KCR: Rambo, First Blood Part II (movie, war, Vietnam)

Image via WikipediaFirst Blood (reviewed earlier) was a social commentary about warrior's psychic wounds and how they have a hard time fitting back into society. The sequel, on the other hand, is a pure revenge fantasy, about how Vietnam can be "won". Indeed, one of the bonus features on the DVD was "We get to win it this time!"

The Setup: John Rambo, in prison, was rescued by Col. Trautman... a CIA guy, Murdoch, wants Rambo to go into Vietnam to find evidence of American POWs. It'll be a completely clandestine mission, with just help of one Vietnamese agent. It's supposed to be quiet, just in and out. However, when Rambo lost the camera equipment due to mis-jump, he changed the mission to rescue. When he reached the rendezvous point with one POW, Murdoch ordered the choppered turned around, leaving him behind. He was captured by the Vietnamese, now in concert with the Russians, and tortured. Instead of cracking, he escaped with help of the Vietnamese agent. When the agent was killed by ambush, he declared war on the prison camp, the Russians, the Vietnamese, and tries to rescue the POWs...

The setup is pretty atrocious, but there's enough action going through the movie to keep you on the edge. The initial insertion into Vietnam was interesting, and the escape from prison camp also interesting. The point right up to the betrayal was great, and subsequent second escape and big showdown is just awesome for its time. Nowadays, you see all the flaws and problems, but back then, it's like heck, yeah! Go USA! USA! It's cathartic.

You don't watch Rambo movies for characters. You see it to see bad guys killed, and good guys win.

KCR: Missing in Action / Delta Force 2 double pack (movie, military)

This Chuck Norris combo is from his much earlier days. Missing in Action was dated 1984, and Delta Force 2 dated 1990. The action holds up, though the lack of special effects is quite, meh, at least by today's standards.

Missing in Action was actually the 2nd movie made, though this movie was released first. Plot is simple: Col  Braddock (Chuck Norris) was a part of team investigating possible MIAs and POWs in Vietnam after the war's over. With some intelligence that was not enough to convince any one, Braddock went to see how old friend in Thailand and mount an expedition into Vietnam, highly illegal, to break the Vietnamese lie.

This movie was released JUST before Rambo: First Blood Part II, and I must say, was worse in almost every aspect. The spy stuff is forced and stiff, and action pretty stale compared to the exciting stuff in Rambo. Still, it was first. If you need some classic Chuck Norris action, this one is okay, as this is one of the first movies that featured the cliche... hero hides underwater, bad guys looking, looking, then hero bursts out of water, machine gun blasting, mowing down the bad guys.

Worth watching... once.

Delta Force 2 is basically Delta Force vs. Columbian drug lords. When DEA agents were captured and held captive by Ramon Cota, infamous drug lord, Delta Force is called into action to deal some American justice!

You are not supposed to treat the story seriously, as these guys are not acting like Delta at all. They are acting like Chuck Norris and his disciples, all wearing black... much like his other movie: Good Guys Wear Black.

Keep in mind that these movies also reflect the times. In the 1980's, it's "winning Vietnam and make up for the 70's". In the 1990's, it's "war on drugs", so you have various movies about that (even 007 had a movie about that).

I honestly would not pay more than $5 for these two movies nowadays. Though if you are a Chuck Norris fan it may be worth it to add these to your collection.

KCR: The Silent Men (novel, war, Vietnam, sniper)

Cover of The Silent MenThe Silent Men by Richard H. Dickinson is about a Vietnam sniper Jackson Monroe, who's doubly out-of-place... he's a sniper, which is a lonely breed already, and he's black. Set against the backdrop of the Tet Offensive, Monroe, who's known as "Black Ghost" among the VC, and his partner Patterson was sent on a mission to shoot a North Vietnamese general just over the border in Cambodia. When the mission encountered sudden complications, his existence was denied and when the rescue went awry, he was left behind. He did not know that a VC sniper is out to hunt him... for a very personal reason. Only one man will walk away...

The little details are great in this book. There is enough action, enough shots, and enough plot twists. However, the problem with the novel is it shifts viewpoints several times over. The book is about Jackson Monroe, the sniper. However, when Monroe went missing, the viewpoint shifts to that of Brady, a reporter determined to get a scoop. Monroe was barely mentioned. It wasn't till the end when the two "meet". Also, you get another view... that of Patterson, Monroe's partner/spotter mixed in with Brady. We are not talking about the Tom Clancy style jump in location but continuous timeline. We're talking long stretch, then *poof* jump to some other viewpoint.

Still, the action is nice, the characters all have proper motivations and are consistent, and there are a few plot twists that are very interesting. Worth checking out at least once.

KCR: We Were Soldiers (DVD, War)

Image via Wikipedia

Col. Hal Moore (ret.)

One of the most balanced movies about Vietnam, albeit dramatized. Most of the incidents in the movie did happen, albeit slightly embellished. Hal Moore, the real one, wrote a book about his experience, called "We Were Soldiers Once... And young" (and yes, I have the book). The movie is actually amazingly faithful to the book for the most part. The final scenes were a bit too dramatized and deux ex machina.

The book actually discusses two separate battles... US may have gotten too confident after Hal Moore's "victory". Three days later, in another valley, another company was decimated. The book was meticulously researched. Moore and Galloway collaborated, and went back to Vietnam and interviewed many of the people who were there, esp. the North Vietnamese commanders. The movie didn't even cover HALF of it, but then, it didn't need to. The battle itself is enough for a whole movie.

Every detail was absolutely authentic and accurate... even the wounds and death. The director, Wallace (the same guy who did Braveheart) have a knack depicting war, and this movie is lauded by veterans for being so accurate it hurts. There is a bit of fiction and flubbing involved, but then, EVERY movie does that. In a war movie about a real event, reality should be at least 80%, and this movie got it right. Furthermore a war movie needs to be about war, with something about people, and not glorify the war itself.  (The Thin Red Line was too much about people and not enough about war, and movies like The Green Berets are just too propaganda-ish). This movie got the balance right.

People who think this movie glorifies war does not understand it. This movie is about ONE battle, and the people fighting it, both on the battlefield and on the homefront. There is no glory in death, but there is honor in a battle well fought, and a promise to leave no one behind.

Rating: Watch it at least once. I have it in my collection