Platoon

Review: The first real depiction of the Vietnam war and one of the greatest war movies of all-time. It's one of only a handful of movies that has been able to realistically capture the chaotic insanity of battle. The actors spent several months prior to filming being run through a boot camp (walking miles each day with gear, digging trenches, etc.) in order to convey the fatigue, exhaustion, and the desire to return home. Charlie Sheen (Wall Street) is very well cast as the impressionable and naive young soldier. Berenger and DeFoe (The Last Temptation of Christ) are also very convincing. It's interesting how the enemy is never seen, always in shadows or always at night adding to the tension. For two hours this movie transports you into that platoon and you actually feel the fear and apprehension that they must have felt. Back in 1986, this film shocked and stunned the audience with it's realism (brutal slaughter of women and children, rape, etc.) I recall many of the vets who had served there found the film so honest, that they were unable to continue watching. Platoon launched Oliver Stone's wonderful career as a director (Wall Street, The Doors, JFK, Natural Born Killers, Talk Radio). At a time when the Reagan endorsed Rambo films were topping the box-office, along came this gem of a movie that will forever be remembered. -Review by Aaron Caldwell