Platoon  ★★★★

WHEN Platoon was released in 1986 it copped plenty of criticism.

Not for its quality, but more for the content which presented aspects of the Vietnam War experience that some people either didn’t believe occurred, didn’t want to believe occurred or didn’t think needed to be shown.

Things like widespread drug use amongst American soldiers, depictions of rape and murder of civilians and, most controversial of all, soldiers killing their own officers.

But, despite the protestations, there was no stopping former veteran Oliver Stone’s film from searing itself on the American consciousness to the extent it ended up winning four Oscars including Best Film and Director.

It was the first Hollywood film to be written and directed by a veteran of the Vietnam War and took years to attract the investment needed to make it happen.

Platoon is a brilliantly presented indictment of not only the American Government’s decision to prosecute the War, but also the devastating impacts it left on everyone involved.

Stone served in the 25th Infantry in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968. The extent to which the main character’s story and the tragic events that surround him, mirror Stone’s own experience is debatable.

Charlie Sheen plays infantryman Chris Taylor whose nightmarish experience starts almost immediately due to the lack of any useful training given to new arrivals before being thrown into the nightmare of combat.

To other members of the platoon who have been there for some time, the newcomers are seen as at best an annoyance and, at worst, potential sacrificial lambs to help ensure their own ongoing survival.

The leadership of Taylor’s platoon is a microcosm of the War itself.

While officially under the command of an inexperienced and ineffective officer, in practice the leadership is divided between two other veterans – Platoon Leader Sergeant Barnes and Squad Leader Elias.

Both men are cynical but for very different reasons. Barnes wants to run things his way, not caring who gets hurt in the process; Elias just wants to make sure as many men as possible make it through the experience alive.

This fight for the hearts and souls of their men becomes the centre of Taylor’s experience as he shifts allegiances from one to the other while also serving as a microcosm of the war itself.

It culminates in the chaos of combat with the physical enemy and their own inner demons.

Along with Sheen, Tom Berenger as Barnes and Willem Dafoe as Elias deliver exceptional performances while the excellent supporting cast includes Keith David, Forest Whitaker, Kevin Dillon, John C. McGinley and Johnny Depp.

Watched on Blu-ray.