The history of creation and the actors of the film "Apocalypse Now" in 1979

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The epic film about the Vietnam War, shot by the legendary American director Francis Ford Coppola, became a grand event in the history of world cinema. The painting "Apocalypse Now" is unique in every sense. In the plot, based on the famous literary work of the early twentieth century "Heart of Darkness", reality is intertwined with fantasy, and the images of the main characters were embodied on the screen by some of the most talented actors of that time.

The background of the film

The script was written by Hollywood director and producer John Milius when the Vietnam War was in full swing. The original idea was to shoot the film directly in a real war zone, but no film company dared to take such a risk.

A few years after the end of the war, Coppola took up the film adaptation of this script, whose directorial talent had already received universal recognition by that time. Film actors"Apocalypse Now" in 1979 did not have to risk his life. The filming location was the Philippines. The nature of this country turned out to be almost indistinguishable from the Vietnamese jungle.

Despite the fact that the script did not contain any pacifist ideas, thanks to the creative approach that the director and actors showed, the film "Apocalypse Now" in 1979 became one of the most striking anti-war films in the history of cinema.

Storyline

US Special Forces officer Benjamin Willard, suffering from deep depression and excessive drinking, receives a secret and delicate mission from his command. He must eliminate US Army Colonel W alter Kurtz, who went crazy and organized in the jungles of Cambodia from representatives of local tribes something between a partisan detachment and a totalitarian sect.

Traveling through a war-torn area where the cost of human life is zero, Willard witnesses senseless bloodshed and encounters strange personalities driven to madness by war. Gradually, the main character also begins to lose a sense of reality. He manages to survive and eliminate the out-of-control colonel. In the finale, Willard realizes that any war inevitably leads to a dead end.

Main characters

Many of the actors in the 1979 film Apocalypse Now later claimed to have played roles in the film onthe limits of their creativity. The image of Benjamin Willard was embodied on the screen by Martin Sheen, the founder of the famous cinematic dynasty. Playing a character who abuses alcohol, he really was in a state of intoxication. From overexertion during the filming, Shin suffered a heart attack.

The most legendary figure among the actors of the film "Apocalypse Now" in 1979 was Marlon Brando. He played the role of the mysterious Colonel Kurtz. Brando refused to follow the script and ad-libbed almost all of his lyrics. In order to hide the overweight of the movie star, which did not match the appearance of the hero, the cameramen tried to shoot only his face.

Of all the actors and roles in the film "Apocalypse Now" in 1979, such a bright character stands out as Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore, brilliantly played by Robert Duvall. This character is a war-obsessed madman who utters the now iconic line about his love of the smell of napalm.

Among the names of the actors of the film "Apocalypse Now" in 1979, there are even such stellar ones as Harrison Ford and Laurence Fishburne. They played episodic roles in the film and at the time of filming were still little known to the public.

Interesting facts

Instead of the planned six weeks, the process of creating a cinematic epic dragged on for sixteen months. There are legends about how difficult the film "Apocalypse Now" was for Coppola. actors,who starred in the film in 1979, tell that several times the director threatened to commit suicide out of desperation. Coppola completely financed the picture at his own expense, pawning all his property for this. A box office failure would have spelled bankruptcy for him, but luckily the film paid off and made a big profit.

Work on the painting was hampered by extreme weather conditions. One day, a typhoon completely destroyed the set. The filmmakers managed to negotiate with the Philippine government to provide military helicopters and pilots, but the army command often recalled them to participate in real combat operations against the insurgents.

Critic reviews

Opinions about the artistic merit of the painting were divided. Some critics called the film a breathtaking spectacle, others spoke of its emotional dullness and intellectual emptiness. The film won two Oscars for cinematography and sound. "Apocalypse Now" is ranked 28th in the list of the 100 Greatest Films of the 20th Century.