Whenever I bring up the topic of great Vietnam movies, nobody's even heard of Casualties of War. Something is wrong here. Is the idea of Marty McFly as a war vet so repulsive? Or do people just hate to see their troops depicted in such horrible manner? If anything, I think this movie deserves the same recognition the likes of Platoon, Apocalypse Now and Full Metal Jacket get.
sharebecause it was made by brian de palma '' whom i consider one of the greatest directors of all times '' but there's just a lot of unjustified hate against him..
I rank scarface and carlito's way much better gangster movie than the godfather trilogy of goodfellas but they are never officially recognized like those movies.. never the less my favourite movies to him are his suspense thrillers . and i don't like war movies generally ..and i watched this movie js cause he directed it...and WOW.. it's one the darkest non-cliche war movies ever and it should have won an Oscar and be way more popular.
Yes it should be more popular.Fox is great in it,but I think he's probably one of the reasons why it's not more popular.Alot of people have a problem with him doing serious roles.I don't know why,he was perfect for the part.And he gave a brilliant,restrained performance,unlike Penn.
And alot of people have a problem with the ending.Some people think it ends too upbeat.Huh?It's one of the saddest endings ever IMO.
If it had ended after the soldiers had been sentenced,that would have been more upbeat and rounded off,but it ends with Fox talking to the vietnamese girl,and I find it a much better ending and more sentimental.It implies that he's going to have to live with the horror and guilt of the murdered girl for the rest of his life.
And Ennio Morricone's haunting score is effective and adds to the emotion.One of my favourite and underrated movie scores ever.
The only problem I have with the film is a slight bloated pace to the middle section.And an other little quibble is the title."Casualties Of War"implies an all out war movie,when it's really a low-key vietnam war drama.In a way,it's a crime drama that just happens to be set during the Vietnam War.But at the same time,COW was the title of the article published by Daniel Lang about the incident.
It's not a film I can watch often because of the subject matter,but it's a very good film which deserves a wider audience.
Michael J. Fox was outstanding in this film.....and should have received an Oscar nom for it.
shareSeriously? That's sarcasm right?
shareI agree. BTTF has always been one of my favorites but when you see Fox's performance in CoW, it really shows how versatile an actor he really is. The greatest actors are ones who are capable of playing a wide array of characters and Fox has not only done that, but done plenty of unique characters in the process.
shareI think much of this had to do with the time of release. CASUALTIES came out at the tail-end of a decade-long cycle of Vietnam action/drama movies.
From what I remember, the press concurred that while it was a good film, it didn't seem like DePalma came up with anything that hadn't already been said in a slew of other Vietnam films.
This is my favourite Vietnam War film and doesn't belong in the shadow of Platoon or Full Metal Jacket.This film is very gruelling but I always find myself re-watching it because I'm a fan of Michael J.Fox,and I love the cinematography,and Ennio Morricone's music.Unlike Platoon,it's not actually about the Vietnam War,this could have been set during any war.Every scene under De Palma's direction is a visual feast IMO.
shareGot lost in the shuffle, I guess. I don't think it's in the same class as the three movies you named, but that isn't really grounds for its lack of popularity.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MbrhsWGrEdA
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The subject matter is difficult to watch, not just because of the atrocity itself, but because it ends up being a stain on America.
This film came out when everyone was rah-rah American... There were a few films that starting being critical of American policy like Platoon and and Born on the 4th, but we've come to except it with Oliver Stone... WHen it starts to come at you from all directions, you'll eventually try to tune it out..
I also didn't look at it as another Nam movie but the atrocity that goes on in any country that is raveged in war.
Your nobody until somebody kills you.
This film is an atrocity. That it could come from a talented director like DePalma is bizarre.
shareBecause it wasn't Platoon or Full Metal Jacket and it generally covered something other than soldiers in fear for their lives out in the field.
When theres no more room in Hollywood, remakes shall walk the Earth.share
I think it's because of the subject matter being much more uncomfortable. It's bad enough to see a bunch of young men trying to survive in a harsh environment, it's another to see them hold a vietnamese girl to rape and murder without remorse.
I actually got into this flick not knowing exactly what it was about, aside that it's another Nam film. Once the vietnamese girl came into the picture that's when I realized why I never saw this aired on TV like FULL METAL JACKET or PLATOON. This is not an easy film to watch. That whole sequence with the girl walking down the tracks all bloodied up was pretty horrifying. And the fact that Penn's character for no reasons seems intent on not letting her go alive. It's sickening.
It's a really well made film, it's just not an easy one to go through and that's why it doesn't get as much discussion.