Vietnam and Oliver Stone - 1023 Words

Oliver Stone is best known from his portrayals of Vietnam in film. His movies â€Å"Platoon† and â€Å"Born on the Fourth of July† have won him Academy Awards for best director. These movies not only depicted the violence of war, but also the cultural and psychological issues that the soldiers in these wars had to endure. The majority of his earliest and best known movies center around the Vietnam War. Oliver Stone’s experience in the military gave him a special insight that made his movies feel more authentic and convincing to audiences. These movies portray the struggles that soldiers and veterans of the Vietnam War had to face on and off the battlefield. Platoon is Oliver Stone’s first film portrayal of Vietnam. The film starts off with main†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Born on the Fourth of July† differs from â€Å"Platoon† in that the movie goes more in depth of the struggles many veterans had to overcome after the Vietnam War. Be ing an autobiography, the movie depicts Kovic’s life before the war. On his last night before leaving to the Marines, Kovic confronts a high school sweetheart at prom and has one last dance before departing. During his tour of Vietnam Kovic accidentally shoots and kills a fellow Marine. Feeling Responsible for the death he confesses to his commanding officer who simply tells him to â€Å"Forget it.† Shortly thereafter Kovic is paralyzed from the chest down after he is shot by the enemy. Kovic’s struggle begins when he arrives back in the United States. The military rehabilitation center he is staying at has deplorable conditions, apathetic staff, and absentee doctors. These elements bring focus to the general negative attitude that Americans had towards veterans at the time. â€Å"The U.S. Kovic left behind is unrecognizable, yet as he struggles uselessly to regain control of his body he remains steadfast in his ideas.† (Salewicz 130) Kovic struggles not only to deal with being paralyzed, but also to assimilate back into society. Throughout his struggles he meets fellow veterans along the way who are also having difficulties adjusting. The spotlight on adjusting to society is a common theme among veterans and is still apparent with veterans today. Kovic’s hardshipsShow MoreRelatedThe War Of All Time1288 Words   |  6 PagesTrouble Comes Vietnam War, one of the most controversial war of all time, it is best known as the American War, a war between France who had claimed Vietnam as their territory against the communist forces Viet Minh. 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