Vietnam Funny?

Rating: 9/10 (28 August 2008)

I never thought that a film on the Vietnam conflict could be funny but here it is, drink it up. Of course, now you've got more comedy war films these days (Tropic Thunder Anyone?) but I think this would be one of the first comedy based war films. Robin Williams outdoes himself here in a very innocent honest performance, hilarious and very human at the same time. His basic mindset is to brighten up the lives of some soldiers in a very grim, disturbing situation but anal politically correct superiors (the late great Bruno Kirby) hold him down. I honesty contemplate the weirdness of this. Blood and gore is outside all over the bloody place while some people are trying to sensor a morale boosting DJ!? Strange but true.
Along with being one of the first war comedies it's gotta be one of the first movies to show the Vietnamese as actual humans. They live, breathe and die while some biased movies try to vilify everyone single one of them as blood lusting monsters. It's a nice change but this movie falls behind some movies (Apocolypse Now, Platoon) and beats others (Full Metal Jacket, Hamburger Hill) just for the simple fact that this was funnier while not losing any seriousness in the process. 9/10