Review of Apocalypse Now (1979) by Amanda C — 18 Nov 2018

"Apocalypse Now", released in 1979, follows the story of Captain Willard who is sent on a mission to Cambodia to kill a colonel who has gone AWOL. The film made me feel enthralled because there was so much going on.

I felt like I couldn't look away for a second without missing something. It made me think how hard and strenuous it was being a part of the Vietnam War, and the chaos and disorder. I would say that this film qualifies as more of an action film.

While there isn't action in every other scene, the action that is there is certainly intense and crazy. Written by Francis Ford Coppola and John Milius, the story of the film was incredible. I particularly enjoyed the scene on the boat where the guys are listening to an announcement on the radio signaling the correct way to hang clothes to dry, as the mayor of Saigon wants to keep the city looking beautiful.

The irony of that statement considering the city was in the midst of the war made me chuckle. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, I thought that the film was incredibly well-done especially considering it was such a huge feat.

One series of shots that I enjoyed was when Martin Sheen's character is narrating his mission and looking through his packet on Kurtz, the shots go from an extreme close-up of his eyes to his files that he's looking through.

Edited by Lisa Fruchtman, Gerald B. Greenberg, and Walter Murch, I found the pacing of the film to be a little slow at times. One series that I did enjoy where the pacing picked up more was when the guys decide to bomb the town that will give them the vantage point into Cambodia.

The way that that scene was edited as the helicopters are making their way into the town and you see the villagers realize what's going on and scatter really added to the tension. Led by Martin Sheen, the cast of the film is truly the best of the best.

One of my favorite scenes was when Robert Duvall's character was standing around waiting for an opportunity to go surfing. Despite a serious situation, he exudes a lightheartedness that is fun to watch.

With the cinematography by Vittorio Storaro, I particularly enjoyed this shot where the boat drives away and there's all of these great shadows on the water and the sky is this golden yellow. It offers a little magic and beauty in an otherwise intense film.

Personally, I struggled with the sound design a little. In the scene where they had just bombed the village, and the guys were wanting to go surfing it was difficult to hear the conversations. The film was certainly professional work, and I felt that the production value overall was great.

I would say that I would like for them to make the movie shorter, but I did also choose to watch the director's cut.