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I resisted going to see this movie when it first came out; it wasn't until a couple of years later until I got around to seeing it. I had heard it was good and that it was about the Navy in Viet-Nam. Since I had been in the Navy and stationed on the Cambodian border for a year I wasn't much interested in Hollywood's version of what I lived through for a year. I expected some total piece of shit that sucked...who knew? What I ended up seeing was my life in Viet-Nam. Oh sure there were inaccuracies and liberties taken with some things. For example...we never water skied behind a PBR but we did ski...we just used a STAB boat to do it. I never saw a fleet of helicopters playing Wagner before attacking but I did see a fleet of air boats (swamp buggies) like they use in the Everglades playing Wagner as they skimmed across rice paddies destroying all in their path. The really uncanny thing is that the officer (a major) in charge of that unit had a personality exactly like that of the character played by Duvall. Hell, when he was in our sector we always had the BBQ fired up....as for surfing...who knows...we were on the Cambodian border...no surf there...but who's to say what insanity took place on the coast. The USO show? Sure, they may not have been Playboy Bunnies in real life, but it happened just about the same way....total chaos as horny soldiers / sailors tried clawing their way on stage and the girls being whisked away for their own safety. The insanity at the DoLong Bridge...I saw it...it wasn't at a bridge...it was at an ARVN outpost but the officers jumped in the Bassac and swam to safety as the troops were left to their own devices. The checking of the sampan for contraband and killing everyone on board...we tried not to let it happen but all it took was one false move and a "hair trigger" and all shit broke out. Chef saying "Don't get off the boat, don't get off the boat" Shit that was our mantra. Death cards on the corpses? Never saw that....but some of the guys removed ears from Charlie and wore them like bandoliers just to leave Charlie the message that the Brown Water Navy was in town. I could go on and on about the authenticity of this movie but that's not the half of it..... Now, for the big one....I truly believe that there was a "Colonol Kurtz" running a rouge operation out of Cambodia....shit man....we saw the bodies he floated down to us .... headless corpses of VC....we could always tell when he was in the area....usually when Charlie bolted, it was straight into Cambodia and we couldn't follow (for too far anyway) but when "Kurtz" was in the area Charlie wouldn't go near Cambodia...he'd head AWAY from his favorite sanctuary. I know all about the book "Heart of Darkness" and how this movie was based on Conrad's work. I know all about the symbolism involved and all the other shit....but I'm telling you now....watching this movie was like watching my tour in 'nam...I never met a "Willard" but if there was a "Kurtz" and I'm sure there was...then why not a "Willard". Do any of you realize the insanity of Viet-Nam? I mean, we had "free fire zones" and "friendly zones" where even if you saw the enemy you couldn't shoot at him, even if he was shooting at you, unless you got permission..the only time you could shoot was when he was in the "free fire zone" so just guess where Charlie was ALL of the time? I still can't watch this movie without suffering for days or weeks afterwards...it is a brillant piece of work...for those of you that think that it goes downhill when Willard catches up with Kurtz well maybe just maybe it's more factual than ficticous and life doesn't always read like a movie script....or does it? This is the best movie ever made...from the thump, thump, thump of the helo blades to Brando's "the horror, the horror"....oh yeah man, for me this is the ultimate horror picture.... I could go on and on but since most of you already love the movie...watch it again knowing that it probably was TRUE...watch it for all the PBR Streetgangs that roamed the brown waters of the Mekong. I just noticed that Mr Cranky rates Absolute Power a better movie than this one....sure it was good...but better? I'll bet that Mr. Cranky is in his very early 20's and therefore doesn't have the maturity to realistically rate these movies...Crank you Mr Cranky!!!!
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