Apocalypse Now

I think of the difficulties facing the screenwriter (Nicholas Cage) in the film Adaptation whenever I see a movie that is an adaptation of some well-established story. Within that context, I consider this movie to be a tremendous success. First of all it does a great job of captivating the essential storyline elements and style of Conrad's original "Heart of Darkness." From the very start of the movie, in the images of the fan superimposed upon the images of the helicopters you are starkly and vividly thrown straight into the mind of the main character in a modernist fashion--you are living his experiences. Also the narrative style of the story reflects Conrad's original design nicely. There is even great since of imperialism in the actions of the one army colonel, by deciding to go to the one peak simply for reasons of "surfing." Not only that but as any good adaptation does it brings in it's own new elements and styles to enhance the original story without stealing from its original intrigue. I think by setting the story in Vietnam it makes the story a little more meaningful to modern audiences, and is able to bring in a whole new element of psychological intrigue--the difficulties of battle, and the ridiculousness of the Vietnam war are thrown in your face with intensity unlike I have seen in a movie for a long time. Of course this is made to parallel also the insanity of the jungle in Heart of Darkness, however, in the context of this war it takes on a very different meaning. Perhaps the best example of these new elements are seen around the bridge, the last outpost on the Nong river. You see clearly the complete and utter destruction of human sensibilities in the midst of a situation which is fundamentally inhuman. You vividly see a message that is also very apparent in Kuberik's "Full Metal Jacket" that many of the soldiers in Vietnam were simply boys, scared, and unable to make rational decisions when faced with the task of killing. A clear statement that no human being is designed to deal with such situations in a sane manner. Specifically I am referring to the scene on the river in which they freak out and kill everyone on the boat. This scene strikes me as one of the most powerful moments in the movie. Also the character and development of Mr. Kurtz seems to be very well done, and in the spirit of Conrad as well. The movie ends in darkness and gave me a very similar impression over all that I had when reading heart of darkness, however, maybe even a with a little more profundity because of the newly introduced psychological elements of war. Overall, I loved the movie, and I think it did a great job of paying homage to classic British literature while at the same time creating an extremely powerful commentary on the futility of the Vietnam war.