MovieChat Forums > The Killing Fields (1985) Discussion > One Of The Finest Films Of Its Kind....

One Of The Finest Films Of Its Kind....

posted 14 years ago by Tyger-Flynn
6 replies | jump to latest

.....could never have been made in current times. That's an indictment. The defining scene of the heliocopter on the roof of the embassy and the people clinging on like a chain of ants - the film that could never be made about Viet Nam, or any of our current conflicts. I quote a User Review because the reviewer says so well what I would say -

One of the most beautiful and moving films ever made.
14 November 2004 | by David Gruder ([email protected]) (Ottawa, Ontario, Camada)

First of all I love this genre of movie; I'm not a huge fan of action or fantasy or romance movies, I have so-called "comedies" but I love genuine FILM, as in FILM not MOVIE; art as opposed to enterprise.

This film, The Killing Fields, is one of the defining films in it's class; based on the true story of an American journalist (one Sydney Schanberg) working in Cambodia and his guide/interpreter; a Cambodian named Dith Pran. When the Khmer Rouge (probably one of the most vicious and barbaric regimes in history) takes power the Westerners flee. The enterprising American, however, remains behind with his faithful guide (who sends his family off to America). This turns out to be a bad decision; through a series of misadventures Dith Pran cannot escape Cambodia and must remain behind while his friend flees. The movie weaves a wonderful tale of adventure, misadventure, loss, suffering, death, and reunion (in no particular order).

This movie is so beautiful and touching (and so very graphic) that one cannot help but be affected by it; a must-see, one of the defining movies on the subject of war as well as loss and certainly the most evocative film about the Khmer Rouge and the Viet Nam War in Cambodia. A beautiful film about war and tragedy but filled with hope throughout...

[–] ikinmoore 14 years ago

I couldn't put that better myself. This film was truely brilliant. It is one of my top ten films of all time. There was nothing "hollywood" about it which made it even better and based a true story.

The best films are made in an intelligent format.

[–] Mars_atax 14 years ago

Other good movies about genocide:

Schindler's List, Shoah, and Q.B. VII (about the Nazi Holocaust)
Hotel Rwanda (about the mass murder of the Tutsis)
John Rabe (about the Rape of Nanking)

[–] AssetsonFire 14 years ago

I don't understand. Why couldn't it be made? You just refer to a review that begins with a fatuous and meaningless distinction between two synonymous words, which isn't a great start. What?

[–] mimosa_mirabella 14 years ago

It wouldn't be made because the entertainment industry now is more closely tied with major corporations which profit from the state of continual wars.

http://vincentandmorticiasspeakeasy14846.yuku.com/directory]

[–] AssetsonFire 14 years ago

And yet films such as Lord of War, Blood Diamond, Stop Loss and Redacted somehow continue to be made.

[–] Rayek_ 14 years ago

The Killing Fields is one of those all too rare movies, a movie that challenges you to think about what you have just witnessed on screen, a movie that has the power to make you very aware that human tragedy and persecution are very much with us today. That said, the film concerns one man's triumph over unbelievable tragedy and adversity.

The cinematography is first class, and the acting is all too believable. To appreciate the full enormity of this film I would strongly recommend reading up on the events with which the film is concerned. This film is hard to fault, and the ending with John Lennon's "Imagine" in the background is perfect and may well reduce you to tears.

"Youth is life's paradise; joy is the eternal youth of the spirit."