Platoon

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Summary: Platoon
Review: This movie is a must to watch from an informational point of view. If you need to find information on tactics, uniforms, weapons,etc-this is the one. This the one,if you want to understand what this war was about. About real soldiers,who actually had to fight in Vietnam:18-19 years old kids,who were drafted and without any choice were thrown into a foreign country to play a strange game of survival : the one , who kills first, will win another chance to play this game again...and again...
It Shows you the stupidity of military officers , who never went there ... the ones , who are the heroes now . Showes you the shortest line between love and death ... Shows you the brutality and pain ... do I need to say more ?!
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Summary: Platoon is an important cinematic achievement
Review: Platoon is the first film on the subject of war that was directed by a war veteran, Oliver Stone. The son of a wealthy family, Stone dropped out of Yale during the Vietnam War, volunteered as a private for the infantry, and was twice wounded and decorated. In 1975, as Saigon was falling, he decided to relive his experiences of the war by writing a loosely autobiographical screenplay about them. Stone decided to do it then because he feared that his familiarity with the war would soon be forgotten. His screenplay of Platoon took 11 years to become a film, and became what is not only one of the best movies about war, but also a great achievement that compares powerfully with the most impressive movies in cinematic history.

Charlie Sheen plays the role of Chris Taylor (a character who Stone based on himself), a callow yet well-meaning youth who volunteered for the war because he thought it was his patriotic duty and because he doesn't want to become a "fake human being." He immediately realizes the horrible atrocities and brutality of war, as he provides a unique narrative through letters he writes to his grandmother. The viewers, along with Chris, discover that the Vietnam War is a land with an ever-present atmosphere of danger, where every sound and movement brings an ominous threat of death. As Chris loses his innocence, he witnesses the killing and torturing of Vietnamese villagers by American soldiers (who depend on drugs and alcohol to assuage their difficulties), betrayal, and a strong animosity within the platoon he's a member of. The most notable of his experiences, however, is a moral battle that is fought over him by the saintly and pure Sergeant Elias (Willem Dafoe) and the wicked, malevolent Sergeant Barnes (Tom Berenger).

Released seven long years after Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now, Platoon was the next major film to seriously illustrate the Vietnam War. What makes Platoon much different from Apocalypse Now is that Platoon does not strive too much to be artistic and also depicts the war more authentically. In fact, the gritty realism of Platoon might make moviegoers incorrectly guess that it preceded Apocalypse Now.

Platoon, like all of Stone's films, is nearly flawless in its making. The cinematography, by the great Robert Richardson, is frankly remarkable. Richardson's work with Platoon is brilliant and captures the violence and threatening feel of war. Furthermore, the editing by Claire Simpson is equally praiseworthy. In addition, one of the most special aspects of the film is the tremendously haunting and emotionally powerful use of Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings," which was arranged and conducted by Georges Delerue (who also provides the original music for the film). Most importantly, however, is Stone's directing, which is displayed passionately in Platoon, and which makes this film even more of a masterpiece than the movie would have been with a different director.

There is not one slacker in the cast of Platoon. Every performance is delivered with strength and inspiring drama. Sheen, as the disillusioned Chris, is simply amazing and does not render his character as being too solemn or innocent. The true standouts, however, are Dafoe and Berenger. Dafoe, as the Christ-like Sergeant Elias (who Stone considered having a Native American Indian portray), is convincing and charismatic. His character never loses his moral compass and he depicts this fervently. Tom Berenger performs frighteningly as Sergeant Barnes, the embodiment of evil and the symbol of the harsh realities of life (Barnes declares at one pivotal moment of the movie that "I am reality"). Berenger's performance is overshadowing and haunting as the exact opposite of Sergeant Elias, and makes the character of Barnes one of the most memorable villains in cinema.

Platoon should be admired by all. The film never tries to be too sentimental, yet is nonetheless quite emotional and hugely dramatic with its messages that war is a horrific and unpleasant event and that the enemy is often within ourselves. It is an important movie that depicts the horrible nature of war with ardor, and will be remembered and as a classic and an accomplishment that surpasses other movies in its field.

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Summary: A grunt's eye view of the loss of innocence
Review: When I first saw Platoon in the theatres in 1986, I remember looking around at one point during the film and seeing every face riveted to the screen. Use whatever adjectives you want, this is one compelling, horrifying and numbing film. This is definitely a must-see for history students, would-be soldiers and politicians. Watch it and chew on it awhile.

The story revolves around Pvt. Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen), a privileged kid who drops out of college to go fight in Vietnam. He begins as a green recruit, easily weakened by the jungle heat and unable to spot a bunker five feet in front of him, and ends wounded and disillusioned but with a fulfillment of the challenge that confronts him midway through the film.

Oliver Stone immerses the viewer into the mind's eye of the soldier, with the chaos of jungle warfare and not knowing who or where the enemy is hiding. One begins to see why death and maiming by friendly fire were so common.

From the opening sequence, Taylor quickly realizes he's not in Kansas anymore, as the clean recruits fresh from boot camp pass by a group of vets, and one man in particular with a look that haunts the young private.
Although I've seen this film many times, the scene in the village still gets to me. Probably one of the most intense sequences Stone has filmed, with screaming women and children and a bunch of angry soldiers.
There's also the battle in the rainy woods, the shooting of Elias, and the final battle where the enemy breaks through the camp perimeter. Luckily Stone injected a little levity with the heads and boozers base camp scenes.

What this film is really about, is the man vs. man struggle that takes place between Sgt. Barnes (Tom Berenger) and Sgt. Elias (Willem Dafoe) and how Pvt. Taylor is caught in between. Barnes is the battle-scarred leader who will do anything to win his war. Elias is the more compassionate one, mentoring Taylor and helping him become a better soldier. Berenger's Barnes comes off as having gone to the dark side, but this is a man who also cared about his men. Witness the aftermath of the booby-trap scene where Taylor catches him having a smoke. That's what makes him really work as an antagonist and Berenger gives one of his best performances in the role. Dafoe is also a well-rounded character, still a fierce soldier despite his humanism. Surprisingly, Charlie Sheen's performance even stands out after all this time. His character has a definite arc and he is very changed by the end, having learned from both Barnes and Elias, and from the war itself.
The film may come across as too neat, with all the archetypes, and stereotypes, represented. There's the inept academy lieutenant, the psycho redneck, the surfer, the trash-talking brother, and an inexplicable fat guy that strolls out into the middle of a fire fight and thinks he can just yell at VC charging toward him and they'll stop.
There are a number of actors in small parts that have gone on to various degrees of success, including Johnny Depp, Forest Whitaker, John C. McGinley, Tony Todd, Kevin Dillon and Keith David.

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Summary: How a nation lost its innocence
Review: In one sense this can be seen as Oliver Stone's attempt to account for the massacre at My Lai for which Lt. William Calley was famously court-martialed. One recalls a statement made at the time by somebody in close concert with the logic of the Vietnam War: "We had to destroy the village in order to save it." But more inclusively, Oliver Stone's film addresses the question of what war does to us as it focuses on Pvt. Chris Taylor, played by Charlie Sheen, who gave up his student deferment, joined the army and volunteered to fight in Vietnam as his patriotic duty. How the twisted logic of war changes him and corrupts him and others in his platoon is the story of the film.

To Oliver Stone's credit it can be said that this movie, first released in 1989, helped to shock a new generation of Americans into understanding just why our involvement in Vietnam was a tragic mistake and to warn us not to do anything like that again. The fact that recent military adventures by the US have been limited engagements with limited objectives (instead of the vague and unrestricted policy of stopping the spread of communism, which was the rationale for the war in Vietnam)--engagements that have been carefully orchestrated to avoid becoming mired in the kind of hand-to-hand combat favoring the side defending its own turf as shown in this film, owes something to Stone's vision and to that of other film makers. One also recalls Senator Barry Goldwater R, Arizona) who advocated "winning" the war in Vietnam by "bombing them back into the Stone Age." Stone's film suggests just how impossible that would have been.

Tom Berenger gives a splendid and somewhat horrific performance as Sgt. Barnes, the "War Lover" (the phrase is the title of John Hersey's WWII novel), who kills both friend and foe indiscriminately. Willem DaFoe plays his opposite, Sgt. Elias who is the model of the good soldier. The rest of the cast gives fine support while the script by Stone, partially from personal experience, is full of authentic dialogue and veracious detail. The clash between our civilized nature and our baser instincts is well presented.

It is impossible to fairly compare this to other excellent Vietnam War movies such as The Deer Hunter (1978), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Apocalypse Now (1979), et al., because they are all so different. I do believe that Platoon was more of a throwback to World War II movies in the sense that it focused on the dynamics of the soldiers immersed in actual battles with the enemy. Yet on the other hand it falls completely within the Vietnam War genre by looking beyond the battles to address the larger question of why, and the war's consequences. In World War II movies, the why was never in doubt, and the consequences were not an issue.

The theme of this movie has been expressed as the loss of innocence, and that is a fair assessment; but I think it wasn't so much the soldiers themselves who lost their innocence, although many did, but a nation that lost its. We were a different country before Vietnam. We have never been the same since, and we will never be the same again.

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Summary: Riveting
Review: "I think now, looking back, we did not fight the enemy. We fought ourselves. And the enemy was in us."

Thus the summation of Private Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen) at the end of this film, a film about war, hate, self-realization, and survival. PLATOON tells a powerful story that moves beyond the horror and gore of the Vietnam War, a story that ultimately depicts the demise and disintegration of a dysfunctional combat unit. We see young Chris change before our very eyes, from a green, idealistic "grunt" to an embittered, disillusioned soldier. Chris' platoon is dominated--and subsequently divided--by two strong, yet very different men: Sergeant Barnes (Tom Berenger) and Sergeant Elias (Willem Dafoe). Barnes is cold, calculating, brutal, intolerant; Elias is compassionate, humanistic. The battle of wills between these two men is just as challenging as the Viet Cong out in the bush, and just as deadly. The film's climatic ending is powerful, spellbinding.

I dismiss naysayers of PLATOON as a soapbox for writer/director Oliver Stone's political agenda just as much as I dismiss Mr. Stone's politics. PLATOON hits you between the eyes with its depictions of warfare and human conflict, again and again. There's nothing to feel good about by watching this movie, just as there is nothing to feel good about by fighting a war. It is a dark, negative film--a negative film that happens to be compelling, thought-provoking, and very riveting.

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Summary: Excellent
Review: Generally, I'm not attracted to movies that carry a war theme. However, there are a few of them that have caught my attention and admiration. This is definitely one of them. In fact, 'Platoon' and 'Saving Private Ryan' are my two favourites in this genre.

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Summary: THE War Movie
Review: Unlike many war movies, "Platoon" forces the viewer to confront a harsh truth: war is NOT an ennobling experience, and it does not make you a better person. In fact, war is just as likely to bring out the worst in people as the best. I was a history major, and I still maintain an interest in the subject, and I find Oliver Stone's depiction of war to be far more realistic than that of, say, Steven Spielberg in "Saving Private Ryan." The soldiers in "Platoon" are just like people in real life: some good, some bad, some indifferent. For most of them, it's just about survival. The battle scenes aren't as graphically violent as in more recent movies, but they do a good job of capturing the fear and confusion that war can create. More importantly, the story is filled with sharply-drawn characters and moral ambiguity. "Platoon" centers around the conflict between two Sergeants, Tom Berenger's Barnes and Willem Dafoe's Elias. The battle-hardened Barnes believes in doing whatever is necessary to win the war, including killing noncombatants, while the mellower Elias resists Barnes's Machiavellian, win-at-all-costs approach. Their disputes, which end when Barnes kills Elias, raise some important questions: how civilized can combatants in a war be expected to behave? Where is the line drawn? Is it acceptable to do anything, no matter how inhumane, to accomplish military objectives? The movie doesn't really provide answers to these questions; I'm not even sure there are any right answers. However, "Platoon" deserves to commended for raising some tough issues.

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Summary: "The first casualty of war, is innocence"
Review: This 1986 film won Best Picture, as well as Best Director for Oliver Stone, who also wrote this based on his experiences in the Vietnam War. The film depicts a platoon of young inexperienced soldiers. Chris, played by Charlie Sheen, is one of them. He volunteered for the war not knowing how terrible it would be. When he arrives he doesn't know what to do. He carries to much in his backpack, doesn't know what to do when he spots an enemy, and has no drive. As the film carries on we slowly see him, as well as his fellow members in the platoon become deadly killing machines.

This film displays extreme violence, and corruption, so if you do not want to see that, stay away. The film is very disturbing and tragic. It shows how cruel, paranoid, and egocentric people can be, and how war can make them that way. After seeing this film, I cannot see how anyone would want to go to war.

The script, and direction are very well done. There is no amazing acting, but we still feel for the characters though, as they battle in hell. This DVD has an amazing transfer, and has no problems with the way the picture looks, or sound. It also has good extras, with a documentary, two commentaries (by the director, and a war veteran), trailers, behind the scene pics, and production images. I highly recommend this DVD to people interested in military history, or dramatic films, but be warned, this film is not for light stomachs, as it is disturbing, and violent. 5 stars.

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Summary: The Film that Shocked a Nation
Review: Oliver Stone's "Platoon," shocked a nation eager for an honest war film. One that does not stuff you with feelings of happiness and American Pride. A film in which veterans of the Vietnam War, found it too much to bear, got up in the middle of the film at theaters across the nation, and left. "Platoon" shaped dozens of war films to come out over the years, namely, "Saving Private Ryan" and "The Thin Red Line." Narrated by new recruit (Charlie Sheen), follows him along a journey of moral questions, thoughts of life and death, and the prospect of becoming a man in 365 days (a soldiers required term in Vietnam). "Platoon" will leave you at the edge of your seat with it's harsh reality, volcanic action, and suspense. It will warp tremendously your past ideals of what the war in Vietnam was really like, leaving you not knowing what to think when done. Arguably the best war film out there.

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Summary: Harsh, raw portrayal of horrors of Vietnam
Review: "Platoon" wasn't necessarily a labor of love for director Oliver Stone, but it was a project that he wanted so passionately to see succeed, that he would not stop until it became a reality. After several years of financial problems and recasts, Stone's definitive portrayal of the Vietnam experience came to the big screen. Just a little over a decade removed from the last days of the war, American audiences had not yet been exposed such a raw, unblinking tale of the battles faced by men who fought in the Southeast Asia jungles, both with the Viet Cong and among (and within) themselves.

"Platoon" is told from the point of view of the narrator, a 'fresh-meat, private named Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen). Taylor is new to Vietnam and a decidedly different kind of horse from those in his unit. Taylor was actually in college, and lived in a well-off family. Yet, feeling disaffected by his life, he decided he wanted to make a difference and defend his nation (A 'crusader' one of his fellow soldiers calls him). Therefore, he enlisted and signed up for infantry duty. Taylor's idealism is quickly crushed by the harsh realities of war. Long marches and guard duty in rain, sweltering heat, and in the midst of fire ants become the norm for these men. The only break from this monotony is the regular attacks by Viet Cong on their positions. Drifting into a drug or alcohol-induced haze back at base camp and counting down the days until their tour is over is the only escape they have.

The main of the story follows the platoon's marches through villages suspected of supporting the enemy army. A division in the platoon threatens to destroy the men as much as any enemy attack. At the forefront are Sergeants Elias (Willem Dafoe) and Barnes (Tom Berenger). Elias is a compassionate, yet highly skilled, leader who truly cares about his men while Barnes is a dark, iron-willed man whose strengths in battle become liabilities when the guns aren't going off. Elias knows where the line is between doing everything possible to destroy the enemy without losing one's humanity, while Barnes seems to have forgotten where that line was long ago. These two competing ideologies threaten to tear the platoon apart, and are not helped in any measure by a weak-willed Lieutenant Wolfe (Mark Moses) who is too scared of Barnes to assert any command authority and defuse the situation. Berenger brings such a dark, brooding demeanor to his role as Barnes that he would terrify the audience if they ever met him in real life. Barnes has been shot 7 times. He's not meant to die. Dafoe's portrayal of Elias illuminates the struggle of a man who knows that fair treatment of his men will get better results out of them (and get more of them back alive), yet has to try to keep Barnes psychopathic tendencies in check.

"Platoon" set the standard for brutally honest, unyielding films about war; a standard that was later raised by films like "Saving Private Ryan". As difficult as it is to watch, it is just as equally compelling to watch. That, alone, makes this a standout film.