Rating: 
Summary: The quintessential American movie
Review: The great film, Apocalypse Now, although certainly not the greatest American Film ever made, plays much like America herself (himself?). Coppola aid during the film's premeier "the film isn't about Vietnam, it is Vietnam!" He certainly could be talking about his native country as well as his creation perfectly captures the glorious imperfections that is the United States. Like America, Apocalyse Now is a sea of mixed images and contradictions: it is frequently pretenious and obnoxious, exploitive and reflective, overbearing and white male dominated, carthatic and broad, bold and imperialistic, beautiful and unforgiving, mad, violent, reckless, sloppy, over filled with great ideas (some fullfilled-others half baked), exhilerating and mortifying, haunting and sentimental, holy and evil, deadly and vibrant, rough and cultured, exposing and filled with denial, terrifying and harrowing, reverent and still extremely defiant, plentiful and thoroughly wasteful, independent yet slavish, liberal and somehow conservative in its world view and all these ingredients make the film ultimately fascinating and stunning. There has never been anything like it before or since. It is an experiement no film maker will ever be willing to gamble with again in the creation process. Like a true work of art, this film is unique and one of a kind. Coppola's film reaches the hallmark of many great works of art- it refuses to allow the viewer to sit on a philosophical fence. Because the film is pure cinema in its use of visual and sonic images to tell a story, Coppola forces the viewer to react firstly emotionally to the narrative (the intellectual side can be engaged later if need be). One will either hat it or love it- there will be no middle ground. This is much like the world's image of America as a country. All one has to do is look at the foreign press to realize we are viewed in such devisive terms. Based too, on the many views of this film, the world is split as to whether or not this film is a work of a mad genius or and ugly pretentious waste of time. In that respect, the only other film that comes clos to Now is in fact Kubrick's 2001. For this reviewer, Apocalypse Now ths the film 2001 tried so desperately to be. Whereas I find Kubrick's film to be distant and cold, Coppola's film is the opposite: immediate and captivating. Now is not the work of a cold visual genius, it is instead the work of a fevered madman desperately holding on to his camera in an effort to keep himself from falling into the abyss. Based upon his career since, Coppola didn't return from the jungle- much like America herself in oh so many examples. Although not a perfect film, Apocalypse Now is a great film. It is the quintessential American Movie.
Rating:
Summary: Definitely a work worthy of praise
Review: With it's brilliant ensemble acting, Coppola's highly controversial film is probably the most effective Vietnam War film ever made. In fact, many people then and now considered it his crowing achievement, and it definitely is deserving of such praise. This is truly Coppola's material here and he pieces the story together with a master's technique. The story, for those who ain't know, concerns special agent Benjamin Willard, a divorced, down-on-his-luck, burned-out Army Captain who takes on a mission in which he must venture up river in search of a military commander who has gone insane. His mission: "terminate with extreme prejudice". These unmerciful orders cause his eyebrows to raise when he reads the man's dossier and sees that he is top-of-his-class in everything and seemingly an assett to the military forces. The mystery unravels as the journey up river continues. Now I wasn't alive during the time'a the war, but there's an aura about this film that tells me without a doubt that this is what Vietnam was like. From the sun-baked afternoon in the sleazy, dingy Saigon hotel room to the sweat dripping falling from the soldier's brows. From the muddy sludge of the river to the naivety of the jive-talking Bronx ghetto kid (played by a young Larry Fishburne). And finally the slow maddening of a military captain who has been to war one too many times and feels this time... this time... he may just snap. Coppola paints the film with visually-stunning cinematography and uses darkly nightmarish sequences, both surrealistic and symbolic, to detail the confusion, violence, and fear of Vietnam. I don't see how anyone can not find this movie interesting, as in my opinion it is one of the greatest war films of all time. All the actors turn in terrific work, including Brando whose haunting performance as Colonol Kurtz gives the film's climax its chilling impact. I don't think anyone would not be disturbed when hearing Kurtz mutter "the horror, the horror..." in the final sequence.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant
Review: This was my favorite movie for years. And I still love it. The tiger scene is a bit off the spine of the narrative, and Brando's improvised lines at the end are a bit muddled. But other than that, it's an almost perfect film. Coppola should get it through his head that his three greatest films (GF I & II and this) were based on brilliant novels. When he tries to create his own material, he falters. When he goes back to brilliant source material, he may knock us out again with a brilliant movie. I hope he will.
Rating: 
Summary: Awful, unnecessarily graphic & brutal, very painful to watch
Review: How people rank this movie so high I will never know. It was extremely difficult for me to watch this film, because I was so disturbed by the graphic deaths/murders of innocent Vietnamese. No doubt that scenes such as that were very realistic, and probably US soldiers did that and worse, knowing how much disregard they have for human lives in real life (i.e. The Gulf War, WW2, Korean and Vietnam Wars). I am extremely disapproving of war in general, and there is a lot of pain left over from these unnecessary battles that are lasting, for the innocent victims. If there should be a movie at all about how horrifying war is, it should not be graphic, intensely disturbing displays of mass murder; but a thorough examination at the psychological aspect of those involved with the war: the soldiers figbting against each other, the families of those who leave for war, the emotional scars of those who have lost a loved one. This is truly an awful movie, to say the least.
Rating:
Summary: The power of myth
Review: The first time I watched this film it "really put the hook in me" Apocalypse Now is the benchmark I use for watching film. The movie made me want to read heart of darkness, the golden bough, and from ritual to romance, trying to understand mankind's decisions with power. Never under estimate the power of myth
Rating:
Summary: Sominex Now!
Review: What happens when you mix a good director with a good cast and a boring, half-baked plot? You get "Apocalypse Now." AN's plot is too bizarre to have even a modicum of credibility and having seen this film a few times, I still don't get the point of it. The only good thing I can say about this movie is that it's a perfect fit for Marlon Brando mainly because the characters are dull and one-dimensional--much like Brando himself! Moreover, AN also suffers from bad directing and editing which makes it a rather difficult movie to follow. For all its potential, AN never lives up to its hype and I fail to see why it received so much acclaim. For a war movie, AN doesn't have a lot of action so if you're a war movie buff, chances are it won't hold your interest. If anything, AN is about as interesting as watching dust settle on your VCR. Avoid it with extreme prejudice.
Rating:
Summary: A Good Cure For Insomnia
Review: What happens when you mix a good director with a good cast and a boring, half-baked plot? You get "Apocolypse Now." AN's plot is too bizarre to have even a modicum of credibility and having seen this film a couple of times, I still don't get the point of it. AN also suffers from dull and one-dimensional characters. Likewise, AN also suffers from bad directing and editing which makes it a rather difficult movie to follow. For all its potential, AN never lives up to its hype and I fail to see why it received so much acclaim. For a war movie, AN doesn't have a lot of action so if you're a war movie buff, chances are it won't hold your interest. If anything, AN is about as interesting as watching dust settle on your VCR.
Rating: 
Summary: 'The horror, the horror', of meagre DVD releases!
Review: When I first saw Apocalypse Now, I found it intruiging, shocking, and utterly though provoking. I saw the British Widescreen VHS, which is framed at 2.00:1. I read that the original 70mm master was in the original ratio of 2.35:1 - which had been released on the Collectors Edition NTSC Laserdisc in THX. I eagerly awaited the DVD, hoping for at least a 2.35:1 THX specification... but when arriving, I was utterly dissapointed by the re-accurence of the 2.00:1 ratio, no THX certification, and meagre extras. I read some more, and found that the 2.00:1 ratio was 'director approved' and the THX certification was a minor squabble, so I decided to purchase on the basis that I'd waited so long. In terms of the picture and sound, I was rather pleased. The image seemed to have a film like quality to it, containing non of the annoying hues and colours on the VHS (down to the print used and not the videotape). The image, was smooth and soft. The sound was great too (although I couldn't appreciate the Dolby Digital, as I don't use 5.1 encoding equipment). As for the 'extras', the disc contained a trailer and 'Destruction of the Kurtz compound' (an alternate ending with optional commentary). If these extras appeared on a standard release Laserdisc, people would be pleased, as it would contain a median price, such as this DVD... So why do so many complain! This isn't a 'Special Edition' DVD, and its pricing isn't high enough to warrant a much higher studio output. Quite personally I wouldn't mind paying $30 - $50 more for a Special Edition THX release if the studios would make a pristine job of it! If only Criterion could own the rights to these movies! Grrr!
Rating:
Summary: Unforgettable
Review: This movie,directed by Francis Ford Coppola, shows the horror and madness that was vietnam. Captain Willaird, played by Martin Sheen, is sent on a mission to kill Colonel Kurtz, played by Marlon Brando, a war hero who has gone insane. Full of violence, power and great acting. Especially good is Robert Duvall, head of the First Air Cavalry. He mutters a phrase that has now become a ctach-phrase of cinema. I'm sure you know it. Though the movie won two academy awards, it does make you wonder has to why the academy did not choose this for best picture of the year. The best part is when the Calvary attacks a Viet cong village near the mouth of the river that Willard has to enter to reach Kurtz. The song "This is the end" is one of the best ever made in my opioion. A cinematic masterpiece. The only problems, like with alot of films, is it's length and it slows down at parts.
Rating:
Summary: Best Movie Ever
Review: Apocalypse Now is a movie that takes you on a journey through the human mind while taking you through a journey down a river. The premise is based on the novel "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad. Martin Sheen plays a soldier sent to eliminate the rogue army Colonel Kurtz played brilliantly by Marlon Brando. The voyage is enacted on a naval partol boat on a river in Vietnam. As the crew makes it further down the river, life becomes more and more insane leading to the ultimate scene from any movie, the approach to Kurtz's compound. Francis Ford Coppola did a great job directing this movie, and the extras are great on the dvd. The movie stars Brando, Sheen, Larry Fishbourne, Harrison Ford, Robert Duvall, and Dennis Hopper. It's a movie that will change the way you think.
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