PatsWillWin
Footballguy
I just watched this movie. I thought it had some flaws, but overall it was very powerful. The acting was great, and the stark contrast of the different acts was just jarring. One minute you're at a big, warm, fun wedding and then hunting with friends, and virtually the next thing you see is some Vietcong guy execute a bunch of civilians before getting set on fire by Deniro. Then, poof, they're in the cage on the river and the first Russian roulette sequence happens.
Some people are critical because there doesn't seem to be any documented instances of the Russian roulette thing happening. I never really took this movie as any kind of historical account of the Vietnam War. Maybe I knew that the Russian roulette thing wasn't real heading into the moving, I can't remember, but this was a movie about the affects of war, in general, on the characters in it. It could've been the Korean War or World War I or whatever. The actual game was a metaphor or whatever.
It was just heart-breaking what happened to those three guys. Steve ends up a cripple and doesn't feel like he fits at home with his own family. He didn't die, but he may have well have (until Mike brings him back to his house against his protests). Walken's character (forget his name - Dave?) was the friendliest dude at the beginning, and he just breaks under the PTSD. Mike tells us early on that he only really cares about Walken, all of the other friends are kinda dooshes ("If it weren't for you, I'd just hunt alone") and in the end, all he wants to do is go save Walken. He gets there, but like Steve and his family, they're together, but they're not really together (briefly) because Walken is in crazyland.
The America the Beautiful thing at the end as a little much, reminded me of the rat at the end of the Departed.
But overall, great watch.
Some people are critical because there doesn't seem to be any documented instances of the Russian roulette thing happening. I never really took this movie as any kind of historical account of the Vietnam War. Maybe I knew that the Russian roulette thing wasn't real heading into the moving, I can't remember, but this was a movie about the affects of war, in general, on the characters in it. It could've been the Korean War or World War I or whatever. The actual game was a metaphor or whatever.
It was just heart-breaking what happened to those three guys. Steve ends up a cripple and doesn't feel like he fits at home with his own family. He didn't die, but he may have well have (until Mike brings him back to his house against his protests). Walken's character (forget his name - Dave?) was the friendliest dude at the beginning, and he just breaks under the PTSD. Mike tells us early on that he only really cares about Walken, all of the other friends are kinda dooshes ("If it weren't for you, I'd just hunt alone") and in the end, all he wants to do is go save Walken. He gets there, but like Steve and his family, they're together, but they're not really together (briefly) because Walken is in crazyland.
The America the Beautiful thing at the end as a little much, reminded me of the rat at the end of the Departed.
But overall, great watch.
