Director
Oliver Stone
Leading Actors/Actresses
Charlie Sheen
Supporting Actors/Actresses
Tom Berringer, Willem Dafoe
Genre
War Movie, Drama
Language
English
Awards
Academy Awards : Best Picture, Best Director, nominations for Best Supporting Actor for Tom Berringer and Willem Dafoe, and for Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography
Date of Release
December 19, 1986
Producer
Arnold Kopelson
Setting and Context
South Vietnam, 1967
Narrator and Point of View
The point of view is that of Chris Taylor, who also narrates.
Tone and Mood
Somber, threatening, with a feeling of madness.
Protagonist and Antagonist
The "platoon" are the protagonists, the Vietnamese the antagonists
Major Conflict
The conflict is the Vietnam War, however, there are conflicts amongst the men themselves which increase as the movie goes on. There is an underlying "conflict" also between Sergeant Barnes and his hardline followers and Sergeant Elias, who tends to be more mellow and thoughtful.
Climax
Taylor and Francis are returned home because they have been wounded twice.
Foreshadowing
Barnes' injury has driven him to insanity which foreshadows his increased feelings of violence and his attempt to kill Taylor.
Understatement
No specific examples.
Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques
No specific examples
Allusions
The movie alludes to many real-life experiences of soldiers on the ground in Vietnam.
Paradox
Taylor will not call a paramedic for Barnes but he is willing to kill him, obeying one command, but not the other.
Parallelism
There is a parallel between the length of time the men are fighting and the unravelling of their mental state.
