microcosm in this respect....

Rating: Null/10 (8 September 2002)

the movie, "we were soldiers", was a microcosm of U.S. involvement in Viet Nam in at least one way. we wandered into foreign territory, not knowing what to expect, with no goals except to engage the enemy. when we had sufficiently destroyed the country, we withdrew, buried our dead, and tried to rationalize the experience.
perhaps the most telling and ironic part of the movie was when mel gibson was explaining to his daughter that sometimes bad people try to impose their will on others, and good people have to stand up and protect the innocent. of course, the discussion ended there, and no thought was given as to who, in this particular war, were the good people, the bad people, and the innocent. perhaps mel gibson's character, and the daughter, wouldn't have liked the answer.