Not only did he call it "pathetic" but he said the ending was the dumbest thing he had ever seen, he said the movie that most captured the Vietnam war was We Were Soldiers with Mel Gibson. Thoughts?
-Carter Thomas Krebs, From WIsconsin
Every Veteran has their own stories to tell and experienced their own version of the war, and has their own opinion about the war on a micro and macro level.
I have met Vietnam veterans in both camps; some that really don't like Oliver Stone's take on the war or Platoon, and others who are very grateful to Stone and feel Platoon was as close to a true portray as possible.
I believe there is a place for both types of films.
Every Veteran has their own stories to tell and experienced their own version of the war, and has their own opinion about the war on a micro and macro level.
I have met Vietnam veterans in both camps; some that really don't like Oliver Stone's take on the war or Platoon, and others who are very grateful to Stone and feel Platoon was as close to a true portray as possible.
I believe there is a place for both types of films.
Every Veteran has their own stories to tell and experienced their own version of the war, and has their own opinion about the war on a micro and macro level.
Platoon is a movie, designed for entertainment purposes; not a documentary. Not every Vietnam veteran was directly involved in combat, even though the director, Oliver Stone, served in-country for 7-months and was decorated; it's difficult to translate the combat experience to the big screen.
I saw this movie as a child and thought it was fantastic but having seen it after being deployed downrange; it was nearly comical, especially the scene where SGT Elias (Willem Dafoe) is killed.
Unfortunately, this movie is very dated and doesn't stand the test of time both as a narrative and it's attempt to capture the war experience.
"Toto, I've [got] a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."
Some of the scenes in Platoon are still iconic to this day. The burning of the Village is definitely a stand out in the history of cinema.
Shall we play a game?
[deleted]
Well if your friend the Vietnam Vet said he liked We Were Soldiers better then I certainly respect his opinion and thank him for his service. As far as my personal opinion goes Platoon is 10 times the movie We Were Soldiers is because Platoon actually has well fleshed out and defined characters and it's about people and the emotional struggles that they went through. We Were Soldiers was an action fest, and a very shallow movie in my honest opinion. The only character who was well developed was Mel Gibson, everyone else seemed like an extra. I feel like after Saving Private Ryan came out a lot of directors were like "wow that opening battle was so cool, what if we made a movie that was 80% an entire battle sequence." We Were Soldiers and Black Hawk Down are prime examples, they are all action, no story.
"I really wish Gia and Claire had became Tanner" - Honeybeefine
The battle in these movies were the story. If you note, Platoon was a fictionalized account of Vietnam. Not one of the depictions was a real person. Blackhawk Down and We Were Soldiers were nonfiction accounts and the characters were all based on real men.
shareBut those movies were nothing but violence, and both films didn't bother to tell us about any of the real men with the exception of Hal Moore. If that's the kind of movie you like then that's fine but let's just be honest about what they really are...Action movies.
I'm also apparently not the only person who feels this way because Platoon won Best Picture and Best Director and is considered to be one of the greatest war films ever, neither WWS or BHD reached that level of critical acclaim. Also I am by no means a military history buff but I heard that the Ewan McGregor character in BHD was a complete work of fiction, so it seems like BHD may not be 100% accurate either.
"I really wish Gia and Claire had became Tanner" - Honeybeefine
The different responses suggest that Vietnam remains controversial. Someone from the long logistical tail would have had different experiences from someone in the field units and if they returned home, have different attitudes. Blacks might feel different from whites etc. WW1 veterans in many countries who survived reacted differently too - some were pacifists, others could not adjust to life without fighting, going as far as to participate in often fascist paramilitary groups.
"Chicken soup - with a *beep* straw."
We Were Soldiers is far better than Platoon which is vastly overrated IMHO.
It's all a deep end.
I served as a 0311 Marine rifleman in Vietnam 1967-68. 13 mos. Never heard anyone using the "N" word. The black and Hispanic people I served with were indistinguishable from white people regarding whatever array of personal characteristics you'd want to discuss. No one gets shot repeatedly by a 7.62×39mm cartridge, gets up and continues running. Never heard of the NVA in I Corps cutting someone's throat, tying them to a pole and putting a sign around his neck. Most people would be amazed at the ordinariness of the grunts I served with. One or two years post high school. The characters in the movie were generally accurate amalgamations of people we all served with. I thought the guy who played company commander was especially authentic as was the 2nd lieutenant. Never met anyone like Barnes. King character was excellent. Bunny and Junior characters were caricatures. I thought the firefight at the end was Hollywoodish. Exciting. I appreciate the fact that the movie had to sell and make money. We Were Soldiers had an over the top quality about it. I think a movie about LZ Albany would have been better. That was the second big battle of the Ia Drang. There were frightening stories floating around about it when I arrived in Vietnam.
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