to President Bush taking office. The government does its best to accommodate Veterans. Every now and then, things get messed and some things do get hidden by pencil-pushing bureaucrats, but it's not the black helicopter, cloak and dagger type stuff you see in the movies. Unlike what "Born on the 4th of July" implies, every servicemen is a hero because he takes on the selfless task of enduring harsh extremes and the violence of war when others are too cowardly to do the same. Pacifist inaction does not keep a country free, it's the armed servicemen that stand ready to do violence on those who threaten freedom.