Comments from a Vietnam veteran

Rating: 4/10 (15 December 2005)

I am a Vietnam combat veteran who served with the 25th Infantry Division in 1970. I have just made a quick look thru the comments on here about this movie. Most are by folks who have not the slightest idea about what the Vietnam War was like, but are quick to call this one of the "best". Cimino 's choice of backdrop for the characters in the movie was very well done...However, he miserably fails in many aspects of the military service of the three characters. From Michael's full beard, to the inaccuracies of his uniform, to the amount of time lapse in the movie, it is all bothersome to me, not to mention the "russian roulette" sequences with Nick near the end...there doesn't seem to be evidence that this ever happened in real life. All the above having been said, I believe Meryl Streep gives a wonderful performance as someone who was left behind during the war and suffered from the effects. If one can overlook many of the flaws in this movie, there is a good story here. However, as being an accurate depiction of the Vietnam War it fails.