Review of Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse (1991) by Neil A — 30 Sep 2011

This is probably the best documentary you'll ever see about the process of filmmaking.

"Hearts of Darkness" documents the disastrous and painful filming of Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now. Through interviews with cast and crew members and footage from the actual filming, you get a first-row view of the catastrophes that plagues the production - Marlon Brando's noncooperation, Charlie Sheen's heart attack and alcohol-fueled breakdown, the typhoon that destroyed half the set and equimpent, and more.

But more than that you get insight into Francis Ford Coppola's own psyche, and the painstaking process he went through with his last great film, and one he still considers a failure. It's the portrait of a man who allowed himself to become a dictator and a god, and then crashed to complete depression and despair - more than once.

"Hearts of Darkness" is essential for true film lovers, because it provides real insights into the process and the art of creating a film, and what it meant to be a director in the age of the auteur, when directors were given free rein with their films - and not always for the best.