Platoon (1986)
Popular actors in an unpopular war.
Presentation:
One of the more subjective war films, Platoon draws comparisons to Malick’s The Thin Red Line. This film is occasionally narrated by Charlie Sheen, which provides a more literary experience. It’s just odd seeing Sheen in this semi-educated book loving role. Despite have an awesome cast particularly with Willem Dafoe, the madness never reaches the same heights as Full Metal Jacket. Where this film differentiates from the others is it’s subjective storytelling with long lenses and handheld camera movement. There are also a few ultra wides that end up being cropped in so we experience the distortion but it’s more a subconscious feel if you’re not looking for it. This is likely because it was intended to be in 2.35 aspect ratio crops to 1.85 to focus in on the faces. There are some moments that have a Malick-esque realism to the point of feeling like a vlog. The production is no Saving Private Ryan, combat scenes are underwhelming with fireworks and loud noises added in post for the guns. Rain when it’s sunny and impossibly lit nighttime scenes are also a distraction. The red eye effect borrowed from Bladerunner is pretty cool though. What keeps the film relevant are its iconic performances, roles and scenes. I mean you can’t not love Willem Dafoe!
Conclusion:
Popular actors in the most unpopular war. Back when Charlie Sheen was actually winning, this was honestly a fun film you’d watch on cable TV. For this reason I never experienced the beginning of it until I rewatched now but I think it was worth it. The hallmark of a rewatchable film is whether it has iconic performances and scenes and this film has loads of them. It’s one of those films where you could have watched all the scene highlights online but never watched it all the way through. But you probably should because there are so many fantastic cinematic nuggets here and there, providing material for future films and parodies to come. Vietnam is truly the most cinematic war and you could make endless films about it. Although this is one of the more criticized films for simplistic takes bordering on propaganda, it still takes a seat behind but close to the greats.
Recommendations
Winter wonder epic in Bolshevik Russia.