Director Francis Ford Coppola's task in making this war epic was no easy one. It was fraught with setbacks from start to finish. Most of this is documented in sublime detail in the documentary Hearts of Darkness (see future post.)Emerging from this lengthy mess of production is possibly the greatest film about Vietnam. It was certainly the first big picture to question the war.
What is achieved is a study of one man's journey into 'the abyss'. Martin Sheen's spectacular central performance is where the viewer is grounded. The fact that he himself is on the cusp of crazy, makes it all the more provoking.
The film is littered with set pieces. From the opening scene where we meet Willard in his Saigon hotel room, dishevelled and driven mad by his inner demons; to the Wagner accompanied napalming of a village; to the final face off between Willard and Kurtz. It's all brilliantly atmospheric. The lightness and black comedy of the Colonel Kilgore(loves the smell of napalm in the morning dontyaknow) pre jungle scenes is most welcome.
It's a bit of a hypnotic trip, but you do come out the other side having scene a true classic.
