Drama

History

Casualties of War

Columbia Pictures

United States of America

English

Michael J. Fox

Sean Penn

Don Harvey

John C. Reilly

John Leguizamo

Thuy Thu Le

Erik King

Jack Gwaltney

Ving Rhames

Wendell Pierce

Sam Robards

Dan Martin

Dale Dye

Steve Larson

John Linton

Vyto Ruginis

Al Shannon

Maris Valainis

Darren E. Burrows

Sherman Howard

John Marshall Jones

Holt McCallany

Kady Tran

Scott Gregory

Ennalls Berl

Vinh Tran

Somsak

Hataya Sarmount

Ba Thuan T. Le

Nootch

Kwan

J. Chalerm

Sigma

Po Powpi

Shaun Shea

Kristopher Dunn

Donal Gibson

Shane Kerwin

Niran

Stephen Baldwin

Gregg Henry

Amy Irving

Michael D. Jones

Espérance Pham Thai Lan

Brian De Palma

David Rabe

Art Linson

Ennio Morricone

Stephen H. Burum

Bill Pankow

Daniel Lang

Fred C. Caruso

Peter Hancock

Hugh Scaife

Richard Bruno

Paul Engelen

Carl Fullerton

Adam Hill

Mike Lockey

Bron Roylance

Suzanne Stokes-Munton

Lynn Stalmaster

Wolf Kroeger

Bernard Hides

Laurie Shane

Michael Stevenson

Charles Croughwell

Ray Freeborn

Ross Reynolds

_**Beautiful and brutal, artistic and ugly**_

Based on a true story, the arrogant sergeant (Sean Penn) of a 5-man squad on a reconnaissance mission in Vietnam in November, 1966, decides to kidnap a Vietnamese farm girl for some “portable R&R” because it would be "good for the morale of the squad." But PFC Eriksson (Michael J. Fox) refuses to participate and fears being “killed In Action” for dissenting.

“Casualties of War” (1989) separates itself from other Vietnam War movies by focusing on the incident at hand, including the build-up and aftermath. Its uniqueness is augmented by Brian De Palma’s slightly off-kilter style. The picture balances the beauty of the location and the artistry of Brian De Palma's filmmaking with the horror and ugliness of war & rape.

It's also realistic and compelling while simultaneously being mundane, which is why some viewers might find it boring. In other words, this is more of a gut-wrenching war drama with some action than a typical war flick with explosions and action thrills galore. It fairly closely follows the real story; Google Incident on Hill 192 for details.

The movie runs 1 hour, 59 minutes, with the original Theatrical Cut being 6 minutes shorter. It was shot in Phang Nga, Kanchanaburi & Phuket, Thailand, and Dolores Park, San Francisco, California.

GRADE: A-/B+

"Casualties of War" is a deeply disturbing and emotionally overpowering film which remains strictly impartial throughout and it just recounts the acutely distressing and repugnant details in a dramatically harrowing yet still compelling way. The rape itself is dealt with in an incredibly matter-of-fact fashion as indeed is the victim's very life when she is indiscriminately murdered after she becomes an inconvenience. It is also shocking but to be expected that when Private Eriksson brings squad leader Sergeant Meserve's criminal act to the attention of his superiors he is met with a lack of concern and even a measure of anger. The real area of upset for them lies not with a lack of justice for the victim, but with the lives of the young men in the platoon Eriksson is about to destroy.

Casualties of War (1989) Original Trailer [FHD]

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Casualties of War

Cast & Crew

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Cast

Michael J. Fox

Sean Penn

Don Harvey

John C. Reilly

John Leguizamo

Thuy Thu Le

Erik King

Jack Gwaltney

Ving Rhames

Wendell Pierce

Box office

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