Review of 1969 (1988) by Lj W — 09 Oct 2007
In the end, if Lifetime channel did a movie about the Vietnam era it might have been this movie. The problems I had with it: Why do the random people in the streets join the march at the end when they could not possibly know what they were marching about? It's not like they were holding picket signs or anything. And, how does Robert Downey Jr.'s character become this martyr for an antiwar movement? He was just a goofball druggie. And, what about that cheesy "kodak" moment at the end when they all stopped to take a family photo in the middle of a so-called "protest.".
On the positive side, the soundtrack was great (except the cheesy 80's synth generic "climactic moment of the film" background music at the end). Overall, though, you can't go wrong with the music from the 60's. And, the odd couple friendship between Kiefer Sutherland's character and Robert Downey Jr.'s character seemed to work. And, overall, the acting was quality with notable performances from Mariette Hartley, Joanne Woodward, and Bruce Dern. It was just the story that didn't work. I felt that even if it was focused on a small town's experience during the Vietnam war, it could have gone into why the nation was torn over the war, how long it went on, and how many troops were lost during the war. Instead, you get the feeling that the one soldier in the town who dies was enough to spark antiwar sentiment in the town. Either they could have developed the background better, or, they could have developed more of the "everyone knows each other" nature of the small town. Instead, you don't ever meet anyone outside of the two families, the cop that knows Ralph by name, and the nerdy girl who seems close to developmentally disabled. So, you don't see how the soldier's death at the end could move the community, because there is no closeness seen between him and the rest of the community.
Overall, this is movie was mediocre. It might have been a nice change of pace from what else was out in the late 80's, but nothing special overall.
This review of 1969 (1988) was written by Lj W on 09 Oct 2007.
1969 has generally received mixed reviews.
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