journal features

movie review - Apocalypse Now

the journal of Michael Werneburg

twenty-eight years and a million words

Toronto, 1997.06.21

Old and weird, but still as nightmarish as I suspect it originally was. This is a Vietnam flick with little illusion to why America lost. The main character is sent on a mission to kill a rogue member of the same US forces. He's way up river and is thought to have gone native. But it's just PTSD; about a billion tonnes of it.

There is some great photography here, and it makes full use of the pop music of the day in what would become a lasting cliche involving helicopters and the Rolling Stones. There are many iconic scenes in this thing that virtually everyone knows. It really is quite a unique movie.

Strongly recommended. Despite/because of all its madness.

rand()m quote

Naturally the common people don't want war: Neither in Russia, nor in England, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.

—Hermann Goering