This movie knows what it is

Rating: 7/10 (25 February 2016)

Let me begin with the fact that I believe that this is a good movie. The soundtrack is fitting, the cinematography is generally well done, and the script, for the most part, is believable and well thought out. There are, however, some issues that take me out of my immersion in the movie. For example, the speech given by Tuan at the end of the movie was cheesy and forced. This is where I see that the movie understands what it is. The movie points out the needless presence of the military in Vietnam and that's the point of the move. Between the constant censorship and the multiple references to the distrust between the Americans and Vietnamese, the movie plainly shows the message that the Vietnam war was pointless and hurt relations with Vietnam. This does set up one great scene that I feel was the best in the movie. The montage of Tuan's friends getting captured and shot while Louis Armstrong's "What a Wonder World" was a beautifully shot scene that perfectly summed up what the director wanted to show.