Sam Fuller's "The Big Red One," a lost platoon of a movie that was cut to shreds upon initial release, finally came home to a hero's welcome in 2005 with the release of "The Reconstruction." What appeared to theatrical audiences of 1980 as a ragtag chronicle of young men at war now stands tall as one of the dozen or so great movies about World … [Read more...]
‘Platoon’ brings the jungle back home
MGM has redeployed Oliver Stone's "Platoon" in a Blu-ray edition that marks the movie's debut in high def and its 25th anniversary. The Vietnam War film -- released at Christmas 1986 -- has been followed by a host of Vietnam War films, but remains in the upper tier because of its strong young cast, terse storytelling and claustrophobic scenes of … [Read more...]
‘Restrepo’ director killed in Libya
The sad news came in late last night that photographer and filmmaker Tim Hetherington died while covering the civil war in Libya. Hetherington was one of the two directors of the astonishing documentary "Restrepo," filmed at a makeshift Army base in the hills of Afghanistan. The combat photographer and three colleagues were killed in … [Read more...]
