An allegory is the expression by means of symbolic figures and actions of truths or generalizations about human existence; a symbolic representation. In Francis Coppola’s Apocalypse Now Redux the characters are used as symbols to explain his view of the Vietnam War.
In the opening scene Willard is in a hotel room heavily intoxicated with the fan spinning. The fan spins so fast that one would think it is a helicopter rotor cutting through the tense air. This shows how ordinary objects could remind soldiers of war, and that once they become a part of war it never leaves them. In addition to the fan, there is a gun and bottle of whiskey which may allude to the fact that Willard suffered from a form of PTSD, and was using alcohol as a means to cope. Willard is later assigned a mission to kill a rogue officer by the name of Walter Kurtz. One important theme that Coppola brings to the surface in the character of Kurtz is the madness that war causes. When Willard finds Kurtz he sees the dead body strung about and the severed heads about his domain which leads the audience to believe that Kurtz has forgotten human emotions of guilt, grief, and suffering. Although the war is the most common cause for why he has gone crazy, it can be suggested that his wrong doing of killing some innocent Vietnamese intelligent officers and the reprimand that followed lead him to abandon his belief in the American army. At the end of the movie, once Willard has slain Kurtz with a machete, Kurtz says, “The horror, the horror”. These two words may not seem powerful, but they explain so much about the thoughts of war. War is indeed a hopeless and daunting place that few experience, and sometimes it is only death that can end this lack of nothingness.
Another aspect that could be brought up in regards to the allegory of this movie is the involvement of the United States. In this movie Willard can be seen as the “American soldier” dying to get back to war, and serve his country. He unlike Kurtz does not stray from the ideas of the army, and fulfills his mission to the very end. Along with the character of Willard are the many scenes in which the United States stands to take over Vietnamese territory like it was their own. In the scene with the Valkryies, the soldiers aboard the helicopters play a song that announces their presence unto their helpless victims below. It was as if the music were their drummer boy leading them into battle. In another scene Kilgore clears an entire beach, by killing everyone on it, so that he and his men could go surfing. This shows the lack of humanity and the selfishness of the soldiers who were just trying to make themselves feel better.
The last and most important allegorical symbol is Willard’s mission. On the literal level Willard’s mission is to kill Kurtz because he has gone rogue and is viewed as a threat. However, on the symbolic level this mission can be seen as Willard’s journey into the darkness of his soul. It is clear from the beginning of the movie that he has seen and experienced the atrocities of war, but it is in this mission that Willard truly finds out how far he can go. The audience finds out that there was another man sent before Willard to kill Kurtz, but he ended up going rogue as well and joins Kurtz. This makes it seem like the same thing could happen to Willard, but in the end he fulfills his mission and kills Kurtz. Most people would think that killing another human being is the deepest and darkest point one could reach inside themselves. Willard was able to kill Kurtz, but will the fulfillment of this mission allow Willard to return to society, Coppola does not say.
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An allegory is the expression by means of symbolic figures and actions of truths or generalizations about human existence; a symbolic representation. In Francis Coppola’s Apocalypse Now Redux the characters are used as symbols to explain his view of the Vietnam War.
ReplyDeleteIn the opening scene Willard is in a hotel room heavily intoxicated with the fan spinning. The fan spins so fast that one would think it is a helicopter rotor cutting through the tense air. This shows how ordinary objects could remind soldiers of war, and that once they become a part of war it never leaves them. In addition to the fan, there is a gun and bottle of whiskey which may allude to the fact that Willard suffered from a form of PTSD, and was using alcohol as a means to cope. Willard is later assigned a mission to kill a rogue officer by the name of Walter Kurtz. One important theme that Coppola brings to the surface through the character of Kurtz is the madness that war causes. When Willard finds Kurtz he sees the dead bodies strung about and the severed heads on the ground which leads the audience to believe that Kurtz has forgotten human emotions of guilt, grief, and suffering. Although the war is the most common cause for why he has gone crazy, it can be suggested that when he killed the innocent Vietnamese officers he lost hope in the mission of the American army. At the end of the movie, once Willard has slain Kurtz with a machete, Kurtz says, “The horror, the horror”. These two words may not seem powerful, but they explain so much about the thoughts of war. War is a hopeless and daunting place that few experience, and sometimes it is only death that can end this lack of nothingness.
Another aspect that could be brought up in regards to the allegory of this movie is the involvement of the United States. In this movie Willard can be seen as the “American soldier” dying to get back to war, and serve his country. He unlike Kurtz does not stray from the ideas of the army, and fulfills his mission to the very end. Along with the character of Willard are the many scenes in which the United States stands to take over Vietnamese territory like it was their own. In the scene with the Valkryies, the soldiers aboard the helicopters play a song that announces their presence unto their helpless victims below. It was as if the music were their drummer boy leading them into battle. In another scene Kilgore clears an entire beach, by killing everyone on it, so that he and his men could go surfing. This shows the lack of humanity and the selfishness of the soldiers who were just trying to make themselves feel better.
The last and most important allegorical symbol is Willard’s mission. On the literal level Willard’s mission is to kill Kurtz because he has gone rogue and is viewed as a threat by the United States. However, on the symbolic level this mission can be seen as Willard’s journey into the darkness of his soul. It is clear from the beginning of the movie that he has seen and experienced the atrocities of war, but it is in this mission that Willard truly finds out how far he can go. The audience finds out that there was another man sent before Willard to kill Kurtz, but he ended up going rogue and joined Kurtz. This makes it seem like the same thing could happen to Willard, but in the end he fulfills his mission and kills Kurtz. Most people would think that killing another human being is the deepest and darkest point one could reach inside themselves. Willard was able to kill Kurtz, but will the fulfillment of this mission allow Willard to return to society, Coppola does not say.