*** 1/2 out of ****

Rating: 8/10 (1 December 2002)

Brian De Palma's only venture into war movies is a powerful, if somewhat melodramatic story about a squad in Vietnam who kidnaps a Vietnamese villager and rapes her. Michael J. Fox sometimes is a little too much as the clean cut guy fighting against the system, but it still works. Penn delivers a stellar performance as the squad leader he's fighting against. Some beautiful cinematography, with De Palma's usually flashy camerawork. The ending feels a little weak compared to the rest of the story, but all in all this is one of the most haunting films about the Vietnam War - made all the more effective by the fact that it is a true story.