Platoon (1986)

tricksy June 10, 2015

Platoon is a must see. The film that put Stone on the map, Platoon is considered by Vietnam Vets as the most realistic. But in keeping the maxim of giving credit where credit is due, much of the success of Platoon belongs to military adviser Captain Dale Dye, who has been linked to pretty much every great war movie in the last twenty years. Much accolades to Tom Berenger as well, whose performance as Sgt. Barnes is the tour de force of his career. With a great script, great performances, and awesome cinematography, Platoon is a surefire classic.

Filipe Manuel Neto December 26, 2023

★ 9/10

**A film with a good script and good characters, but which exaggerates some things and is as anti-war as almost all films about Vietnam.** The Vietnam War is one of the most brutal conflicts the US was involved in the 20th century, and one of the first wars that Americans lost. Following the expulsion of the Japanese and the end of French colonization in the region, the effort to help democratic South Vietnam to survive the invasion by its northern neighbor, a pawn at the orders of the USSR, resulted in a bloodbath that it leaves dents in the American mentality. That's why there are several films about this war, and the vast majority are highly critical of US intervention. This film is just another one and brings us a story that is not very different from what we can see in “Apocalypse Now” or “Full Metal Jacket”. Charlie Sheen gives us what we can consider his best and mos…

CinemaSerf March 9, 2026

★ 7/10

The corn at home might have been green, but nowhere near as green as “Chris” (Charlie Sheen) when he arrives in Vietnam ready to take up arms against the well entrenched Viet-Cong. The scene as he arrives speaks volumes as his far most experienced colleagues look upon his fresh face with a combination of resentment and disdain, and he is posted to a squadron run by an equally inexperienced lieutenant (Mark Moses). Luckily the heavy lifting is done by a staff sergeant “Barnes” (Tom Berenger) and by “Sgt. Elias” (Willem Dafoe). The former is a bit of a brute of a man, battle-scarred and ruthless whilst the latter is equally formidable but in a less hostile fashion. The experiences of “Chris” and his platoon soon showcase the worst excesses of jungle warfare against a foe entirely adept, and of course this takes it’s psychological toll on these men as they climb, scramble …