Platoon -- What Makes This Movie Great? (Episode 77)
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- Опубликовано: 9 ноя 2020
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Platoon is arguably Oliver Stone's masterpiece. Or is it? Let this video help you decide.
This video reviews and analyzes Platoon, arguing that it's a cinematic memoir about idealism and realism. Platoon of course stars Charlie Sheen, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, John C. McGinley, Forrest Whittaker, Keith David, and many more.
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Disclaimer: All reasonable comments are welcome, including reasoned disagreements. You will be banned for foolish talk, harassment, and hate speech on sight; it's a tremendous waste of life. I believe in freedom of association and, by extension, freedom of dissociation from you. 
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I consider this a sum of my experiences fighting in Vietnam with the 1st Cavalry Division, 1970-71. In the Bush there were no cliques, but back at our Firebase there were, as portrayed in the movie. This brings back to me the hell that Vietnam was. The heat, Humidity, the endless humping and then fire fights. The 1st scene is great as Chris us a FNG meeting old timers with the 1000 yard stare...It is so realistic to my experiences
excellent, I very much appreciate your comment .
Thank you for your service sir.
And you are correct, as I never talk about my experiences as a 19 -20 year old. To the people who were not there,, it is impossible to express or describe what it was like.. This movie does the best job... where has the last 50 years gone... ???
thank you.
you haven't posted a video in 9 years John...
Not just my favorite movie of all time but the greatest war movie ever made.
My favourite Oliver Stone movie, Oh my god thank you so much for liking this. This film in particular forgoes easily sermonizing in favor of a harrowing and ground level view of war. Featuring top notch performances from Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. I added this on my "Greatest Movie" list. Thank you Dr. Josh 👍👍
you're welcome!
Platoon like Apocalypse now and Full Metal Jacket is one of the greatest Vietnam war movies.Among three Platoon I think concentrates more on what choices one can made given the power of a gun and driven by hatred. Thanks for your thoughts as always:)
I need to see Spike Lee's recent Vietnam movie -- and does it approach those you mentioned? thank you for your comment.
Thanks, this was a nice flashback. Tho I've seen this movie a number of times, the last time was prob around 15 years ago. At the time I felt this is what a great war movie was but now that I've seen many I consider this one another interesting take (good but certainly not the best, nor does it have to be). Definitely a war of ideology within a actual war. Perhaps I too should revisit it. Dafoe's performance does standout in my mind. As well as what I originally associated Barber's Adagio for Strings with (until Elephant Man kinda replaced the association).
I wouldn't put much stock in Pauline Kael's take, she famously has bashed many of the alltime greats (Vertigo, 2001, etc etc).
Thanks again!
as far as Kael, whatever she says, I am about the opposite. The difference might even simply be east-coast elite vs. little old small-town America me. But since she's a famous voice, she's worth quoting as a seeming authority.
if you see the movie again, let us know. I've read enough Vietnam books to realize this movie is doing the job of a memoir, which is a different way to watch this than a more straightforward war film.
The best Vietnam movie
arguably, yes.
That and Apocalypse Now.
He does not become SGT Barnes. He shoots him out of justice know there has to be consequences for his actions. Did he have to shoot him? No but even when he did I’m sure many people like myself felt nothing right or wrong. I can see why you would think he becomes him but he’s not even close even after he shoots him. There has to be justice in some way and or consequences in everything that you do in life. I’m talking in a higher sense like Karma. I am a Soldier and really relate to this movie. It’s very accurate and I truly believe that there are some things only soldiers or military members will understand from this film. If I was Chris I would have shot SGT Barnes too. Sorry. And I first debated on this but either way some people have to pay some way or another. You can do somethings a bad person would do but that doesn’t make you a bad person.
What’s your favorite war novel of all time? Mine is either “The Things They Carried” or “Johnny Got His Gun.”
thank you. I don't know enough war novels to give a comprehensive opinion. Probably "The Forever War."
Two words: Tom Berenger
he should've kept that scar, just to get public reactions from it.
As a veteran of that war. I have to agree with you. 👍 well done.
thank you, and thanks for your service, which I mean sincerely and not in the cliched way.
6:07 "I don't need this shit" as he takes a sip from a whiskey bottle...
yes!
Excellent review. 🙂
Just watched for the first time yesterday. Great movie. Thanks for the great analysis. I had the same thought that he becomes Barnes. Barnes shot the man he didn't like, so did Chris. Of course the motive is a bit different. Barnes didn't want to get in trouble because he shot the Vietnamese woman and could get court marshalled. Killing Elias is because he was the one who would speak out. Part of Chris's motive is because he didn't want Barnes to get off the hook for everything - killing Vietnamese villagers AND Elias and would no doubt continue that. Would Chris really become the same as Barnes? Probably not. Though it does seem a bit that way.
excellent, thanks.
Also, in 1970 the technology we have today did not exist, Cell Phonesm Communication Satalites, TV Broadcasts for the solders. Our ONLY communication with the outside world (which was something abstate we could not comprehend as time went on) was by letters.Through letters from ny late brother, that is how I learned of the shootings at Kent State in May 1970 and the bombing od Sterlng Hall in Madison, WI (20 miles from our home town) I did have a battery operated cassette player and my brother sent me tapes of The Beatles, The Stones and CCR. Drinking beer and listening to music on my casstte player was the group I was in when we were back ar our Firebase. I thought the "Druggies" were Crazy as who wanted to be "Stoned" in a Combat Zone, Yes, we did get mortered every night at our Firebase. The Lt calling in the wrong coordinates was totally correct, As most were just "Shake and Bake" officers from ROTC. We did NOT trust ANY of them, And the guys "in Counry" basically ran the squad. Thd "Village Scene" was typical. (Mi Ly Massacure was unexcusable) but if we found ANY evidence of VC activity we basically burned the village, We did NOT shoot Any Civilans, as prortrayed by Sgt Barnes in the move, unless we had hard evidence they WERE VC...
excellent, much appreciated!
great video, ever considered making a video on full metal jacket or apocylapse now? I would be interested to hear your take on either
yes, I"ll get there one day. A "Thin Red Line" video is up next, in July I think.
@@LearningaboutMovies I'll definitely be looking forward to that, I didn't really understand the hype around the thing red line first time i watched it but hopefully like with your black hawk down video this will help me appreciate it more
I know you didn't have time to review every part of the movie, but I would have loved to hear what you thought of the whole village part.
Please do a review of "Apocalypse Now" and "Full Metal Jacket"
P.S. I'm absolutely fascinated by how so many American directors (except maybe Spielberg) felt it was necessary to make a Vietnam movie. And these movies do not portray the US military in a positive way, because there's probably no way to do it.
The hidden rage behind all these movies is that they're alluding but never mentioning My Lai, which is like the elephant in the room when talking about the Vietnam war. It kind of reminds you how Germans don't like to talk about WWII
thank you. I'll get to Apocalypse eventually.
My favorite war movie of all time.
thank you.
great movie
Barnes is the greatest character of any movie - patrice o neal
that is some assertion!
The problem with Oliver Stone is he needlessly politicizes everything. He is a very good filmmaker he has got a very uneven messed up political ideology and his presentation of it is very naive and simplistic.
JFK and Nixon are good films but are completely historically inaccurate, they are to be historical documentation so dont they loose their authenticity.
The war and combat scenes in Platoon are excellent and realistic. The problem for me was the characters and plot, the character arc is too predictable. The three main characters are mere symbolic and metaphorical and didn't seem genuine to me at all.
I have read the Pauline kael review you are talking about and I agree with you she is being too dismissive but she criticized the characters and the plot and not the depiction of war. I don't think she was completely correct but some of her objections were justified.