I do like how Terry grew as a character but, I don't understand why he'd be trying to get himself wounded. He'd already been there for a year and his rotation would be coming up in a couple of days.
Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.
Well either he didn't know that or he figured he would be staying on or something. I don't think most soldiers were only in Nam for just one year.
shareStandard rotation was 12 months and then the got to go stateside. The only thing that I can think of is that since he was a Warrant Office and a member of a heli crew, they had an extended rotation.
Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.
More than likely, though you'd be hard pressed to identify that he is a warrant officer (apart from insignia) by the way he is treated in the film. I don't think anyone involved grasped the fact that a warrant officer is not the same as a private and does not do latrine duty. Okay, it's punishment; but, still... Meanwhile, when he was chastised for being in officer's country; uh, he is an officer. My experience is the Navy (as an officer) and warrant officers ate in the wardroom, lived in officer's country and were part of the officer community, though most had greater affinity for the Chiefs' Mess. I doubt the Army was that different.
Fortunately, Ah keep mah feathers numbered for just such an emergency!
Probably true, but I know they don't let enlisted men fly helicopters.
Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, son.
Seems as if none of the writers even thought to consult a military adviser, or the producers did not see fit to hire one. Poor writing all around, especially in the Vietnam bit. Really, did Terry the Toad think that the VC would just let him waltz out of there unmolested? He would not have made it to daylight out there. Or did the writers have a total brain collapse writing for that part of the movie.
"check the imdb cast list before asking who portrayed who in movies please"
Great points man. And he didn’t behave like a warrant officer; trying to shirk his duty to fly wounded soldiers out who needed rescue in that first scene where he’s so angry at the new pilot for volunteering them for the mission. No Viet Nam helicopter crew would behave like that let alone an officer.
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