Apocalypse Now

Starring: Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen, et al.

Product Description

Based loosely on Joseph Conrad's "The Heart Of Darkness", Coppola's Vietnam epic follows Sheen up the Mekong River into Cambodia to find Brando, an officer who has gone mad in the jungle and is running his own empire.

• Format: DVD
• Language: English
• UPC: 097360230642
• Release Date: May 1993
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Publisher: Paramount
• Director: Francis Ford Coppola
• Starring: Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Martin Sheen, Frederic Forrest, Laurence Fishburne, Harrison Ford, Albert Hall, Dennis Hopper, Sam Bottoms, G.D. Spradlin
• Runtime: 2 hours, 33 minutes
• Number of Disks: 1
• Other Video Info: anamorphic
• Weight: 0.27 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.8" x 7.8"

Customer Reviews

A relatable version of "Heart of Darkness"

The basic story is that Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando) was sent to Vietnam (60’s era) to correct a problem, but now he sees the problem differently and has exceeded his authority in the correction. Therefore, Captain Benjamin L. Willard (Martin Sheen) is dispatched to dispatch the colonel. In this Joseph Campbell (“The Hero with a Thousand Faces”) type adventure, Captain Willard meets with many situations that help him grow and understand the problem that Colonel Kurtz faced. Will he complete his mission or succumb to the same forces as the colonel in the heart of darkness? This is an updated version of Joseph Conrad's book "Heart of Darkness" with a lot of Francis Ford Coppola thrown in. The location is Vietnam, instead of Africa, and as with any update, they thought it would be more relevant than trying to explain the Congo. Toss in some songs from the 60’s era (“The Best of the Doors”- ‘The End’), and some classics (Wagner - "Die Walkure: Ride of the Valkyries"), and you have a movie. Too bad it is not that easy. I would not worry too much whether this looks like Vietnam or if certain events take place, as that is not the point of the picture or the intent of the storytelling. The feeling of the book was conveyed. And I would not worry if it does not match the book’s story word for word, as this is a different medium. If you come away with the question "What would I do if it were me?" it worked. Not to distract from the movie review, however, I was in Vietnam (1967-1968) in an armed reconnaissance organization. And the Vietnam I was in did not have surrealistic scenes. We did get to see Bob Hope and Martha Ray in “The Big Broadcast of 1938". Before that, I always thought it was a bunch of hype. However, it did influence me to have them take the time to go there. So, I could see something as weird as the bunny scene happening. Besides the movie, there are scenes of the destruction of the Kurtz compound set. They were required to clean up after the movie was made. Coppola says that these scenes were removed from the end of the movie, so people did not think that it was part of the story. However, I saw this on TV, and they left the scenes in, and I did think it was part of the story. Another movie interpretation of "Heart of Darkness" was made later. Not quite as moving as “Apocalypse Now”, but you should see it compared to the original, “Cannibal Women in the Avocado Jungle of Death “(1988). Adrienne Barbeau is Dr. Kurtz.