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Platoon (1986)
Oliver Stone participated as an infantry soldier in the Vietnam War so what we see get in “Platoon” is a breathtaking look on the life of a soldier, shown through the eyes of a soldier named Chris who is portrayed young Charlie Sheen.
Whilst the film largely showcases the negatives of war, the horrors that came with being a soldier and ultimately the mistake America made by fighting in Vietnam its primary agenda is not to be an anti-war film. In fact, the conflict between the Americans and the Vietnamese army is not the main focus of the film at all, instead it acts as a great backdrop to create a variety of situations that challenge the films characters in a number of different ways, and it is the actions and different attitudes of the characters that are important.
Instead the film’s conflict is between two camps that emerge as the American’s divide over split attitudes. On one side we have Sgt. Barnes portrayed by Tom Berenger and on the other Sgt. Elias portrayed by Willem Dafoe. These two actors provide us with two fantastic performances and make the film what is it is. Elias can be viewed as the ‘good’ soldier, a kind, lesser-spoken sergeant who goes by the book and serves his country how he should. On the contrary we have Barnes, a man with a completely different set of morals, a loudmouthed soldier who will take action in to his own hands to do what he thinks is right. The divide occurs when Barnes becomes responsible for the massacre of a Vietnamese village, whilst others are willing to accept his actions and choose to protect him there are others who are not so willing to go along with a cover up including Elias.
“Day by day, I struggle to maintain not only my strength but my sanity. It's all a blur. I have no energy to write. I don't know what's right and what's wrong anymore. The morale of the men is low. A civil war in the platoon. Half the men with Elias, half with Barnes. There's a lot of suspicion and hate. I can't believe we're fighting each other when we should be fighting them.”
That quote is from Chris, the young soldier who narrates the film for us through a series of letters sent back to his grandmother. He dropped out of college to join the army through choice and immediately struggles to fit in with the others, however throughout the film he progresses in to a more respected and adequate soldier. His progression is important to the film as he adapts to the harsh life and is influenced by others.
The film’s cinematography and editing is superb, most of the films scene take place in the thick forest, with extremely heavy rain painting a dark image for us that helps show the grim conditions the soldier’s were really in. The film does not glorify war at all, there is no unnecessary action or over the top heroic scenes and instead everything seems real and sometimes it really is not pretty. Some scenes are really uncomfortable, especially those that involve the inhuman actions of Barnes that really do a good job of amplifying our disgust towards his character which is important as we side with Elias and Chris.
Dafoe, Berenger and Sheen make this film what it is and ultimately the final scenes that involve them are the most iconic and memorable. Dafoe provides an unforgettable scene which I will not spoil. And one of the final scenes that Chris and Barnes share gives us satisfaction despite being brutal and far from a happy ending.
I can not recommend this film enough; it is one of my favourite war films and a fantastic and emotional tale. Unlike other glorified films this one does not sacrifice its brutal and deeply affective centre for cheap affects and fake scenes. The heart of the film lies with its trio of star actors who are each brilliant as we see the real conflict that arises from the war and its affect within the platoon.
RATING:
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Oliver Stone participated as an infantry soldier in the Vietnam War so what we see get in “Platoon” is a breathtaking look on the life of a soldier, shown through the eyes of a soldier named Chris who is portrayed young Charlie Sheen.
Whilst the film largely showcases the negatives of war, the horrors that came with being a soldier and ultimately the mistake America made by fighting in Vietnam its primary agenda is not to be an anti-war film. In fact, the conflict between the Americans and the Vietnamese army is not the main focus of the film at all, instead it acts as a great backdrop to create a variety of situations that challenge the films characters in a number of different ways, and it is the actions and different attitudes of the characters that are important.
Instead the film’s conflict is between two camps that emerge as the American’s divide over split attitudes. On one side we have Sgt. Barnes portrayed by Tom Berenger and on the other Sgt. Elias portrayed by Willem Dafoe. These two actors provide us with two fantastic performances and make the film what is it is. Elias can be viewed as the ‘good’ soldier, a kind, lesser-spoken sergeant who goes by the book and serves his country how he should. On the contrary we have Barnes, a man with a completely different set of morals, a loudmouthed soldier who will take action in to his own hands to do what he thinks is right. The divide occurs when Barnes becomes responsible for the massacre of a Vietnamese village, whilst others are willing to accept his actions and choose to protect him there are others who are not so willing to go along with a cover up including Elias.
“Day by day, I struggle to maintain not only my strength but my sanity. It's all a blur. I have no energy to write. I don't know what's right and what's wrong anymore. The morale of the men is low. A civil war in the platoon. Half the men with Elias, half with Barnes. There's a lot of suspicion and hate. I can't believe we're fighting each other when we should be fighting them.”
That quote is from Chris, the young soldier who narrates the film for us through a series of letters sent back to his grandmother. He dropped out of college to join the army through choice and immediately struggles to fit in with the others, however throughout the film he progresses in to a more respected and adequate soldier. His progression is important to the film as he adapts to the harsh life and is influenced by others.
The film’s cinematography and editing is superb, most of the films scene take place in the thick forest, with extremely heavy rain painting a dark image for us that helps show the grim conditions the soldier’s were really in. The film does not glorify war at all, there is no unnecessary action or over the top heroic scenes and instead everything seems real and sometimes it really is not pretty. Some scenes are really uncomfortable, especially those that involve the inhuman actions of Barnes that really do a good job of amplifying our disgust towards his character which is important as we side with Elias and Chris.
Dafoe, Berenger and Sheen make this film what it is and ultimately the final scenes that involve them are the most iconic and memorable. Dafoe provides an unforgettable scene which I will not spoil. And one of the final scenes that Chris and Barnes share gives us satisfaction despite being brutal and far from a happy ending.
I can not recommend this film enough; it is one of my favourite war films and a fantastic and emotional tale. Unlike other glorified films this one does not sacrifice its brutal and deeply affective centre for cheap affects and fake scenes. The heart of the film lies with its trio of star actors who are each brilliant as we see the real conflict that arises from the war and its affect within the platoon.
RATING: