Platoon

When I tell people that Platoon, directed by Oliver Stone, is tied with It's A Wonderful Life for the #1 spot on my list of movie favorites, the reaction is almost palpable. One could not find two other movies on such opposite sides of the emotional spectrum, let alone the cinematographical meter. However, just as the black-and-white classic directed by Frank Capra tugs on some of my heartstrings and sends me down nostalgia road, so does this Vietnam War epic. One of the first films to accurately depict the conflicts of American soldiers on the war front (other films generally hid the fact that Americans were just as brutal as, if not more than, their Viet Cong enemies) and not just the political conflicts that ensued back on American land, this film was a breeder for many respectable, soon-to-be iconic actors such as Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. As the poster above shows, Oliver Stone was a master cinematographer -- Willem Dafoe's character, Elias, suffers a severe act of betrayal, and lifts his hands up not as though to ask for divine help, but rather, in my opinion, as if he were giving up, as if he were grieving for mankind which he realizes right before death is actually never going to receive any kind of help. It's a severe moment in the movie, and the Samuel Barber score of Adagio for Strings reinforces the emotional significance of the death. Played throughout the film in one form or another, this score is truly a symbol of tragedy, and contrasts nicely with some humorous parts of the film where songs of the pop culture back then are played by the soldiers to remind themselves of the home country that sent them there and for which they remain fighting. All in all, the war aspect of the film keeps action lovers satisfied, while the music and terribly great acting keeps the drama lovers more than satisfied. Oliver Stone has a way of revealing to the public things that previously were not prevalently known (i.e. JFK, to be reviewed later on). That's a tongue twister sentence, I know, but you get the idea.

Show me the money,

Amanda