Kendra Elm Apocalypse Now
In the reading by Tomasulo it talks about the the film can be seen as pro war, and also anti war. I don't believe this is true. From everything I saw in the film it was anti war. From the very beginning the film is about deceit, breaking laws, and the evils of war. In the first scene we meet Willard who is the main character and we learn about a mission he is sent on to kill another member of the United States military. His mission top secret, and he is to use whatever means necessary to accomplish it. The movie then moves to Willard on the boat traveling through the seas of vietnam and they get to the site of their escort. These men are busy destroying a village, and we see all the bodies of the dead civilians. The commander of this group, Kilgore, makes very rash decisions and we see how brutal the war is. Other scenes that show the brutality and the hardships of war are when Willard kills the civilian woman on the boat so he can continue on. When Chef's head is given to him when he is a prisoner of Kurtz's, and when the Chief is killed by the arrows. Many of the members of the crew that we learn so much about during the movie are killed, and we see how nasty the war is.
The only reason I can see that this movie is pro war is that Willard and the other members of the military will do whatever it takes to win. They fight for our country and will do anything they are told. The men are trying to make life better for everyone back home, even if they must suffer to do so.
Looking at the film from an anti war prospective I don't believe it helps the American people get over the war. I believe if anything it brings up bad memories of what happened in Vietnam. The secret mission Willard is sent on could instill doubt into the American people, because they may wonder what other missions took place that we were not told about. We also saw many people killed, good and bad, and for a lot of people memories of death are not good or happy. So, I believe that Apocalypse Now is an anti war film, and it did not help the American people move on from the Vietnam War.