Platoon Essay

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Vietnam is the war that America cannot forget. Their so-called first defeat, an immense cost in lives and money, a blow to American military credibility and American moral: the war in Vietnam was a crucial period in American history. Like any major historic event, there have been countless Hollywood films made that honour or mutilate the memory. All throughout the the 1970s films film s on Vietnam were avoided, both because of the stigma that had been associated with the w ar and the freshness of the 1

wounds caused by the defeat. When Oliver Stone finally managed to pull together enough financial backing, he directed his own screen play based loosely on his experiences in Vietnam. Thus the classic movie Platoon (Oliver Stone, 1986) was born, a box office sensation and award winner that brought the war in Vietnam home to America. Critics and Vietnam veterans quickly praised Platoon for its unflinching 2

portrayal of the realities of the war, although disse nt was heard from both the Left and the Right.

Indeed, Platoon accurately conveys the realities of the war in Vietnam, depicting the realistic conditions of a soldiers life in Vietnam, showing the realities of guerrilla warfare and illustrating the armys disregard for Vietnamese civilians. Vietnam was the first war that the media brought into the living rooms of Americans, and Platoon later showed them the view from the mud up. A major part of the war in Vietnam was the conditions in which the soldier s lived and the consequences of those conditions. One of the most prominent conditions in Vietnam was the weather. The constant rain was a new experience for most Americans and led to much misery and discomfort. A soldier in Vietnam, Dale Reich, tells of the constant rains that came during the monsoon season in his 3

memoirs. He speaks of the fact that the soldiers were constantly wet and that the canvas tents they 4

were issued often did not keep out the driving rain. The constant rain led to a proliferation of insects and thus an increase in malaria. Many soldiers caught malaria, some even dying from it, which left the

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Susan Mackey-Kallis, Mackey-Kallis, Oliver Stones America: Dreaming the Myth Outward (Colorado: Westview Press, 1996), 65. Mackey-Kallis, 64. 3 Dale Reich, One Year in Vietnam: A Young Soldier Remembers, The Wisconsin Magazine of History Vol. 64, No. 3 (Spring, 1981): 171. 4 Reich, 170-171. 2

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platoons below strength. The soldiers in Vietnam not only had to deal with the Viet Cong (VC) but with the unfamiliar and unpleasant weather and its consequences, shown very vividly in Platoon. In the film, many of the scenes re flect the reality of the weather, showing pouring rain, the soldiers efforts to keep dry and some of the possible health issues. The rain was first shown during Chris Taylors (Charlie Sheen) first night on duty in the jungle. It poured rain the entire night while many of the soldiers tried to sleep under their rain coats and Taylor sat on watch in the mud. The mist that came after the rain allowed the VC to move within a few feet of Taylor and the platoon and not notice them. Another aspect of the weather in Vietnam was the malaria that came along with it. While crossing a river, Junior (Reggie J ohnson) scoops up water water into his canteen and is about t o drink it when Rhah (Francesco Quinn) tells him that he will get malaria if he does. To this, Junior replies, Yeah, I hope so 6

because it would mean time off to re cover that would be counted towards his year of service. The rain was shown many more times throughout Platoon, a backdrop that portrayed the reality of the situation. Another aspect of a soldiers life in Vietnam that was shown in Platoon was the incidences of fragging. Fragging is the practice of killing a fellow soldier, usually an officer, which got its name from 7

the fragmentation grenades often used for the purpose. In 1970, more than 200 incidents of fragging were reported. In Platoon, Sergeant (Sgt.) Barnes (Tom Berenger) shoots Sgt. Elias (Willem Dafoe) and later Taylor kills Sgt. Barnes in revenge. In the first instance, Elias was killed because he was attempting to have Barnes court marshalled for killing a civilian woman. When Barnes and Elias were alone in the jungle Barnes hesitated only a moment before shooting Elias. After the last battle, Taylor comes across Barnes lying injured. Knowing that Barnes had killed Elias, Taylor takes his revenge after Barnes tells him to do it. These two incidents of fragging portray a very real part of a soldiers life in Vietnam and highlight the fact that dangers did not only come from the enemy.





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One of the consequences of the dangers that seemed to be everywhere in Vietnam was the heavy use of drugs. After trudging through the jungle all day, expecting an attack at any moment, many soldiers were exhausted, stressed and needed relaxation at night. Relaxation, as shown in Platoon, often came in the form of drug use. The majority of the soldiers in Vietnam habitually smoked marijuana to 8

relax, passing a joint amongst themselves at night. An official study linked the growing use of narcotics to idleness, loneliness, anxiety and frustration and many personnel were using heroin, including officers.9 It was estimated that in 1970 more than 65,000 Americans in Vietnam were using drugs and 10

that 40,000 of them were using heroin. This part of a soldiers life in Vie tnam is shown when Taylor is brought into the Cave, a bunker where some of the soldiers get together to listen to music, drink and smoke marijuana. After Taylor takes a drag from a hash pipe Elias asks him if it was his first time. When Taylor says yes, Elias says, Then the worm has definitely turned for you man, feel good? Chris responds, Yeah, I feel good. Ive got no pain in my neck now. This scene shows the healing, both physical and psychological that many soldiers found from taking drugs.

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Although it is important to look at the realities of the war in Vietnam that Platoon does show, it is also important to look at what it does not show: the enemy. Possibly the most difficult aspect of the war in Vietnam was the enemy tactics employed that the United States was neither equipped nor trained to handle. The realities of guerrilla warfare were shown in Platoon by the fact that the VC were rarely seen, booby traps were used and that the soldiers believed that anyone could be a VC. The combination of these aspects of the war led to frustration and hatred by the soldiers. The very landscape of Vietnam provided the VC with one of their most potent advantages: the ability to hide. The enemy were rarely rar ely seen unless they wanted to be, and to ambush them was a rare occurrence based





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more on luck than skill . Despite the advanced equipment wielded by the Unite d States, the enemy 13

bases remained hidden amidst the jungles of Vietnam. The topography of Vietnam meant that the effectiveness of American technology was negated and the political situation meant that winning land 14

was almost always temporary. The American soldiers rarely saw the VC or even knew they were in hostile territory until someone was killed by a sniper.

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The inability of the soldiers to see the enemy was shown throughout Platoon. Until the final battle, the VC remain shadowy figures, appearing in front of the soldiers seemingly out of nowhere. In an early scene while on a night mission Taylor closes his hood for only a few seconds and when he reopens it he sees the VC only a short distance away. This shows how silently and quickly the VC could come up on the soldiers. Later, when on patrol, Barnes discovers a foxhole only a few feet in front of Taylor that Taylor had not even realized was there. This clearly shows the ability of the VC to hide their presence and indicates the dangers of trying to conquer a jungle in which the VC had all the advantages. Throughout Platoon the VC are never clearly seen, a reality of the guerrilla style of war the Americans were fighting. Instead of head to head confrontations, the VC would simply wait, biding their time and attriting the American numbers and morale. To hurt the Americans with little ri sk to themselves, the VC often planted booby traps, in r eality 16

and in Platoon. Journalist Michael Herr reported that, ...the roads were mined, the trails booby trapped, satchel charges and grenades blew up jeeps and movie theatres...

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The frustration and hatred

caused by the booby traps is thought to have been a factor in some attacks on civilians. civi lians. Gregory Olson, a member of Charlie Company tells of the murder of a Vietnamese woman after one soldier was killed and

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Herring, 105.





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another lost his legs to a booby trap. The men simply killed the first Vietnamese person they saw, since 18

they could not find the VC. The use of booby traps by the VC was an integral part of their strategy, allowing them to kill the soldiers while not facing return fire. This was shown in Platoon when Sandy (J. Adam Glover) and Sal (Roger Edson) were killed by a booby trap in a recently abandoned VC bunker. The others immediately recognized the explosion as a booby trap and cleare d out the area, calling for engineers. The frustration caused by their deaths, and that of Manny, led them to look to Barnes to set things right again. The killings and destruction at the village showed the rage that the deaths of three of their fellow soldiers had contributed to. A reality of guerrilla warfare shown in Platoon is that the enemy is rarely seen, which led le d to the suspicion that any Vietnamese person could be a VC. By the very nature of guerrilla warfare it is almost impossible to know who the enemy is, which affected the way the soldiers treated the Vietnamese civilians. The soldiers were taught to suspect any Vietnamese person, believing that they might lead them into a booby trap or throw a g renade at any 19

moment. This paranoia was put to words by Michael Herr who said, ...the VC got work inside all the camps as shoeshine boys and laundresses and honey-dippers, theyd starch your fatigues and burn your 20

shit and then go home and mortar your area.  Another soldier said of the situation, We were trying to work with these people, they were basically doing a number on us.... You didnt trust them anymore. You didnt trust anybody.

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Since it was so difficult to tell te ll who was a VC and who was a ci vilian, most of

the soldiers did not try or take the time to differentiate between them since their lives often depended on fast reactions. This led to the deaths of many innocent civilians, including women and children.

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This idea was shown in Platoon by Bunny (Kevin Dillon) when they were in the village. After killing the boy, Bunny says, I betcha the old bitch runs the whole fucking show, man. She probably cut





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Mannys throat. Shed probably cut my balls off if she had the chance... C ome on man. Lets fucking do her, man. Lets do this whole fucking village. Bunny suspects everyone, even an old woman, and he is willing to kill her and everyone in the village based on this suspicion. This is representative of the kind of mistrust and inability to distinguish civilians from VC that was common in the Vietnam War. Overall, Platoon portrays the realities of guerrilla warfare well, both with what the viewer can see and what they

cannot. The American soldiers and armys complete disregard for Vietnamese civilians was also accurately depicted in a variety of ways in Platoon. The casual and commonplace use of racist language, burning and destroying villages and attacking villagers were all fairly common elements of the war in Vietnam that were shown in Platoon. In Platoon the soldiers refer to the Vietnamese civilians by various names such as gooks and dinks. This usage of racist term s shows the lack of respect the soldiers had for the Vietnamese, be they friend or enemy. The use of racist language, most notably the term gook, allowed soldiers to dehumanize the people they were fighting against.

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Unfortunately, due to the

nature of guerrilla warfare, the soldiers never really knew who they were fighting against so they dehumanized the Vietnamese people as a whole. It is such dehumanization that allows soldiers to kill effectively in battle but in Vietnam it also allowed soldiers to commit atrocities on civilians. This dehumanization of the Vietnamese was best shown during the attack on the village when a group of soldiers attempted to rape a Vietnamese girl. When Taylor hears someone crying and yelling he goes over and finds three soldiers, Bunny, Junior and Rhah about to rape a young Vietnamese girl (Li Mai Thao). When Taylor asks, What the fuck is this? Rhah replies, What the fuck is your problem Taylor? Shes a fucking dink. Taylor then says, Shes a fucking human being, man! This attempted rape shows extremely well the mentality that the Vietnamese were not people, they were simply dinks. It is left to







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Taylor to point out that they are actually human beings. The racist language used in the film was 24

representative of the way that the Vietnamese were regarded by many during the war in reality.

The movie also accurately depicted the armys comple te disregard for Vietnamese civilians when they destroyed the village. Although the war w as meant to help and to save the civilians in Vietnam it seemed that the mandate of the army worked counter to this objective. The mission of many units was ...to sanitize the region  kill the Viet Cong (VC) and move the civilians out. We are not going to be able to make the people loyal to our side. So we are going to sterilize the area until we can win it 25

back. The word sterilize meant to destroy the villages that could possibly be aiding the VC. Between 1965 and 1967 there were more than one million tons of bombs dropped on South Vietnam by the United States and the South Vietnamese. Much of the time the bombs were dropped in designated Fre e Fire Zones, areas where civilians were supposed to have been evacuated, in theory leaving only the enemy. In Free Fire Zones a soldier could shoot first and ask questions later; everyone was considered 26

an enemy. The destruction in the Free Fire Zones was almost total, leaving many large areas of South 27

Vietnam wasteland. From 1965 to 1967 in Quang Ngai province more than seventy percent of the homes in the province were destroyed, leaving more than 138,000 Vietnamese civilians homeless.

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These bombings were conducted with little to no reg ard for the civilians that had lived in the village s all of their lives and had no place to go, a fact shown by the evacuation and destruction of the vi llage in





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for the soldiers superiors to give them the order to destroy the village. They proceeded to destroy the weapons, shoot the animals, evacuate the villagers and burn and grenade the village. The callous destruction of the village was well represented when Bunny used his lighter to light the roof of a house on fire and then proceeded to use the same flame to light a cigarette. Later, as they were exiting the village Bunny stopped to take a picture of the burning village. The last shot of the village is of it burning while a line of now homeless Vietnamese are herded out by the soldiers. The Vietnamese civilians were also disregarded as violence was commonly directed against them. This was depicted numerous times in Platoon and was a reality during the war. During the war there were extremely high numbers of civilian casualties as many soldiers did not distinguish between the VC and civilians.

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Violent attacks against the Vietnamese were common, prisoners were used as 30

human minesweepers, and rape was widespread. Norman Nakamura wrote a firsthand account of the many violent acts against the Vietnamese that he witnessed in Vietnam. He tells of an attack at Lai Khe Base Camp where a drunken General Infantry soldier shot and killed a mother and her child for no 31

apparent reason. Besides the more common single attacks on the Vietnamese, there was also at least one large scale massacre at My Lai. At My Lai, approximately twenty Vietnamese women were raped, ranging in age from ten to forty five.

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Between 300 and 400 people were massacred the morning of 16 33

March at My Lai, most of them wome n, children or the elderly. The reality of American disregard for





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person inside. The next instance was when Taylor shot at the Vietnamese boys feet because he was smiling and then when Bunny killed the boy. Later, Sgt. Barnes roughs up the headman of the village (Bernardo Manalili) and then he shoots the mans wife (Than Rogers) so that he could get him to cooperate. One of the most pronounced episodes of violence against an innocent civilian was when Sgt. Barnes put a gun to the headmans daughter (Li Thi Van) and threatened to kill her. A ll of these examples of violence against civilians in Vietnam were possible real-life situations in Vietnam, where the enemy and civilians were incredibly difficult to differentiate. The Best Picture of 1986, Platoon was critically acclaimed as an accurate portrayal of the Vietnam War. It depicted the realistic conditions of a soldiers life in Vietnam, showed the realities of guerrilla warfare and showed the armys disregard for Vietnamese civilians. Widely regarded as the first military defeat in the history of the United States, the Vietnam War has had a lasting impact on America. The war spawned the largest anti-war movement up to that point in history and started wide scale draft dodging. It was the first war that was widely broadcast in American media and the first true American experience with guerrilla warfare. The lessons learned in Vietnam were varied and often came at a high price. The war in Vietnam has been depicted in many different films in many different ways, all of them with their own bias. Platoon was the first Vietnam War film made by a veteran of Vietnam and it provides a unique and accurate view of the conditions that soldiers there experienced. When Taylor first

Platoon Essay

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