Movie #16: Apocalypse Now

Movie #: 16
Movie Title: Apocalypse Now
Year Released: 1979

Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Notable Cast: Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Frederic Forrest, Albert Hall, Sam Bottoms, Larry Fishburne, Dennis Hopper

Short Description: During the Vietnam War, Captain Willard is sent on a dangerous mission into Cambodia to assassinate a renegade colonel who has set himself up as a god among a local tribe. (IMDB.com)


Rank on the Top 100 Lists (as of 1/7/2013)

AFI.com: #30
IMDB.com: #35
Ranker.com: #23
Lifed.com: #34
Empire.com: #7
FilmCrave.com: #45
FlickChart.com: #43



Date Watched: 11/22/2016

Grade: 2 out of 5 (Fair)

Rationale: Between the constant close-ups on Martin Sheen's emotionless face, an enemy in the jungle that you never truly see, and Marlon Brando's Colonel Kurtz having an aura of being an intimidating warlord without actually coming off as intimidating, Apocalypse Now was a huge letdown considering its ranking on my top 251 list. The supporting characters on the boat that ferried Sheen's Captain Willard upstream were far more interesting than Sheen or Brando. The action was ok, but seemingly one sided as the Viet Cong was mostly hidden from view. Frankly, there are many other war movies I'd rather watch again than Apocalypse Now.