Rating: 
Summary: A Powerful And Moving Film.
Review: Oliver Stone is not very popular for films about women (his latest, the football epic "Any Given Sunday" proves that once more) but he is a genius of cinema and with this fantastic work he proves that yes, not only can he make a film with a female lead, but see war through that female lead's eyes as well. "Heaven And Earth" is a powerful and moving motion picture experience enhanced by fabulous cinematography, music and incredibly effective performances and drama. This is Stone's first solo script since "Platoon," which I consider the best of the Vietnam war films, and again presents his unique talent for film structure. He takes us through the life of a Vietnamese woman who went through the horrors of war, literally, went into dispair, found love and lost it, found it again and lost it once more, and in the end stood triumphant above her struggles. As is the case with most his films, "Heaven And Earth" is based on a true story, and Stone brings it incredibly to life on the screen. The images stay in your mind as do the characters. The story is moving and effective and immensly powerful. Stone handles this film with care and shows his true artistic talent of filmmaking (but then again, he does that in all his films). With "Heaven And Earth" he completes a trilogy that began with "Platoon," continued with "Born On The Fourth Of July," and ends here. What is gripping about this film is the performances and drama. Stone doesn't just show us a life as much as he takes us into one. All his film vibrate with realism, they are active, they are alive, and the same is here. "Heaven And Earth" is moving, powerful, a true dramatic motion picture, and one of Stone's best works because here he explores something deeper and more moving than in other movies. All his films are excellent and masterpieces, here is another.
Rating:
Summary: A Powerful And Moving Film.
Review: Oliver Stone is not very popular for films about women (his latest, the football epic "Any Given Sunday" proves that once more) but he is a genius of cinema and with this fantastic work he proves that yes, not only can he make a film with a female lead, but see war through that female lead's eyes as well. "Heaven And Earth" is a powerful and moving motion picture experience enhanced by fabulous cinematography, music and incredibly effective performances and drama. This is Stone's first solo script since "Platoon," which I consider the best of the Vietnam war films, and again presents his unique talent for film structure. He takes us through the life of a Vietnamese woman who went through the horrors of war, literally, went into dispair, found love and lost it, found it again and lost it once more, and in the end stood triumphant above her struggles. As is the case with most his films, "Heaven And Earth" is based on a true story, and Stone brings it incredibly to life on the screen. The images stay in your mind as do the characters. The story is moving and effective and immensly powerful. Stone handles this film with care and shows his true artistic talent of filmmaking (but then again, he does that in all his films). With "Heaven And Earth" he completes a trilogy that began with "Platoon," continued with "Born On The Fourth Of July," and ends here. What is gripping about this film is the performances and drama. Stone doesn't just show us a life as much as he takes us into one. All his film vibrate with realism, they are active, they are alive, and the same is here. "Heaven And Earth" is moving, powerful, a true dramatic motion picture, and one of Stone's best works because here he explores something deeper and more moving than in other movies. All his films are excellent and masterpieces, here is another.
Rating:
Summary: Stone's Favorite
Review: Oliver Stone said that Heaven and Earth is his favorite film. It is one of mine as well. Beyond its ability to effectively convey the shock of extreme violence and its statement about the pre-war physical beauty of Vietnam, it is an excellent portrayal of the essence of Buddhism. It is, too me, an extraordinary film, poetic and concise, easily one of Stone's best. The cinematography was perfectly done. (So well done, i think Scorcese borrowed some of the techniques for "Goodfellows") It is already in my collection and I think will be regarded as one of Stone's best by later film historians.
Rating:
Summary: Emotionally Powerful! An Unforgettable Film.
Review: Oliver Stone's "Heaven & Earth" is an incredibly powerful film that moved me the way few films have. Here we have the story of a Vietnamese woman who goes through heaven and hell and emerges a solid figure of grace. The screenplay by Stone is fantastically well-written and structured. He knows how to handle this story. There are scenes of sheer emotion that touch the heart and soul. "Heaven & Earth" is also visually stunning. The camera work and cinematography are incredible! I was thrilled by the vistas themselves. This is film drama at it's best!
Rating: 
Summary: not good
Review: Pauline Kael pointed out what few critics have, that Oliver Stone is a lousy writer. That is certainly evident in this movie. The script is just a mess. But the lead actress' performance boosts this film up from a one star to a two star review. And it's amazing that she never acted a day in her life prior to this movie. You read about all these actors studying acting for years and years, and then learning their craft on stage before attempting films. But Haing S. Ngor was actually a medical student who went to keep a friend company who was auditioning. The casting people asked her to audition, since they liked the way she looked. She read and got the part. Those poor parents paying thousands of dollars for their kids to get drama degrees at Yale Drama School. I'll take an "amateur" Haing S. Ngor, any day.
Rating: 
Summary: The other side of the story
Review: They say that history of war is written by the winners, but in Vietnam the winners were too demolarised, hungry and poor to be writing history. Of all the anti-war films I've seen about Vietnam, all where about young Americans losing their inoccense, Oliver Stone's moving and humane film is the first (that I've seen) to consider the other side. The Vietnamese. The story revolves around Le Ly Hayslip (Hiep Thi Le), she is her father's favourite child and the centre of attention in her family. During the film's stunning first hour, her village will be visited by members of the Viet-Cong and representatives of the Southern government, both spreading propaganda and both capable of unspeakable brutality. As Vietnamese the people of the village are more sympathetic to Veit-Cong, and indeed Le Ly's two brothers go to fight for the north. But Stone wisely avoids making heroes of the Veit-Cong, in one particularly harrowing scene they rape Le Ly because of her detention by the southern forces. Heaven and Earth is more concerned about the tragic effect of the war on Veitnam. As the war goes on Le Ly is forced to be a street vendor in Saigon, where she meets a gentle American man Steve (Tommy Lee Jones). His attraction to Le Ly however is not so much love, as it is a desire to be forgiven by all "Orientals" as he calls them. But Le Ly desperate and poor is blinded by his kindness and togather they go to America to start a new life as a married couple. It is here that film looses its footing, Steve's behaviour is explained by the script, but his transformation from a gentle man to a confused and angry one is so rushed, it is inexcplicable. The film does recover in the powerful closing scenes set in Vietnam. The most touching relationship in the film is between Le Ly and her father. Heartbroken by what the war has done to his family he tells her "Don't ask what is right or wrong, these are dangerous questions, there's is only the goodness in your heart." He has been through too much suffering to consider war as an idealogical matter, he only wishes for the safety of his favourite child so that she can live on the land of her "ancestors". Heaven and Earth is not as poetic as Terrance Malick's The Thin Red Line, the narration is not as lyrical, and its structure is not perfect. But there are individual passages in this film that will linger with you for a long time. It is a worthy final installment in Oliver Stone's Veitnam trilogy.
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie / Epic
Review: This is the best movie I have ever seen WHICH I would only wish to watch once. I rate movies by how many times I can watch them enjoyably. It provides new perspectives for many viewers about Vietnam. Be prepared for an emotional roller coaster across a washboard. After an hour I did not want it to end because it was so good. About 3/4 of the way through I was becoming exhausted. Stone really out did himslef, creating an epic which most of the world will not see.
Rating:
Summary: Magnificent
Review: This is what film making is all about: powerful, moving, heartbreaking, and beautiful. This is the only movie where I wept within the first five minutes, so moved was I by the beauty of the land and the majesty of the score. By the end the movie I was trashed. As a Vietnam veteran, I was captivated by the cinematography and the sense of Vietnam that Stone captured so well. I highly recommend the DVD, not just for the superiority over video, but also for Stone's commentary. I thought his comments on the DVD, Born on the Fourth of July, were excellent, but in Heaven and Earth we get even better. Not only does he talk about the process of filming the movie, but also he talks at length about the plight of the Vietnamese, the destruction of Vietnam's infrastructure and Buddhism. As a Vietnam veteran and an author of articles and books in which I talk about Vietnam, I highly recommend this incredible film.
Rating:
Summary: good
Review: This movie is good, but it's not 1/10th as good as the book. Oliver Stone is an excellent director, and features of the movie such as light and camera angles and the movement of the camera are excellent. The acting is good too. Tommy Lee Jones has an impossible role, but in each scene he is convincing. Hiep Thi Le's role is also impossible, and she is not bad. Those who have read the book will be happy to see Le Ly Hayslip herself playing the jewelry dealer in the middle of the movie. The soundtrack by Kitaro is fair, although my personal tastes disagree. The problem is that Le Ly Hayslip's story, upon which this movie is based, is too complex for a two hour movie. Tommy Lee Jones' character is an amalgamation of three men, and the result is nothing if not schizophrenic. So many scenes are too subtle for most people to understand, although the book makes everything clear. Compacting her remarkable life (the movie is based on two books!) into a feature-length movie is just impossible, and on an emotional level the film nearly fails. Let me push the books once more. Even if you are not a reader, When Heaven and Earth Changed Places, by Le Ly Hayslip and Jay Wurts, will pull you along. It is one of the very best books I have ever read. The sequel, Child of War, Woman of Peace, is also pretty good. I strongly encourage you to read especially the first book. Like I said, the movie is fine, but the book is simply incredible. It is the only book that has ever made me cry.
Rating:
Summary: Heaven and Earth
Review: What a great and at the same time horrible feeling this movie gives the viewer. A tortured look at the atrocities of war by ALL sides and the suffering of the villagers who were forced to endure these hardships.
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