Comment on #4

Rating: 10/10 (28 May 2009)

Nicky and Mike are really good friends. As they leave for Vietnam Nicky tells Mike to make a promise that no matter what, he wouldn't leave him over in Vietnam. But Nicky and Steve end up in the same platoon and Mike is left a loner. The three of them reunite only to be capture by Vietnamese soldiers and forced to play Russian Roulette. They narrowly escape and are rescued by an American helicopter, Nicky climbs aboard, but Mike and Steve end up plummeting into the river. Mike stays with Steve until he comes across a group of fleeing Vietnamese citizens, at which point he gives Steve to the medic and continues wondering in search of Nicky. Mike ends up seeing Nicky in the Russian Roulette den in Saigon, but as he tries to talk to him Nicky rides away with the Frenchman. This is where I think Mike went wrong. He leaves for home without Nick even after he promises that he wouldn't. Even though it is never said in the film I believe that Nicky knew Mike had left without him. Mike falls in love with Nicky's girlfriend but can not allow himself to be intimate with her until he either talks it over with Nick or finds out that Nick is dead. He then goes back to Saigon and finds Nicky playing Russian Roulette. After much negotiating and a heavy fee Mike sits across the table from Nicky. Both of them knowing that one of them is going to die. Sadly Nicky ends up shooting himself, at which point I think Mike is grief struck, but somewhat relieved. He returns home with Nicky and the services are held, but in the end it seems that Nick's girlfriend has somewhat of a grudge against Mike, as if it were his fault that Nick was shot. So in the end Mike went back to Saigon to keep his promise and bring Nick home, but if you ask me I don't believe his home life will ever be the same after this happening.