Film Studies Review Assignment

Rating: 7/10 (1 December 2014)

#3 The deal with the French character who introduces Nicky to the Russian Roulette den in Saigon is the directors way of showing Frances role in the Vietnam War. The story is based on the three Russian American friends who are steelworkers and go to Vietnam to fight on the behalf of the Americans in 1955. The movie then fast forwards to the three friends finding themselves in a POW camp and are being bet on to play Russian Roulette. When they are free from Vietnam they all don't keep in touch. It shows Nick walking on a street when a French guy comes up. He shows Nick the game of Russian Roulette which is hard for Nick to watch because he played Russian Roulette in the POW camp. The French character continues to talk to Nick about the game and the money that he could possibly win. At this point in the movie Nick is emotionally unstable because of the events that had happened in Vietnam. Mike had forced Nick to play the Russian Roulette game in Vietnam because if not they would have been tortured and killed so it was their only chance of survival. But here in Saigon they were playing for money. Later in the movie Mike goes back to find Nick and talks to the French guy. The French guy then says he doesn't know where Nick is and gives Mike his money back. This is showing how the French don't want to be part of the Vietnam War even though at the beginning of the war they were all for it an encouraging us. This is exactly how the French guy acts. The French guy ultimately ends up cooperating and shows Mike where Nick is, who is playing the Russian Roulette game. France's role in the Vietnam War was portrayed identically in the movie by the French character and his association with the Russian Roulette game.