Apocalypse Now

Ponderous, meandering epic with a few bright spots.

This film is about a soldiers quest to find a renegade and insane Colonel (a bald Brando in an extended cameo) who has hidden himself away in the depths of the jungle and is causing all manner of commotion. Quite what it was - I can't remember, but it was important enough to go down stream in search of him.

Sheen's character decides to head down river with his fellow soldiers and seek out the bald lunatic before its too late. Robert Duvall is hilarious as a war immune soldier - especially when a shell explodes near him and he merely gives it a disinterested glance. Amusing!

On the whole, though, this is a ponderous trip - the film seems to meander aimlessly with little to keep this viewer interested.

• Ian Beale

I think a lot of people who think this film is a classic are deranged, the only memorable scene in the film is when they drop exploding napalm and the guy in the hat says "I love the smell of napalm in the morning", the rest of the film is a completely boring bombshell and it's like the film was high on drugs as there's this one part where people are butchering a cow in the most grotesque way possible... poor cow, now I'm offended by this film.

This film is just weird, the characters are not memorable at all not even Marlon Brando's character, the story is non-existent and the ending just sucks. Overall this film is absolutely terrible and I don't care what others think, I did not enjoy this film at all.

One of the greatest films ever made

The original "Apocalypse Now" is an awe-inspiring masterpiece and is my all-time favorite film. Memorable scenes abound, starting with the mind-blowing opening with Willard (Martin Sheen) having a mental breakdown in his sweltering Saigon hotel room to the tune of The Doors' "The End."

Speaking of Sheen, people overlook the fact that he expertly carries the film. His haunting commentary is one of the most effective narrations in cinematic history and hooks the viewer into the nightmare-adventure.

I could go on and on about the noteworthy scenes, but I'll resist, except to comment on Col. Kurtz: Was he really insane or actually a bold genius? General Corman informs Willard: "He's out there o...

It wasn't just insanity and murder, there was enough of that to go around for everyone.

Apocalypse Now is directed by Francis Ford Coppola who also co-adapts the screenplay with John Milius from Heart of Darkness written by Joseph Conrad. It stars Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall, Laurence Fishburne, Dennis Hopper, Harrison Ford, Frederic Forrest, Sam Bottoms and Albert Hall. Cinematography is by Vittorio Storaro and the music is primarily arranged by Carmine Coppola.

The Vietnam War and Captain Benjamin L. Willard (Sheen) is approached by American intelligence to go on a secret assignment: he's to follow the Nung River into the remote Cambodian jungle to find and assassinate Colonel Walter E. Kurtz (Marlon Brando), a member...

This is, I think, the definitive Vietnam war movie. Martin Sheen is "Capt. Willard", a war weary veteran who is sent on a top secret mission to track down and stop the rogue Colonel 'Kurtz" (Marlon Brando) who is operating independently from Cambodia. With only a small crew of rookie squaddies, he sets off along the treacherous Nung River where, along the way, they alight on "Kilgore" (Robert Duvall) and face all sorts of dangers against both man and nature as they seek their quarry. The sheer intensity of the journey, and of the challenges it throws up cause "Willard" to re-evaluate his whole perspective, and not just on the war, as the horrors of this conflict manifest before him. It's a stunningly strong depiction of war; the humanity an...