Rarely has the frantic sense of confusion on a battlefield come across so expertly as in Platoon, a stark condemnation of war from the point of view of the grunts who were forced to endure it. "They're the bottom of the barrel and they know it," laments one character in a voiceover. It's a clear reminder of who really lived the battle, as opposed to the politicians and leaders who declared them many miles away.
Charlie Sheen is great here as Chris Taylor, an American who volunteers to enlist to fight in the Vietnam War. He's out of his league from the get-go, enduring the rain or the scorching heat, swatting in vain at ants, and unable even to stay awake at times. Through Chris, we hear about the hardships of Vietnam, but we also see the gradual transformation of him and his fellow soldiers into creatures of primal instincts and temperamental moods. The most primal of them all is the one they refer to as unkillable: the heavily-scarred Sargeant Barnes (Tom Berenger). Thematically, he's counter-balanced with Sargeant Elias (Willem Dafoe), a man who's lived the atrocity of war but has managed to hold onto some humanity within his soul. After a venture inside a small village goes awry, the differences between the two leaders cause a split within the platoon (Taylor refers to it as a civil war). None of the followers necessarily want to talk about who's right and wrong; they just don't want to be left high and dry on the battlefield. After all, sometimes friendly fire is not necessarily accidental or unintentional.
The film is written and directed by Oliver Stone, who served in Vietnam himself. The scenes smack of realism, because so many of them are obviously grounded in experience. Stone is not concerned in introducing traditional plot points for a narrative (although a storyline does emerge), but in sketching the graphic and chaotic aspects of war. And they are indeed well presented. Robert Richardson's jungle photography is thick, atmospheric and highly sensory. The scenes inside the barracks during the platoon's down time is carnival-esque in nature while we watch the soldiers smoke or drink their troubles away.
Platoon would go on to win best picture and has remained one of the highlights in Stone's repertoire (he nabbed best director for the film). With compelling performances and harrowing scenes, it's often referred to as one of the higher ranking movies about Vietnam, and deservedly so.
