It was perfection until the mass fight between the villagers which came out of nowhere and it was the only sequence that wasn't brilliantly directed. Also the final coda scene between the two young people as university students in the city was totally unnecessary. It was so poignant when the young US soldier leaves on the train, and then the fireworks going off would have been the perfect counterpoint on which to end the film.
shareI have a strong feeling that Nemescu would have ended the film exactly as you describe it had he been alive during the completion of the edit. And about the 'eruption of violence' at the end. I understand what you're saying and I too had those thoughts that it came out of nowhere (although it was set-up in an earlier scene with the Captain that explains this) but in the grand scheme of things - that scene was necessary to illustrate the point about American involvement in wars. It's allegorical. And the entire film is about this idea, albeit on a microscopic level.
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