Review of Casualties of War (1989) by Steven R — 01 Jan 2010

Oh Vietnam. This Brian DePalma flick has been readily assaulted over the years as being anti-American, which is unfair both to the content of the film, and the fact that it is based on actual events (the rape and murder of an innocent Vietnamese villager at the hands of 4 U.

S. soldiers). I suppose it is easy for a war film to rest on a plot regarding a dilemma in humanity and morality, and this one definitely does that, but it does it without the overexposure of cheap explosions, gun-standoffs and gore.

In actuality the U.S. military does the right thing regarding these soldiers so the criticisms have been down right nonsensical, like most cultural disputes from the right tend to be.