Review of Apocalypse Now (1979) by Michael W — 11 Mar 2014

Apocalypse Now is an example of tremendous film making, an artistic milestone of the 20th century. This was a product largely of the imagination of its director Francis Ford Coppola, who in telling a story about an assassin during the Vietnam war also encapsulates a metaphorical regression of human history to the point of creation and original sin, along with a tapestry of literary, cultural and biblical allusions. Few films have such ambition in their storytelling.

To watch this film and to know its context, is to experience an immersion into a nihilistic and indeed apocalyptic viewpoint of the human condition throughout our history. I consider it to be at least one of the best films I have seen, and I strongly recommend both seeing it, and listening to the wide scope of commentary that exists on it.