I've had to use a few older videos because I couldn't record a bit :) I do know you want longer videos but it's hard to make things longer again after they've been edited a while back. The videos will get longer again, no worries :).
The music / soundtrack was amazing, wasn't it? Scene: when he's standing there at the top of the temple after killing Kurtz, contemplating that he's now the god they will worship. TEMPTATION TO RULE IN HELL! Fortunately, he declined.
I just wanted to complain :) hehe, but I know your life will change quite a bit in a few weeks :) I'm happy for you, but I'm also going to miss seeing a lot of your stuff in the future ... because believe it or not .... but this little one is going to eat up all your energy and time in the years to come .... my son is now 2 1/2 and yes ... life is different :) but very beautiful, do not get me wrong :)
You should watch Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse, the documentary about how this movie was made and how it was HELL for everyone involved.
My favorite line in the movie: “We train young men to drop fire on people, but their commanders won't allow them to write 'f***' on their airplanes because it's obscene.”
Yeah that is a great quote as well. I love how this film depicts the disgusting double standards of war. And how people split hairs differentiating what evil is acceptable.
Personally cannot pick a favorite line because it is so well-written that you can select at least 30 lines that are absolutely top caliber screenwriting.
This movie is in its own category. It's a Vietnam war movie based on a much older book, The Heart of Darkness, and is an allegory about the descent of one person into madness. As you said, there is so much in this to analyze.
The trip into the jungle was like going into his own mind. The deeper he went the darker and crazier it got. It finally got to the source of the crazy, killed it, and emerged a new man.
The parts seen through the viewpoint of Lance (while he was trippin' balls) were crazy. The way the entire battle seemed like some kind of strange carnival... eerie yet somehow apt.
Essentially a retelling of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, but with the Vietnam War as the backdrop instead of deepest darkest Africa. An iconic film that is a classic forever...but in many ways, not really a "war movie".
It's kind of sad that younger people will never see movies like this in a theater on a big screen. Movies like this are made specifically for the big screen.
I saw it at the cinerama dome when it was first released.. pre-release even maybe as they didn't even have credits yet and they handed out a booklet instead...it was pretty spectacular in 70mm wrap around and dolby sound... you heard the helicopters coming from overhead before you saw them
The first time I saw this was in grainy black and white 4:3 on an old TV. Didn't make it any less powerful. I was totally sucked in. A good story well told is that wherevert you watch it.
"I watched a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor. This is my dream; this is my nightmare. Crawling, slithering, along the edge of a straight razor, and surviving." ~ Colonel Kurtz
just FYI...it's an amazing line, but you misquoted. Correct quote: "I watched a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor. That's my dream; it's my nightmare. Crawling, slithering, along the edge of a straight razor, and surviving." 👍
Also a forerunner to this which inspired it, was the incredible "Aguirre, the Wrath of God"....a whole other level of insanity. one look at the films boxcover is disturbing enough, and, from a visual/aural stand point has arguably the most mystifying, awe inspiring, terrifying, and breathtaking opening scene ever filmed.
“Never get out of the boat. Absolutely goddamn right. Unless you were goin' all the way. Kurtz got off the boat. He split from the whole f***in' program” one of my favorite movie lines ever.
@@USCFlash not sure i would say lightweight on Fishburne, a four time Emmy winner, a Tony winner and Oscar nominee. Also appearing in some massive franchises like the Matrix. But yes Duvall definitely needs mentioned.
@@senorstinkfist still an acting lightweight on the big screen...very few elite critically acclaimed films...only roles in elite critically acclaimed films are minor ones. franchises don't matter. chris Evans is in franchises...he is a lightweight with virtually no critically acclaimed works. fishburne always does the same thing. he has 3 Emmys not four.... -Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series 30 years ago -Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series (award created 7 years ago) -Daytime Emmy Awards part of voice ensemble for an animated short nothing notable there. he did a great job in Boyz N the Hood. that's about it.
In most of SE Asia, especially maritime countries, "Monsoon" or "Rain" isn't so much a weather event, it's an entire season between Spring and Summer, in some places replacing one or both of those seasons altogether.
Well, parts of Costa Rica and parts of SE Asia also have a tropical rainforest climate, which is different from a tropical monsoon climate in that there's almost constant rainfall all year and no pronounced dry or wet season.
Jungle warfare must be one of the worst environments to fight in. Hot, humid, burning, thick vegetation, muddy trails, insects, disease… and then add war… The horror, the horror…
For me, this is one of the two great Vietnam movies along with The Deer Hunter. The exploration of the horrors of war on individual people, are so well presented in the setting of a totally non-objective war. Some war films try to do the same in WW2, but it just falls flat. The US should never have sent even one soldier to Vietnam, in a situation that presented no threat to a single US citizen.
Maybe the language, when he said, "I wanted another mission and, for my sins, they gave me one..." One does not get rewarded for their sins. This mission was divine punishment.
When the captain shot the girl in the boat and said"I told you not to stop the boat". A mission this highly classified comes first and the captain of the boat should know that
European connection to Vietnam War: French colonial outpost for rubber (Michelin tires) and ship resupply, US provided a bunch of support for the French to retake control after the Japanese took over, then took over the war after the French were defeated (a bit more complicated)
In addition to being about the Vietnam War, this movie is also a rather free adaptation of Joseph Conrad's 1899 novel HEART OF DARKNESS. In both the novel and the movie, traveling upriver through a hostile jungle (the Congo, in the book) becomes a metaphor for exploring one's own inner psyche. 2:52 - Did you recognise Harrison Ford? If not, don't worry -- apparently George Lucas didn't either! 16:05 - Inoculating means giving them an immunising shot.
I think Kurtz wanted that Willard either broke and became a follower (possibly a victim) or proved himself strong enough to be worthy of killing him. He was aware of what he had become. Willard found his strength and purpose and completed his mission. I don't think he became Kurtz. The followers just saw him as untouchable and as god, having just killed theirs.
Saw this in Imax on a re-release a few years after it's first run. The cinematography on the very big screen is unbelievable. In as far as Coppola, Spielberg, Lucas et al completely changing the art form with each new film, this was no exception.
I saw the re-release they did a while back but I'd love to see it in Imax. I don't think watching it at home captures the experience like seeing it in the theater (even with a great home theater setup) Yes, I realize you can say that about almost any film but I feel like with this one seeing it all comfy at home takes a bit of the vulnerability away and it doesn't get inside you quite the way it does in a dark theater surrounded by strangers.
Coming Home is a truly great after-war movie that won multiple Oscars and deals powerfully with injured veterans and the women they return to. Coming Home (1978) Jon Voight, Jane Fonda.
I liked your introduction. A good summary of how you feel. It is not that we “enjoy” difficult movies, but when done well that can tell a story and help us understand what we can not experience. Keep up the good work when you can. 👍
My favorite part is that you like dark content. PLEASE do David Lynch! "Blue Velvet" is a great first one to try out! But most of his stuff: "Eraserhead", "Elephant Man", Wild At Heart", "Lost Highway" and "Mullholland Drive" (and the Twin Peaks saga). All dark, and super wild! But start with "Blue Velvet"! Also: "Sophie's Choice" is a FANTASTIC, dark, intense movie, Meryl Streep's greatest, most groundbreaking and iconic performance.....and no reactions for it yet!!! "Network" is a fantastic, dark satire, a must-see. Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange", "Dr. Strangelove", "Lolita".....all wickedly, super-dark satires. (and his "Paths Of Glory" is one of the best war movies ever). "All That Jazz" is a dazzling, entertaining, wild movie....but also dark! "After Hours" and "The King Of Comedy" are two dark comedies from Scorsese, fantastic movies.
The redux version you watched is the best version imo because it feels like a long journey up the river and like taking in a novel. Check out Hearts of Darkness too, it's one of the best documentaries about filmmaking and it has loads of information like how the actors suggested the riverboat massacre.
This will also explain a lot of the themes of the movie, its connection to Heart of Darkness and the Odyssey, and the mind and madness of (a young!) Francis Ford Coppola.
Looks like you missed a small Harrison Ford role, curious to see if you spot a very young Lawrence Fishburne. I picked Ford out by voice when I saw it in a theater in 1979, not 2001. You must be watching a director’s cut or redux edition. They handed out programs when I saw it, I don’t think there were even credits. There was a controversial ending and there were multiple versions beyond that similar to the way they treated Blade Runner.
In the full unedited reaction on Mary's Patreon, she recognized Harrison Ford immediately. The person who did this TH-cam edit for some reason decided to leave that part out.
This is my favorite film, Mary. I watched it the first time, and immediately watched it again. Then Redux streamed 2 days later. I watched that twice as well. It's a great version of In the Heart of Darkness.
You should react to the ‘Last of the Mohican’? It about the British colonial times in America prior to the War of Independence. The common interactions with the natives and the butchery on all sides of the conflict! It’s also a very good romance movie that you might end up crying… My wife of 36 years did… God Bless…
This movie is an artistic retelling of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness in the backdrop of the recently ended Vietnam War instead of the Congo Frijstaat. Production was an absolute nightmare involving budget issues, several cast members nearly dying, and studio meddling for the film to be the highest grossing movie of 1979 and one of the greatest antiwar movies of all time.
The entire movie is a metaphor for the insanity of the Vietnam War. The insanity of the war broke Colonel Kurtz. His speeches were broken and contradictory as a reflection of the war.
This is a great movie 🎥 and since they have done some new versions to bring it full circle ⭕️ it’s awesome…The thing with the colonel saving the baby is in war you have to become a monster 👹 but not lose your humanity..That is the trick in being a good soldier…😊
God daddy Sheen is so like his son! I love this movie. It is dark and all that but still it is uplifting somehow. That is why it is a classic, I suppose.
Totally agree, in fact I generally prefer theatrical release versions of films (Blade Runner and Alien for example. "The Lord of The Rings" films are an exception.)
@@rustincohle2135 yes there's an extended version of alien, that's kinda slightly better than the theatrical cut except it includes an edited scene that isn't canon and mebbe spoils an unveiling in aliens,, but it's still a great watch and has more to it ,, which is great ,, I don't particularly care for the directors cut of aliens tho
Alas Coppola keeps tinkering with the film and making it worse. The original 1979 version (the result of two years of editing effort) with the original end credits was the best.
"...with extreme prejudice." Man, I still get goosebumps. One of those flicks you just press "Like" on principle alone. Wonderful watch-along with you Mary, thanks for this one.
Greatest war movie ever made because the movie had a dark side to it and that's the way it was in Vietnam. I tried to get so many reactors to watch this
The use of Flight of the Valkyries has a very different meaning for someone that isn't engrossed in American Cinema history. That scene specifically is invoking Birth of a Nation's iconic / infamous scene when the KKK rides to the rescue against the occupying Union forces (all of whom were black).
If you ever get a chance, watch the documentary about the making of this movie - it was wild. Two examples: the scene where Sheen breaks down in the hotel room was actually him breaking down, and the dead bodies at Kurtz's compound weren't props - they were real corpses.
@@rustincohle2135 Theatrical is most definitely NOT the definitive. theres a reason Coppola made two more versions. The redux version says things the theatrical version doesnt. Coppola regarded the theatrical version as crap. Who to be guided by? The guy who nearly lost everything making the movie or some random on the internet?
The movie is in part a loose adaptation of "Heart of Darkness" (1899) by Joseph Conrad. The novel is about how indigenous peoples ("savages") in an African colony are little different from "civilized" Europeans when it comes to the use of power or of morality. This may interest you, historically. Though not explicitly stated in the novella, the references of the "great river", Belgian trading company, Belgian owned land infer it is King Leopold II of Belgium's personal fiefdom, not even a Belgian national colony, in what is now the Congo Free State. The novel is considered one of the greatest in the English language.
Such a massive movie. Not just because it's long, but this movie shaped so much of the movie industry after it. Kinda like Full Metal Jacket, this always seemed like two movies to me. The first half dominated by Kilgore, the second half dominated by Kurtz. Two legendary actors in two legendary "wait what even IS this person" roles.
Its massive in every sense of the Word. The scale is huge - It feels like there is always something happening in the background especialy during Kilgore scenes and scenes at Kurtz compound with tribe, there is so much detail in it.
Mary, if you're looking for more Vietnam war movies, watch Platoon, Hamburger Hill, and Full Metal Jacket. BTW the word inoculate is when you give people a vaccine, in this case for Polio.
Thanks for watching. I remember back in 1979 when I first saw this on the big screen, it was one of those movies that left me completely dazed as I came out of the cinema like I had really been transported both physically and psychologically to another world, leaving me with more questions than answers. One of the most brilliant films ever made, that's for sure.
I saw APOCALYPSE NOW in the theatres when it first came out and I was in the state of shock when I left. Having grown up with the war I fully expected to be drafted into it immediately after graduation. And being tall and not having a very strong survival instinct I figured that would be all she wrote for me. And my lottery number was number 3 that year too so I would have definitely gone if not for the fact that they abolished the draft that year. Having no other life plans at the time I might have joined anyway but I figured it best not to tempt fate so I decided I should probably start planning on living a long life instead of dying young, maybe even go to college. Anyway this movie coming out 10 years later kind of really showed me what I imagined I'd missed. I'd seen movies on this war before but Coppola knowing it was impossible to convey the horror of the entire war in a single movie wisely chose to use the genre of surrealism to fit it all in. That is how I saw it anyway. Everything was exaggerated to give the audience an idea of the PTSD those who actually fought the war came home with. So while I was walking out of the theatre feeling like I'd just been in the war, I was amazed at the person walking nearby to his car complaining to his wife that it was the worst movie he'd ever seen. How can two people see the exact same thing and arrive at completely different conclusions? I wondered. Sounds like you had a similar experience to mine, however, so enjoy your PTSD while it lasts.
Great review I think u captured the movie in your review. War is bad n icky the way u feel after watching. It i hope makes everyone feel the same way. summation 10/10
Inoculate means to give vaccinations. They vaccinated the children against childhood diseases, and the terrorists came and cut off all the children's arms. There are other movies about the Vietnam war that are more straightforward than this one. I don't know which ones you have already seen. This movie is art, inspired by the war in Vietnam.
Good day to you...here are some war movies that i think you will enjoy reacting to....A Bridge too far...Midway...We were Soldiers...Platoon...Courage under fire.
Based on the book Heart Of Darkness, how European 'civilized' countries (Belgium in the book) had to 'civilize' the Africans whom they thought as savages when in fact the Europeans were the savages. Apocalypse Now retells the story with America bringing 'civilization' to the 'savages' of Vietnam.
George Lucas was the film’s original director. He intended to shoot “Apocalypse Now” as a faux documentary in Vietnam during the war, on 16 mm film with real soldiers.
"Platoon" 1986, "Casualties of War" 1989, "Born on the Fourth of July" 1989 are some of the better Vietnam War films imo. Saw Platoon when it first came out in theaters. Yeah I'm old. The first time I watched Apocalypse Now was in High School journalism class. Middle of the rural conservative America, and more than half my teachers were ex-hippies, which made for a great educational experience as they would challenge status quo a lot, but also were just good people that made learning fun.
A common misconception about the US is that it's a big old shopping mall. I'm from Detroit and I've lived in neighborhoods where it's a literal warzone. I know what it's like to be in mortal danger 24/7. It's horrifying. There are parts of that city that make Somalia look like paradise. I live in Cusco, Peru now and it's hilarious to me when people tell me to be careful in certain parts of town because they think I'm rich and naive. In fact I'm less of both of those things than people in the third world even know. Officials from the UN have come to the US and described "third world conditions of absolute poverty." I'm from one of those places. Fuck capitalism. Every comfortable person is living off of someone else's misery. That's how our world works, and if you don't acknowledge it, it's probably because you're one of the evil shits who's benefiting from it. I refuse to be despite the benefits that my skin color provides and I'm in constant pain for it, but at least my integrity is intact. I wouldn't trade it for anything.
You cut the napalm drop. That was a huge part of Viet Nam. Gellied gasoline caused massive burns to the many people who survived, and they wish they were were killed instantly. As a 15 percent burn patient survivor, I know their pain.
Another surreal war movie is Jarhead (2005). It takes place during the first gulf war. A marine invades Kuwait to free the kingdom from Iraq in 1991. Saddam Hussein ordered all of Kuwait's oil fields to be set a fire and the much of the battle field was covered by black, thick, almost gunky smoke. It underperformed at the box office but was based on real events. This movie is not based on Vietnam but is instead from the horror's that Conrad saw in Belgium Congo and his story Heart of Darkness.
If you want a true experience, after this movie watch Platoon. Apocalypse Now is a movie about Vietnam starring Martin Sheen, and Platoon is a movie about Vietnam starring his son Charlie Sheen.
Even the people, including Francis Ford Coppola were driven crazy during the making of this film. AN shows how war is such a waste of time, money, and human sanity. Vietnam was a 3 ring circus, no one knew who was in charge and they let the lunatics run the asylum. We never declared war in Vietnam, this was called a "police action". Either way, thousands of innocent lives were lost. Marlon Brando was just plain scary as he was an empathetic figure. War is madness, and the innocent always seem to be the ones who suffer. The US's proxy war in Ukraine is a current example of how the US uses Ukraine as cannon fodder for regime change in Russia. Madness ensues. "The Horror"
This is an interesting take on the Vietnam war film genre. Visually it's stunning, psychologically it's very dense, the acting from Martin Sheen was amazing. I think you should also watch his son Charlie Sheen in Platoon and also the documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse which is equally if not more fascinating than this to bring you full circle. ✌
"This is the end, beautiful friend. This is the end, my only friend the end. Of our elaborate plans, the end. Of everything that stands, the end. No safety or surprise, the end. I'll never look into your eyes, again."
Milius made 'Conan the Barbarian' as well. Compare them and you'll find they end the same way, almost identically, in fact. A death with a bent / broken blade, which is thrown down the steps, and hero walks out as everyone bows to him. Except Conan burns the temple, while the US Air Force do that in 'Apocalypse Now'.
Nice reaction - the film very much plays to me like a fever dream, a descent into a nightmare where reality is conjured from the darkness of the jungle and the primal forces that draw people into it. The novella upon which it's based, "Heart of Darkness" is an excellent read, highly atmospheric, and I would highly recommend it. You definately see how they took from it and how both John Milius and Francis Ford Coppola really absorbed the thematic material and atmosphere. The journey is the desination really, almost like he's travelling to meet a mythological entity who has merged with the other side and invites us, the audience, and Sheen's character to join him. A glimpse at another world he's created that ultimately is his downfall. Just some musings on what is a masterpeice of cinema and one that lingers long in the memory. Interestingly enough, George Lucas, who is a good friend of Coppola's, was originally going to make it as a kind of almost documentary style film but ultimately went on to make a little known film (ahem) instead with a certain Luke Skywalker. Funny how things turn out!
I saw this when it first came out as a teenager. It mesmerized me and had a big impact on me. Later read the book it was based on (Heart of Darkness, having nothing to do with Vietnam but instead the exploitation of the Belgian Congo from the eyes of the author, though fictionalized) and was amazed by that as well. This movie is visually stunning, deeply disturbing, and well acted including by a very young Harrison Ford and an even younger Lawrence Fishburn.
My best friend did 2 tours of duty as a combat Marine. He saw both this movie and Platoon. Both he said were as real as bullshit is to oatmeal. The only movie that came close reality was Hamburger Hill. He died before We Were Soldiers came out. A late casually of Agent Orange.
My favorite phrase “who’s in charge here?” “Ain’t u?” I recommend hearts of darkness 1991 doc about this movie; it almost killed the director. inoculate = give one a shot like a vaccine or to cure a disease
None of you young reviewers ever GET IT regarding the sampan scene. Clean opened up on the people on the boat because the young girl did something very dangerous that she would have known better than to do. She ran quickly toward Chef. WHY?! To trip a Claymore mine and blow them all away? Remember the young girl who tossed the grenade into the helicopter and burned all those guys to death? That’s what Clean was trying to prevent. And the girl should have known better. She got her whole family killed. That’s why Chef didn’t want to stop the boat and didn’t want to go on board the sampan, because it was so damn dangerous for all of them to do that. But that was their job, that was their duty, to search the boat to see whether those were VC carrying weapons and supplies south to kill Americans and ARVNS. Another thing no one ever seems to understand is why the chief tried to kill Willard by pulling him down onto the spear tip. He did that with his last dying ounce of strength because he knew that Willard was going to get the crew that he loved killed if Willard wasn’t stopped from continuing his mission.
The transition from watching to now going back to normal everyday life, in a way it's sort of a smaller version of what soldiers from then (from any war probably) talked about, how unreal regular life was when not long before they were someplace where the measure of life and death was very, very different. In that sense, the movie really does its job. It also cribs a lot from Conrad's book _Heart of Darkness_ and captures the tone.
I love your channel and your reactions, Mary. Dont get me wrong, but I think that given this movie this edit of your reaciton is a bit... bad?. Maybe is because I have seen this movie literally dozens of times and i have my important points, but for some reason i think this video edit was lacking. Keep in mind, not your reaction, the edit of it. I will check out your patreon then to compare. Take care.
"I love the smell of napalm in the morning" fucking hardcore but nothing turned me into a pacifist faster than seeing photos of napalm injuries when I was in the Army. Fucking nightmarish shit.
the opening scene where Martin cut his hand on the mirror was real ..he said he wanted to keep the cameras rolling and Coppola did. Sheen had been drinking as his wife did want a divorce. As they made their way up river the chaos , madness was increasing to the viewer and then bam the puppy ! all focus was drawn to the safe harbor of the scene , the innocence .. an example of Coppola's brilliance !
some people are in the right place for their time. though George Washington lead his men in the front... in battle he was never wounded. pon at least five occasions when in great danger from gunfire George Washington remained unscathed. His hat was shot off his head; his clothes were torn; horses were killed beneath him, but the hero was never so much as scratched by a bullet. For this immunity he thanked “Providence.” He also wrote himself down as lucky.
It’s an adaptation to Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” … and exploration of man’s descent into madness set to the crazy, absurd VN war. Kurtz sees the atrocities committed by the VC as strength and decided the only way to beat them is to do what they do.
True story : At the end of the film, we see a buffalo sacrificed. These are not effects. Copolla filmed a real indigenous tribe performing a real ritual sacrifice, and he placed that footage in the film. This is why the scene seems so real: It is...
![[Live] ศึกมหึมันส์มวยไทยสังเวียนเดือด เวทีมวยชั่วคราวสวนสยาม | จันทร์ 30 กันยายน 2567](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/pM1k6f7JXUc/mqdefault.jpg)
I've had to use a few older videos because I couldn't record a bit :) I do know you want longer videos but it's hard to make things longer again after they've been edited a while back. The videos will get longer again, no worries :).
That's what I have noticed at first sight: Too short for such a long movie.
The music / soundtrack was amazing, wasn't it? Scene: when he's standing there at the top of the temple after killing Kurtz, contemplating that he's now the god they will worship. TEMPTATION TO RULE IN HELL! Fortunately, he declined.
,, don't worry life is for living 🥰🕊️🍲🍹
I just wanted to complain :) hehe, but I know your life will change quite a bit in a few weeks :) I'm happy for you, but I'm also going to miss seeing a lot of your stuff in the future ... because believe it or not .... but this little one is going to eat up all your energy and time in the years to come .... my son is now 2 1/2 and yes ... life is different :) but very beautiful, do not get me wrong :)
You should watch Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse, the documentary about how this movie was made and how it was HELL for everyone involved.
My favorite line in the movie: “We train young men to drop fire on people, but their commanders won't allow them to write 'f***' on their airplanes because it's obscene.”
You beat me to it. That’s my favorite quote from this amazing film. 👍🏻
Mine might be "Charging a man with murder in a place like this was like handing out speeding tickets at the Indy 500"
Yeah that is a great quote as well. I love how this film depicts the disgusting double standards of war. And how people split hairs differentiating what evil is acceptable.
Personally cannot pick a favorite line because it is so well-written that you can select at least 30 lines that are absolutely top caliber screenwriting.
It's more about tradition and discipline than it is about it being obscene.
This movie is in its own category. It's a Vietnam war movie based on a much older book, The Heart of Darkness, and is an allegory about the descent of one person into madness. As you said, there is so much in this to analyze.
The trip into the jungle was like going into his own mind. The deeper he went the darker and crazier it got. It finally got to the source of the crazy, killed it, and emerged a new man.
The parts seen through the viewpoint of Lance (while he was trippin' balls) were crazy. The way the entire battle seemed like some kind of strange carnival... eerie yet somehow apt.
Essentially a retelling of Conrad's Heart of Darkness, but with the Vietnam War as the backdrop instead of deepest darkest Africa. An iconic film that is a classic forever...but in many ways, not really a "war movie".
Was hoping Mary might realize this was based on the Belgian Congo.
It's kind of sad that younger people will never see movies like this in a theater on a big screen.
Movies like this are made specifically for the big screen.
Yes, many of these reactors watching on a PC screen.
You really need to sit back in the dark with no distractions and let the story play out.
I saw it at the cinerama dome when it was first released.. pre-release even maybe as they didn't even have credits yet and they handed out a booklet instead...it was pretty spectacular in 70mm wrap around and dolby sound... you heard the helicopters coming from overhead before you saw them
The first time I saw this was in grainy black and white 4:3 on an old TV. Didn't make it any less powerful. I was totally sucked in. A good story well told is that wherevert you watch it.
You will never see practical effects like this again either. The whole helicopter scene was insane without any CGI.
"I watched a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor. This is my dream; this is my nightmare. Crawling, slithering, along the edge of a straight razor, and surviving." ~ Colonel Kurtz
just FYI...it's an amazing line, but you misquoted.
Correct quote:
"I watched a snail crawl along the edge of a straight razor. That's my dream; it's my nightmare. Crawling, slithering, along the edge of a straight razor, and surviving." 👍
so glad she watched this. it is indeed more of an experience than a film. saw this for the first time in 1985 when I was 14 and it was mind-blowing.
Also a forerunner to this which inspired it, was the incredible "Aguirre, the Wrath of God"....a whole other level of insanity. one look at the films boxcover is disturbing enough, and, from a visual/aural stand point has arguably the most mystifying, awe inspiring, terrifying, and breathtaking opening scene ever filmed.
“Never get out of the boat. Absolutely goddamn right. Unless you were goin' all the way. Kurtz got off the boat. He split from the whole f***in' program” one of my favorite movie lines ever.
A movie with Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Harrison Ford, Lawrence Fishburne, Dennis Hopper. Unreal.
certainly a nice combo...but how can you include the relative lightweight Fishburne and leave out the acting heavyweight Robert Duvall?
@@USCFlash I Am Sorry, Sincerely.
How can you not love the smell of napalm in the morning? Hopefully you meant lightweight at the time.
And R. Lee Ermey (one of the helo pilots)
@@USCFlash not sure i would say lightweight on Fishburne, a four time Emmy winner, a Tony winner and Oscar nominee. Also appearing in some massive franchises like the Matrix. But yes Duvall definitely needs mentioned.
@@senorstinkfist
still an acting lightweight on the big screen...very few elite critically acclaimed films...only roles in elite critically acclaimed films are minor ones.
franchises don't matter. chris Evans is in franchises...he is a lightweight with virtually no critically acclaimed works.
fishburne always does the same thing.
he has 3 Emmys not four....
-Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series 30 years ago
-Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Actor in a Short Form Comedy or Drama Series (award created 7 years ago)
-Daytime Emmy Awards part of voice ensemble for an animated short
nothing notable there.
he did a great job in Boyz N the Hood. that's about it.
Nice 👍🏽. I’m here for the “Oh Neee” lol.
This should have plenty. Love your vids.
In most of SE Asia, especially maritime countries, "Monsoon" or "Rain" isn't so much a weather event, it's an entire season between Spring and Summer, in some places replacing one or both of those seasons altogether.
Well, parts of Costa Rica and parts of SE Asia also have a tropical rainforest climate, which is different from a tropical monsoon climate in that there's almost constant rainfall all year and no pronounced dry or wet season.
I Corps in Vietnam, up north, had the reverse monsoon season. The rains started around late September and we didn't see the sun again until March.
Jungle warfare must be one of the worst environments to fight in. Hot, humid, burning, thick vegetation, muddy trails, insects, disease… and then add war… The horror, the horror…
For me, this is one of the two great Vietnam movies along with The Deer Hunter. The exploration of the horrors of war on individual people, are so well presented in the setting of a totally non-objective war. Some war films try to do the same in WW2, but it just falls flat. The US should never have sent even one soldier to Vietnam, in a situation that presented no threat to a single US citizen.
Maybe the language, when he said, "I wanted another mission and, for my sins, they gave me one..." One does not get rewarded for their sins. This mission was divine punishment.
When the captain shot the girl in the boat and said"I told you not to stop the boat". A mission this highly classified comes first and the captain of the boat should know that
"They don't make them like they use too." Absolutely applies to this film.
European connection to Vietnam War: French colonial outpost for rubber (Michelin tires) and ship resupply, US provided a bunch of support for the French to retake control after the Japanese took over, then took over the war after the French were defeated (a bit more complicated)
Mary this is Laurence Fishburne's (Morpheus from The Matrix) first movie. He lied about his age and was cast as Clean at age 14
In addition to being about the Vietnam War, this movie is also a rather free adaptation of Joseph Conrad's 1899 novel HEART OF DARKNESS. In both the novel and the movie, traveling upriver through a hostile jungle (the Congo, in the book) becomes a metaphor for exploring one's own inner psyche.
2:52 - Did you recognise Harrison Ford? If not, don't worry -- apparently George Lucas didn't either!
16:05 - Inoculating means giving them an immunising shot.
I think Kurtz wanted that Willard either broke and became a follower (possibly a victim) or proved himself strong enough to be worthy of killing him. He was aware of what he had become. Willard found his strength and purpose and completed his mission. I don't think he became Kurtz. The followers just saw him as untouchable and as god, having just killed theirs.
I saw this in '79 when it first came out. In lieu of beginning or end credits they handed out a playbill. I've still got it.
Saw this in Imax on a re-release a few years after it's first run. The cinematography on the very big screen is unbelievable. In as far as Coppola, Spielberg, Lucas et al completely changing the art form with each new film, this was no exception.
I saw the re-release they did a while back but I'd love to see it in Imax. I don't think watching it at home captures the experience like seeing it in the theater (even with a great home theater setup) Yes, I realize you can say that about almost any film but I feel like with this one seeing it all comfy at home takes a bit of the vulnerability away and it doesn't get inside you quite the way it does in a dark theater surrounded by strangers.
I have a request for you for your future reactions: *Alita: Battle Angel (2019)*
Coming Home is a truly great after-war movie that won multiple Oscars and deals powerfully with injured veterans and the women they return to. Coming Home (1978) Jon Voight, Jane Fonda.
Jane Fonda aka Hanoi Jane 👎
Love Coming Home!!!!!!!
great film! thank you
inoculation is when you are given a shot to protect you against a disease
I liked your introduction. A good summary of how you feel. It is not that we “enjoy” difficult movies, but when done well that can tell a story and help us understand what we can not experience. Keep up the good work when you can. 👍
Apocalypse Now is perhaps the greatest film ever made. Excellent reaction Mary.
My favorite part is that you like dark content. PLEASE do David Lynch! "Blue Velvet" is a great first one to try out! But most of his stuff: "Eraserhead", "Elephant Man", Wild At Heart", "Lost Highway" and "Mullholland Drive" (and the Twin Peaks saga). All dark, and super wild! But start with "Blue Velvet"! Also: "Sophie's Choice" is a FANTASTIC, dark, intense movie, Meryl Streep's greatest, most groundbreaking and iconic performance.....and no reactions for it yet!!! "Network" is a fantastic, dark satire, a must-see. Kubrick's "A Clockwork Orange", "Dr. Strangelove", "Lolita".....all wickedly, super-dark satires. (and his "Paths Of Glory" is one of the best war movies ever). "All That Jazz" is a dazzling, entertaining, wild movie....but also dark! "After Hours" and "The King Of Comedy" are two dark comedies from Scorsese, fantastic movies.
The redux version you watched is the best version imo because it feels like a long journey up the river and like taking in a novel. Check out Hearts of Darkness too, it's one of the best documentaries about filmmaking and it has loads of information like how the actors suggested the riverboat massacre.
Strong suggest you watch Hearts of Darkness, the documentary about making Apocalypse Now. It enhances re-watching Apocalypse Now so much.
This will also explain a lot of the themes of the movie, its connection to Heart of Darkness and the Odyssey, and the mind and madness of (a young!) Francis Ford Coppola.
Looks like you missed a small Harrison Ford role, curious to see if you spot a very young Lawrence Fishburne. I picked Ford out by voice when I saw it in a theater in 1979, not 2001. You must be watching a director’s cut or redux edition. They handed out programs when I saw it, I don’t think there were even credits. There was a controversial ending and there were multiple versions beyond that similar to the way they treated Blade Runner.
In the full unedited reaction on Mary's Patreon, she recognized Harrison Ford immediately. The person who did this TH-cam edit for some reason decided to leave that part out.
This is my favorite film, Mary. I watched it the first time, and immediately watched it again. Then Redux streamed 2 days later. I watched that twice as well. It's a great version of In the Heart of Darkness.
You should react to the ‘Last of the Mohican’? It about the British colonial times in America prior to the War of Independence. The common interactions with the natives and the butchery on all sides of the conflict! It’s also a very good romance movie that you might end up crying… My wife of 36 years did… God Bless…
This movie is an artistic retelling of Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness in the backdrop of the recently ended Vietnam War instead of the Congo Frijstaat. Production was an absolute nightmare involving budget issues, several cast members nearly dying, and studio meddling for the film to be the highest grossing movie of 1979 and one of the greatest antiwar movies of all time.
The entire movie is a metaphor for the insanity of the Vietnam War. The insanity of the war broke Colonel Kurtz. His speeches were broken and contradictory as a reflection of the war.
This is a great movie 🎥 and since they have done some new versions to bring it full circle ⭕️ it’s awesome…The thing with the colonel saving the baby is in war you have to become a monster 👹 but not lose your humanity..That is the trick in being a good soldier…😊
This movie is a testament to the pure insanity of the Vietnam War.
God daddy Sheen is so like his son! I love this movie. It is dark and all that but still it is uplifting somehow. That is why it is a classic, I suppose.
I didn't recognize Harrison Ford in the early part of the film until much later His name tag on his uniform says Lucas
This is one movie where I prefer the original edit to the director's cut. It is more atmospheric and makes more narrative sense.
Totally agree, in fact I generally prefer theatrical release versions of films (Blade Runner and Alien for example. "The Lord of The Rings" films are an exception.)
@@rustincohle2135 yes there's an extended version of alien, that's kinda slightly better than the theatrical cut except it includes an edited scene that isn't canon and mebbe spoils an unveiling in aliens,, but it's still a great watch and has more to it ,, which is great ,, I don't particularly care for the directors cut of aliens tho
Charlie don't surf
Whaddyou know about surfin' Major, yer from goddam New Jersey
I have to admit that I'm a little bit concerned that this is only 21 minutes long...
I guess I'll see how it goes.
Alas Coppola keeps tinkering with the film and making it worse. The original 1979 version (the result of two years of editing effort) with the original end credits was the best.
So many layers shown in this film. One of my favorite movies ever! This movie does suck you in.
"...with extreme prejudice." Man, I still get goosebumps. One of those flicks you just press "Like" on principle alone. Wonderful watch-along with you Mary, thanks for this one.
Greatest war movie ever made because the movie had a dark side to it and that's the way it was in Vietnam. I tried to get so many reactors to watch this
I love this movie, so deep, so rich in meanings and symbolism, so human...
The use of Flight of the Valkyries has a very different meaning for someone that isn't engrossed in American Cinema history. That scene specifically is invoking Birth of a Nation's iconic / infamous scene when the KKK rides to the rescue against the occupying Union forces (all of whom were black).
If you ever get a chance, watch the documentary about the making of this movie - it was wild. Two examples: the scene where Sheen breaks down in the hotel room was actually him breaking down, and the dead bodies at Kurtz's compound weren't props - they were real corpses.
How did they get the bodies?
Only version of Apocalypse Now worth watching is Redux. And read King Leopold's Ghosts and Heart of Darkness first. Plus Michael Herr's Dispatches.
@@rustincohle2135 Theatrical is most definitely NOT the definitive. theres a reason Coppola made two more versions. The redux version says things the theatrical version doesnt. Coppola regarded the theatrical version as crap. Who to be guided by? The guy who nearly lost everything making the movie or some random on the internet?
The movie is in part a loose adaptation of "Heart of Darkness" (1899) by Joseph Conrad. The novel is about how indigenous peoples ("savages") in an African colony are little different from "civilized" Europeans when it comes to the use of power or of morality. This may interest you, historically. Though not explicitly stated in the novella, the references of the "great river", Belgian trading company, Belgian owned land infer it is King Leopold II of Belgium's personal fiefdom, not even a Belgian national colony, in what is now the Congo Free State. The novel is considered one of the greatest in the English language.
Such a massive movie. Not just because it's long, but this movie shaped so much of the movie industry after it.
Kinda like Full Metal Jacket, this always seemed like two movies to me. The first half dominated by Kilgore, the second half dominated by Kurtz. Two legendary actors in two legendary "wait what even IS this person" roles.
Its massive in every sense of the Word. The scale is huge - It feels like there is always something happening in the background especialy during Kilgore scenes and scenes at Kurtz compound with tribe, there is so much detail in it.
Mary, I've been waiting for this moment for a long time!
Mary, if you're looking for more Vietnam war movies, watch Platoon, Hamburger Hill, and Full Metal Jacket. BTW the word inoculate is when you give people a vaccine, in this case for Polio.
FYI she just did a reaction to FMJ a couple weeks ago. Hoping for Hamburger Hill one day 👍
Thanks for watching. I remember back in 1979 when I first saw this on the big screen, it was one of those movies that left me completely dazed as I came out of the cinema like I had really been transported both physically and psychologically to another world, leaving me with more questions than answers. One of the most brilliant films ever made, that's for sure.
A good movie about the Vietnam war is We Were Soldiers.
Inoculated is another word for vaccinated.
I saw APOCALYPSE NOW in the theatres when it first came out and I was in the state of shock when I left. Having grown up with the war I fully expected to be drafted into it immediately after graduation. And being tall and not having a very strong survival instinct I figured that would be all she wrote for me. And my lottery number was number 3 that year too so I would have definitely gone if not for the fact that they abolished the draft that year. Having no other life plans at the time I might have joined anyway but I figured it best not to tempt fate so I decided I should probably start planning on living a long life instead of dying young, maybe even go to college.
Anyway this movie coming out 10 years later kind of really showed me what I imagined I'd missed. I'd seen movies on this war before but Coppola knowing it was impossible to convey the horror of the entire war in a single movie wisely chose to use the genre of surrealism to fit it all in. That is how I saw it anyway. Everything was exaggerated to give the audience an idea of the PTSD those who actually fought the war came home with. So while I was walking out of the theatre feeling like I'd just been in the war, I was amazed at the person walking nearby to his car complaining to his wife that it was the worst movie he'd ever seen. How can two people see the exact same thing and arrive at completely different conclusions? I wondered. Sounds like you had a similar experience to mine, however, so enjoy your PTSD while it lasts.
Great review I think u captured the movie in your review. War is bad n icky the way u feel after watching. It i hope makes everyone feel the same way. summation 10/10
Inoculated means to vaccinate.
This is the best editing I've seen so far for a Apocalypse Now reaction. Outstanding job.
inoculate is the same as vaccinate
You're in for a masterpiece Mary 🏆 ❤ 🎥
Inoculate means to give vaccinations. They vaccinated the children against childhood diseases, and the terrorists came and cut off all the children's arms. There are other movies about the Vietnam war that are more straightforward than this one. I don't know which ones you have already seen. This movie is art, inspired by the war in Vietnam.
''terrorists'' ??? think you got that the wrong way round.
I'm married to a Brit. I will translate into her/your terms. Inoculate is a jab.
I am glad you got to see one of my favorite movies of all-time
There's a deleted scene where he visits a French plantation deep in the jungle
I think it’s in the extended edition, because I absolutely remember that scene from when we watched this in High School
"Socialism!" "Communism!" "Socialism!" "Communism!"
Martin Sheen here it´s a tracing of his boy Charlie Sheen when was young.
charlie did platoon and in hotshots 2 did a gag with his dad
Good day to you...here are some war movies that i think you will enjoy reacting to....A Bridge too far...Midway...We were Soldiers...Platoon...Courage under fire.
Based on the book Heart Of Darkness, how European 'civilized' countries (Belgium in the book) had to 'civilize' the Africans whom they thought as savages when in fact the Europeans were the savages. Apocalypse Now retells the story with America bringing 'civilization' to the 'savages' of Vietnam.
George Lucas was the film’s original director. He intended to shoot “Apocalypse Now” as a faux documentary in Vietnam during the war, on 16 mm film with real soldiers.
Coppola and George Lucas tossed around the image of soldiers surfing in Vietnam while they were in film school. Eventually Coppola did it
"Platoon" 1986, "Casualties of War" 1989, "Born on the Fourth of July" 1989 are some of the better Vietnam War films imo. Saw Platoon when it first came out in theaters. Yeah I'm old.
The first time I watched Apocalypse Now was in High School journalism class. Middle of the rural conservative America, and more than half my teachers were ex-hippies, which made for a great educational experience as they would challenge status quo a lot, but also were just good people that made learning fun.
A common misconception about the US is that it's a big old shopping mall. I'm from Detroit and I've lived in neighborhoods where it's a literal warzone. I know what it's like to be in mortal danger 24/7. It's horrifying. There are parts of that city that make Somalia look like paradise. I live in Cusco, Peru now and it's hilarious to me when people tell me to be careful in certain parts of town because they think I'm rich and naive. In fact I'm less of both of those things than people in the third world even know. Officials from the UN have come to the US and described "third world conditions of absolute poverty." I'm from one of those places. Fuck capitalism. Every comfortable person is living off of someone else's misery. That's how our world works, and if you don't acknowledge it, it's probably because you're one of the evil shits who's benefiting from it. I refuse to be despite the benefits that my skin color provides and I'm in constant pain for it, but at least my integrity is intact. I wouldn't trade it for anything.
You cut the napalm drop. That was a huge part of Viet Nam. Gellied gasoline caused massive burns to the many people who survived, and they wish they were were killed instantly. As a 15 percent burn patient survivor, I know their pain.
Another surreal war movie is Jarhead (2005). It takes place during the first gulf war. A marine invades Kuwait to free the kingdom from Iraq in 1991. Saddam Hussein ordered all of Kuwait's oil fields to be set a fire and the much of the battle field was covered by black, thick, almost gunky smoke. It underperformed at the box office but was based on real events.
This movie is not based on Vietnam but is instead from the horror's that Conrad saw in Belgium Congo and his story Heart of Darkness.
If you want a true experience, after this movie watch Platoon. Apocalypse Now is a movie about Vietnam starring Martin Sheen, and Platoon is a movie about Vietnam starring his son Charlie Sheen.
Even the people, including Francis Ford Coppola were driven crazy during the making of this film.
AN shows how war is such a waste of time, money, and human sanity.
Vietnam was a 3 ring circus, no one knew who was in charge and they let the lunatics run the asylum.
We never declared war in Vietnam, this was called a "police action". Either way, thousands of innocent lives were lost.
Marlon Brando was just plain scary as he was an empathetic figure.
War is madness, and the innocent always seem to be the ones who suffer.
The US's proxy war in Ukraine is a current example of how the US uses Ukraine as cannon fodder for regime change in Russia.
Madness ensues.
"The Horror"
This is an interesting take on the Vietnam war film genre. Visually it's stunning, psychologically it's very dense, the acting from Martin Sheen was amazing. I think you should also watch his son Charlie Sheen in Platoon and also the documentary Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse which is equally if not more fascinating than this to bring you full circle. ✌
"This is the end, beautiful friend. This is the end, my only friend the end.
Of our elaborate plans, the end. Of everything that stands, the end.
No safety or surprise, the end.
I'll never look into your eyes, again."
Milius made 'Conan the Barbarian' as well.
Compare them and you'll find they end the same way, almost identically, in fact. A death with a bent / broken blade, which is thrown down the steps, and hero walks out as everyone bows to him.
Except Conan burns the temple, while the US Air Force do that in 'Apocalypse Now'.
Nice reaction - the film very much plays to me like a fever dream, a descent into a nightmare where reality is conjured from the darkness of the jungle and the primal forces that draw people into it. The novella upon which it's based, "Heart of Darkness" is an excellent read, highly atmospheric, and I would highly recommend it. You definately see how they took from it and how both John Milius and Francis Ford Coppola really absorbed the thematic material and atmosphere. The journey is the desination really, almost like he's travelling to meet a mythological entity who has merged with the other side and invites us, the audience, and Sheen's character to join him. A glimpse at another world he's created that ultimately is his downfall. Just some musings on what is a masterpeice of cinema and one that lingers long in the memory. Interestingly enough, George Lucas, who is a good friend of Coppola's, was originally going to make it as a kind of almost documentary style film but ultimately went on to make a little known film (ahem) instead with a certain Luke Skywalker. Funny how things turn out!
I saw this when it first came out as a teenager. It mesmerized me and had a big impact on me. Later read the book it was based on (Heart of Darkness, having nothing to do with Vietnam but instead the exploitation of the Belgian Congo from the eyes of the author, though fictionalized) and was amazed by that as well.
This movie is visually stunning, deeply disturbing, and well acted including by a very young Harrison Ford and an even younger Lawrence Fishburn.
My best friend did 2 tours of duty as a combat Marine. He saw both this movie and Platoon. Both he said were as real as bullshit is to oatmeal. The only movie that came close reality was Hamburger Hill. He died before We Were Soldiers came out. A late casually of Agent Orange.
My favorite phrase “who’s in charge here?” “Ain’t u?” I recommend hearts of darkness 1991 doc about this movie; it almost killed the director. inoculate = give one a shot like a vaccine or to cure a disease
None of you young reviewers ever GET IT regarding the sampan scene. Clean opened up on the people on the boat because the young girl did something very dangerous that she would have known better than to do. She ran quickly toward Chef. WHY?! To trip a Claymore mine and blow them all away? Remember the young girl who tossed the grenade into the helicopter and burned all those guys to death? That’s what Clean was trying to prevent. And the girl should have known better. She got her whole family killed. That’s why Chef didn’t want to stop the boat and didn’t want to go on board the sampan, because it was so damn dangerous for all of them to do that. But that was their job, that was their duty, to search the boat to see whether those were VC carrying weapons and supplies south to kill Americans and ARVNS. Another thing no one ever seems to understand is why the chief tried to kill Willard by pulling him down onto the spear tip. He did that with his last dying ounce of strength because he knew that Willard was going to get the crew that he loved killed if Willard wasn’t stopped from continuing his mission.
The screenplay was based on The Heart of Darkness By Joseph Conrad. They switched the location from the Congo to Vietnam and Cambodia.
The transition from watching to now going back to normal everyday life, in a way it's sort of a smaller version of what soldiers from then (from any war probably) talked about, how unreal regular life was when not long before they were someplace where the measure of life and death was very, very different. In that sense, the movie really does its job.
It also cribs a lot from Conrad's book _Heart of Darkness_ and captures the tone.
I love your channel and your reactions, Mary. Dont get me wrong, but I think that given this movie this edit of your reaciton is a bit... bad?. Maybe is because I have seen this movie literally dozens of times and i have my important points, but for some reason i think this video edit was lacking. Keep in mind, not your reaction, the edit of it. I will check out your patreon then to compare.
Take care.
"I love the smell of napalm in the morning" fucking hardcore but nothing turned me into a pacifist faster than seeing photos of napalm injuries when I was in the Army. Fucking nightmarish shit.
the opening scene where Martin cut his hand on the mirror was real ..he said he wanted to keep the cameras rolling and Coppola did. Sheen had been drinking as his wife did want a divorce. As they made their way up river the chaos , madness was increasing to the viewer and then bam the puppy ! all focus was drawn to the safe harbor of the scene , the innocence .. an example of Coppola's brilliance !
Can't wait for you to watch Platoon. And I'd like to see you react to the documentary about making Platoon, too. So many interesting interviews.
some people are in the right place for their time.
though George Washington lead his men in the front... in battle he was never wounded.
pon at least five occasions when in great danger from gunfire George Washington remained unscathed. His hat was shot off his head; his clothes were torn; horses were killed beneath him, but the hero was never so much as scratched by a bullet. For this immunity he thanked “Providence.” He also wrote himself down as lucky.
This was the same director as the Godfather. F.F. Coppola was just out here making Masterpieces in the 70's
It’s an adaptation to Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” … and exploration of man’s descent into madness set to the crazy, absurd VN war. Kurtz sees the atrocities committed by the VC as strength and decided the only way to beat them is to do what they do.
Coppola almost went as bonkers as Kurtz making this. There were parody sketches of the making-of on the comedy shows at the time.
True story : At the end of the film, we see a buffalo sacrificed. These are not effects. Copolla filmed a real indigenous tribe performing a real ritual sacrifice, and he placed that footage in the film. This is why the scene seems so real: It is...
One of the most amazing/terrifying/darkly beautiful movies ever made. A boat trip to Hell.