Great Movies: Apocalypse Now (Coppola, 1979)

In this new category of entry, I write a short little opinion on an older film that I've watched recently that I feel is a classic movie. Let me know what you guys think. First up is Francis Ford Coppola's masterpiece Apocalypse Now.











When most think of Francis Ford Coppola, they think of The Godfather. But my favorite Coppola film is Apocalypse Now – which is saying something; I consider The Godfather and The Godfather Part II to be masterful achievements of filmmaking, but Apocalypse Now is Coppola at his very best.

The film opens with one of the most striking images in modern cinema: a jungle of palm trees, swaying in the breeze. Suddenly, the muffled sound of a chopper, it’s rotor blades slicing through the air. It zooms past the frame, gone as quickly as it appeared. A second chopper follows, and a third.

Then, fire and smoke erupt from the tree line as the soundtrack kicks in. Napalm at work. The explosions blossom into the air like burning flowers. The sky ripples with the heat of the blaze as more choppers rocket past the frame.

Apocalypse Now is a beautiful movie to watch. The cinematography is some of the best in modern film. Coppola’s use of shadow on the character’s faces in the last few scenes is superbly surreal.

Martin Sheen is excellent as the lead, and Robert Duvall is fantastic in his charming, albeit small, role. But the real heart of the film is with the performance of Marlon Brando as Kurtz. We wait the entire film to see Kurtz, to hear him speak, and we are not in the least disappointed when we finally enter his camp. Brando is poetic and melodic, and yet so chillingly unsettling as Kurtz.

The film is truly one that you find yourself lost in. Halfway through, you realize that you’re not aware of your surroundings or even the people watching it with you. It’s a movie experience like no other, and it’s fantastic. Apocalypse Now is truly a classic film.