Something strangely captivating

Rating: Null/10 (5 August 2002)

Yes, there have been lots of Vietnamn war movies and yes many have been more deep and meaningful (the excellent Apocalypse Now and The Deer Hunter). But this film seemed to capture the time as well as the place. It is November 1965 before the drugs, fragging and general collapse of moral purpose set in. We still felt we were doing the right thing, the draft was just cranking up and sons of WWII vets were ready and willing to be blooded. The experience they found and the real horror of combat came as a shock to young men who were raised on the stories of their elders. And yes, this is very "Hollywood" (notice that no trees are actually blown up?- very PC), but one can get past that. The authenticity of the emotional feel of the film would have been improved if all of the actors playing the grunts could have been 18-19 years old. Then the shock and the tragedy would have felt more real.