Apocalypse Now
I have always enjoyed movies. But at some point I started to think of movies as more than just entertainment. I began to view them as a movie critic would, rather than just a casual viewer. Because of this perspective, I think of "Apocalypse Now" as one of the best American made movies I have ever seen. As a student of and an active participant in the late twentieth century media age, I feel justified in making this statement. In my lifetime of observation of American media, including fourteen months of intense movie watching in conjunction with my employment at a local video store, I have had an opportunity to observe a broad sampling of the films, and feel more than qualified to make this statement. By referring to "Apocalypse Now" as one of the best American movies, I do not want to diminish my praise for the movie, but rather, acknowledge the fact that my knowledge of foreign movies is limited. I first saw Francis Ford Coppula's "Apocalypse Now" in a high school literature class after reading Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, the story from which the movie was derived. After viewing the movie the first time, it was clear to me that "Apocalypse Now" was something special, not only superior to the mindless drivel that permeates much of what is produced by Hollywood, but also better than many of the movies that have come to be regarded as classics.
To me, a good movie presents a well constructed plot combined with skilled cinematography. A great movie incorporates a message into the attributes of a good movie. An excellent movie goes further by adding deeper levels of meaning. When I watch a movie which I judge to be excellent, I feel that it can be viewed from many angles and appear seamless from each di...
... middle of paper ...
...er. Like most viewers, I had a physical reation when the tiger jumps out. Because the timing of the tiger's attack is done so well, a viewer, such as myself experiences the reaction even when they know it will occur. The element of surprise horror is used by Coppula to force the audience to share the primordial fear of being the prey of a large animal with the characters of the film.
Some once said art was defined by the creator's ability to impart a desired emotion. Nothing exemplifies this principle better than horror. Horror occurs when a scene forces the viewer to experience certain emotions that the producer deserves. The type of horror used to determines the emotions and the part of the human mind effected. As Apocalypse Now demonstrates, a skillful director can incorporate each distinct brand of horror in his movie to convey a desired atmosphere or reaction.
Apocalypse Now is a very vivid and sometimes disturbing film centered on the Vietnam War. Because it was based on Joseph Conrad's novella Heart of Darkness, it is possible to draw some parallels between the two. Both can be interpreted as metaphors for a journey through the inner self, and each has its own singular message to convey. Apocalypse Now very perspicuously depicts the fact that men have hearts of darkness, and it explores the evils of war. At the same time, however, it seemingly glorifies some aspects. The anti-war sequences were often brutal and portrayed destruction as a result of the human condition. The film Apocalypse Now, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, can be interpreted both as pro-war and anti-war in its intent, although the latter is a more valid interpretation.
Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now portrays the brutality of the Vietnam War and American’s perspective from therein. Coppola successfully produced this film parallel to Joseph Conrad’s 1899 novella, Heart of Darkness. Both portray the effects of imperialism on a native land with respect to the imperialists’ viewpoint. The scene of Apocalypse Now that mirrored Heart of Darkness with the most creative license, on the behalf of Coppola, is perhaps the final scene as Kurtz is slaughtered. Each creator successfully utilized the arts of their crafts to create a final production worthy of admiration while clearly stating their interpretation of imperialism.
...s both beautifully illustrates the disgusting and senseless violence of war (since certainly the viewers look inside themselves and find some unwarranted craving for the violence) and how close to human nature that war really is. Instead of showing a war and its brutal outcome to conclude at the cliché moral of “war is bad for everyone,” Apocalypse Now attempts (and succeeds) to take an opposite perspective. It convinces the viewer that “war is good” so that when they* find themselves believing it, they* also find it contradicting their conventional notions and they* must examine why we really fight. As soon as we stop inherently trusting our own perceptions, with only a few hours of pictures and sound, Copolla first elicits the violent tendencies of his audience, and then shows them a picture of those horrors. The picture is a mirror and “the horror” is within us.
Throughout the film "Apocalypse Now " by F.F. Coppola, there is a parallel between the Indian wars and the Vietnamese war. We can compare the Vietnamese with the Indians and the American soldiers with the cowboys.
Film and literature are two media forms that are so closely related, that we often forget there is a distinction between them. We often just view the movie as an extension of the book because most movies are based on novels or short stories. Because we are accustomed to this sequence of production, first the novel, then the motion picture, we often find ourselves making value judgments about a movie, based upon our feelings on the novel. It is this overlapping of the creative processes that prevents us from seeing movies as distinct and separate art forms from the novels they are based on.
Film scholars around the world agree that all genres of film are part of the “genre cycle”. This cycle contains four different stages that a specific genre goes through. These stages are: primitive, classic, revisionist, and parody. Each stage that the genre goes through brings something different to that genre’s meaning and what the audience expects. I believe that looking at the horror genre will be the most beneficial since it has clearly gone through each stage.
Horror films are designed to frighten the audience and engage them in their worst fears, while captivating and entertaining at the same time. Horror films often center on the darker side of life, on what is forbidden and strange. These films play with society’s fears, its nightmare’s and vulnerability, the terror of the unknown, the fear of death, the loss of identity, and the fear of sexuality. Horror films are generally set in spooky old mansions, fog-ridden areas, or dark locales with unknown human, supernatural or grotesque creatures lurking about. These creatures can range from vampires, madmen, devils, unfriendly ghosts, monsters, mad scientists, demons, zombies, evil spirits, satanic villains, the possessed, werewolves and freaks to the unseen and even the mere presence of evil.
This film, from 1979 was directed by Francis Ford Coppula and starred Martin Sheen (Capt. Willard) and Marlon Brando (Col. Kurtz). The film takes place during the 1970's in the middle of the Vietnam War. Coppula was rewarded for his hard work by winning the Academy Award for cinematography. The story is based on the novel "Hearts of Darkness", by Joseph Conrad. The book and film depicts Capt. Willard in the middle of the Vietnam searching for Col. Kurtz, who has gone mad and started his own private war. Apocalypse Now uses its scenes to show three types of horror including psychological, gore, and surprise. Psychological horror plays with human rationalization. Gore shows a stunning or violent action. Surprise horror is instilling fear by catching the viewer off guard. Each type of horror appeals to different parts of human fear and requires different methods to pull it off properly.
What is the stereotypical American? When one asks this question there are two general answers. An American would probably respond with characteristics such as hard working, free, and compassionate. A person from somewhere else in the world will probably have a very different answer to this question. Usually Americans can be seen as arrogant, dangerous, and hypocritical. Not a very good reputation to have, but the strangest part about it is most Americans either don’t know why people think of them this way or don’t care. For those that don’t care, ignorance will continue to be bliss, but for those who wish to know why people around the world think of them there are a few avenues they can explore. One of the most powerful is cinema. There are a number of great films that explore this subject in detail, and shed light on a perspective most Americans may not be familiar with. Two such films are Lars Von Trier’s portrait of everyday American life called Dogville, and the other is Francis Ford Coppola’s war epic Apocalypse Now. Although both films are quite different, both emphasize and reinforce the negative stereotypes associated with Americans (“What the World Thinks of America”).
People are addicted to the synthetic feeling of being terrified. Modern day horror films are very different from the first horror films which date back to the late nineteenth century, but the goal of shocking the audience is still the same. Over the course of its existence, the horror industry has had to innovate new ways to keep its viewers on the edge of their seats. Horror films are frightening films created solely to ignite anxiety and panic within the viewers. Dread and alarm summon deep fears by captivating the audience with a shocking, terrifying, and unpredictable finale that leaves the viewer stunned.
“The biggest mistake we have made is to consider that films are primarily a form of entertainment. The film is the greatest medium since the invention of movable type for exchanging ideas and information, and it is no more at its best in light entertainment than literature is at its best in the light novel.” - Orson Welles
The aim of this work is a comparison between the novel "Heart of Darkness" and "Apocalypse Now," Francis F. Coppola film loosely adapted from the novel by Conrad. “Apocalypse Now” was performed as film based on the text of Conrad and placing it in the context of the Vietnam War. Although several elements were added, such as characters and situations that are not in the text, the film reflects in many ways “Heart of Darkness” in the history and development. Adapting the work of Conrad, many abstract things that are not in the text, jump to the screen. In other words, text transformation into visual representation vision adds a vision of evil in men, the fear of death, nostalgia for the home, etc. The film has
Would you rather be horrified beyond repair or thrilled to the point of no return? In horror, the main purpose is to invoke fear and dread into the audience in the most unrealistic way. Horror movies involve supernatural entities such as ghosts, vampires, teleportation, and being completely immortal. As thriller films are grounded in realism and involve more suspense, mystery, and a sense of panic. Though both genres will frighten the audience, it will happen in two different ways. Whether the horror thrills or the thriller horrifies, a scare is always incorporated.
Essay on Apocalypse Now War is not a new phenomenon. We have experienced war for decades, actually centuries. War is violent, emotional and hit with many people, also many years after - Soldiers, family, friends and people far out in the future. In the movie “Apocalypse Now” from 1979 we see the soldiers' position in the Vietnam War.
Movies take us inside the skin of people quite different from ourselves and to places different from our routine surroundings. As humans, we always seek enlargement of our being and wanted to be more than ourselves. Each one of us, by nature, sees the world with a perspective and selectivity different from others. But, we want to see the world through other’s eyes; imagine with other’s imaginations; feel with other’s hearts, at a same time as with our own. Movies offer us a window onto the wider world, broadening our perspective and opening our eyes to new wonders.