Charlie Sheen stars in this movie. This is probably the most accurate Vietnam movie ever made.

I would disagree. Platoon depicts the soldiers as chaotic, undisciplined, dope induced misfits, whereas the majority of the soldiers were the opposite of this. Listen to more than just one vietnam veteran's viewpoint on the war and what he saw. (Don't worry, most vietnam vets are stable happily married successful people and not homeless psychotic men) Do some research =)

P.S. Platoon is very well done filmmaking wise --I just disagree that it is the most accurate vietnam film out there.

I think Stone was trying to do more than simply present documentary-style accuracy, and you may be putting too much emphasis on the characters as "drug induced misfits."

Stone's movie was the first that attempted to show the experience of "grunts" in Vietnam, without using a cast full of two-dimensional, war-movie stereotypes. It made a big impact when it was released, because it was the first about Vietnam in which the audience could empathize with the characters and what they were going through.

There were many fine films made about Vietnam-era soldiers and vets, but this one really opened up national dialogue about them and helped begin the "healing" over the war (so much had been swept under the rug til then). It helped people to see the men behind the big issues involved with the War that had been the focus for so long.

Interestingly, what I notice more these days is the fine job Charlie Sheen did...and wonder what happened to him!

________________
"I didn't do it/That wasn't me/It won't hold up in court"

Keyword accuracy --- I can see Stone trying to convey what grunts went through, but the way they depicted how they handled it and behaved is not very accurate among the majority of veterans. So in turn, rather than help the “healing” process, it actually hurts the veterans. It’s not like they already had a good image when they came back in the first place. For example, the race-divide between the blacks and whites --- there’s no bond shared like that of combat. When people are trying to kill you and you have to work together to stay alive, you form a commodore like no other and all the political garbage goes out the window. Ask the vets though. Most will tell you they did not like Platoon. There’s an interesting article I read about a couple of filmmakers (who happen to be Vietnam vets) who wanted to tell their side of the story, so they started traveling cross country talking to lots of people involved in the war. I think one guy sold his business to fund this documentary series. Here’s the website if anyone is interested. It has the filmmaker’s stories and stats, etc. Pretty interesting =) http://www.longwayhome.net/index.html

Also what are some other Vietnam movies out there? I think I’ve missed some, here’s what I have seen though:

Apocalypse Now
Platoon
Born on the 4th of July
Forrest Gump (Vietnam scenes)
Full Metal Jacket
Tour of Duty TV series
The Deer Hunter
Born on the 4th of July
We Were Soldiers
Casualties of War
Good Morning Vietnam
The Quiet American

I sure remember how Platoon started people talking about it. I guess I'm speaking more about the impact of the movie, rather than the technical accuracy. Not to discount the camaraderie that develops in combat, but the racial divides in the Vietnam War have been well-documented.

A few other Vietnam flicks:

The Boys in Company C
Hamburger Hill
Coming Home
Heaven and Earth

________________
"I didn't do it/That wasn't me/It won't hold up in court"

Don't forget Windtalkers

Andrew H Paul

windtalkers was world war 2 you idiot