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Movie Review Introduction Apocalypse Now (1979) together with The Deer Hunter (1978) is one of the first movies dedicated to the Vietnam War theme. The director, Francis Ford Coppola, produced this film approximately one year after the war ended. The plot is based on the famous novel, "The Heart of Darkness, written by Joseph Conrad. However, although this movie is quite old, it still occupies a special place in the modern art. The present paper reviews Apocalypse Now and examines this movie as a cinematographic story about madness of the Vietnam War.
Apocalypse Now Apocalypse Now differs from any other movie about the war. For example, The Deer Hunter (1978) places an emphasis on the personal tragedy of a man, ruined by the war. The movie Platoon (1986) directed by Oliver Stone is rather the hymn of courage and strength of the person able to withstand the conditions of the war. At the same time, Apocalypse Now is a cinematographic tale of madness. In a certain extent, this is a movie about a madness of a separate person, with a psychics ruined by the war; however, for a number of reasons this person had almost unlimited power over other people. In a generalized sense, this movie is a story about the war as apotheosis of human madness, senseless and merciless slaughter-house in Vietnam.
Francis Ford Coppola's movie can be associated with the Divine Comedy written by Dante. This scale epic movie tells about the travel into all circles of the Vietnam hell. Apocalypse Now is a gloomy, almost surrealistic narration of violence, pain, and sufferings. The most important thing is, probably, that the producer managed to portray the feeling of hopeless and senseless war.
The last episode, the last circle of Vietnam hell, is the most remarkable one, where Marlon Brando (Colonel Walter E. Kurtz) was purposely shown in a special darkened light in order to create oppressive and ominous atmosphere of this hart of darkness. " Cinematography by Vittorio Storage is obviously at the highest possible level. The film is produced in a big way, at the highest technical level. Three and half hours of amazingly captivating action. Perfect light and sound. The episode of helicopter attack accompanied by the tune of Wagner's Ride of the Valkyrie" deserves to be examined in every cinematographic class.
Coppola also managed to achieve a significant synergetic effect: all component parts of the movie work together to shed light on the main idea of the film; the details strengthen the idea, but do not impede the integrity of the viewers' comprehension of the film. To put it differently, light, special effects, and sound, - all effects and techniques do not bother the viewer to come to understanding of the main idea of the film. In contrast, all effects are designed so to help the viewer to understand the author's intention. Basically, the films about war, which are made with a certain extent of realism and objectivity, are usually quite difficult to watch. The abundance of violence scenes and gloomy atmosphere are hardly compensated by complicated plot, rush actions, or drive. If one would see Apocalypse Now with no intention to understand the philosophical background of the film, with no desire to trace Coppola's metaphors, but with the only expectation to watch a dynamic action, Apocalypse Now may seem to be too stagnant, weak, and dragged out.
However, if only the viewer try to uncover Coppola's idea, the film will reveal itself as the most interesting film about the war in Vietnam. In conclusion it can be said that the work of Francis Ford Coppola deserves fame and glory, as he managed to avoid so-called savoring and relishing of the violence scenes, the violence that sometimes is justified by the authors intention to attach additional realism and historical reliability. Francis Ford Coppola managed to show only enough heat and violence to make the viewer be involved in reflections, to think, but not to immerse the viewer in condition of deep moral and aesthetic shock. Although there are films, where the scenes of violence are justified by nothing except of a certain perverted alternative mode of fashion, violence because of violence, the film by Francis Ford Coppola is the exception to this rule.
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Research essay sample on Francis Ford Coppola Vietnam War
