Day
26 Apocalypse Now [1979]
Screenplay Francis Ford Coppola &
John Milius
Based
on ‘Heart of
Darkness’ by Joseph Conrad
Director Francis
Ford Coppola
Cinematography Vittorio
Storaro
Music Carmine
Coppola & Francis Ford Coppola
Leads Marlon Brando,
Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen, Frederic Forrest, Albert Hall, Sam Bottoms,
Laurence Fishburne, Dennis Hopper, Harrison Ford
Production Omni Zoetrope
IMDb 8.5/10
RottenTomatoes 98%
Do
I even need to review this one? I mean really? The only negative things I can
say about it are to do with the whole debate over how Hollywood portrays enemy
nations in films. If I go down that road I might as well write an essay about
propaganda and military-funded films. That’s a debate for another day, this
film is incredible. This was the second time I’ve seen it, and the first time I
was definitely invested more in the plot – the storyline that puts you inside
the dark minds of two equally deranged men in Captain Willard (Sheen) and Colonel
Kurtz (Brando). This time around I was enjoying the cinematic experience that
this film brings you, the craziness of war and those in the middle of it. The
scenes with Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore (Duvall), the flight of the Valkyries
(my music rating is based on this scene alone) and his obsession with surfing
are movie diamonds. There are few films that emphasise the pure madness of war
like this one. Everything is top notch. I expect you’ve seen it, but hurry the
hell up if you haven’t.
Acting 4 / 4
Writing 4 / 4
Cinematography 4 / 4
Music 3.5 / 4
HWF rating 4 / 4