MovieChat Forums > Good Morning, Vietnam (1988) Discussion > I'm English...what was the piont of this...

I'm English...what was the piont of this story?

posted 16 years ago by Moss-37
23 replies | jump to latest

Seen this movie twice now in the space of twenty years.What on earth was it all about?Didn't find the 'humour' once funny.(even though I love Mr williams in so many of his films).What was so shocking about his DJ style?Why was it shocking he was playing the hit tunes of the day?The story was a non event in my book,I just can't stop wondering 'so what dude...big deal'
It just seemed to me the typical way an American film making a whole big deal over some true life character that didn't change a dam thing in history.Won't be watching this crass movie again while im breathing old chum.

[–] mikeywins 16 years ago

You've been breathing Old Chum? That sounds awful.

[–] Ichabod_Fletchman 16 years ago

i would hardly call it crass. so every movie has to have a great moral and purpose? it can't just be a good movie, a little funny, a little serious.
he was playing music they didn't want him to. that was it. sorry to disappoint you're great standards.
and don't be so condescending about this being "just another AMERICAN film..." like that makes it worth less. for once its not the americans i see coming across as a jackass. its you.

Those who believe in telekinesis, raise my hand.

[–] tonycarr 16 years ago

I'm English. I've just seen this for the first time and I thought it excellent. Williams was great as the DJ trying to give the GIs what they wanted and needed. I also thought that there was good contrast between the humour and the fact that a bomb may go off any moment. Was this based on a true story?

I should also point out that there is no subject that can send me into a deep coma like Vietnam. It bored the living daylightsout of me in the sixties and having sat through turgid films like The Deerhunter and Apocalypse I avoid any film about Vietnam like the plague. Nice to be proved wrong.

[–] optimaldesigns 16 years ago

Adrian Cronauer was based on a real DJ, but that's about it. Most of the movie is fictional.

[–] Bob_Zerunkel 16 years ago

The point is simply that a young GI wouldn't do his job as ordered. The officers hated him. The men loved him. He didn't change a damn thing in history -- unless you happened to be there. For the men, he was their only contact with the life that they used to have. He played music they liked. He used humor. He found it hard to stick to the "official" version of the news. The Army was against all of that.

GIs, at that time, put their lives on the line for less than $3 a day. The men loved him. The officers hated him. He made a difference in the lives of thousands of men.

I would court martial him if he did that while under my command.

And I would be cheering if he did that while I was stuck in a firebase in the middle of nowhere.

Although he wasn't a thief or a coward, his relationship with those in charge wass a lot like Robin Hood's relationship with King John, but without the bad teeth, crappy food, and underarm hair.

[–] 16 years ago

[deleted]

[–] takiko-1 16 years ago

Well the person that this is based on is not like how Robin Williams portrayed him in this movie, according to the mention in the trivia here. ("Contrary to the character in the movie, the real Adrian Cronauer did not use comedy in his radio broadcast, nor was he kicked out of the military. He left Vietnam because his tour of duty was over.")

I think it's worth nothing the review that I saw on the movie page though.

35 out of 38 people found the following comment useful:-
A great morale booster!, 15 March 2002
8/10
Author: SmileysWorld from United States

Vietnam without a doubt was a dark period in our history.Any comedy film surrounding Vietnam would indeed have to be done delicately.This movie pulls it off.What amazes me most about the film is the flawless, improvisational radio dialog from Robin Williams.This,as most of you may know,was completely unscripted to allow Williams an opportunity to work his magic.Also,it had to be timely,for the movie is,of course,set in 1965.The fact that he was able to do this is nothing short of amazing.The supporting cast was also incredible,with great performances by Forrest Whitaker,Bruno Kirby,and the late J.T.Walsh as "Sergeant Major Dickerson",the man you love to hate.Although some of the horror that was Vietnam is here,it's only giving you a taste of it,as it concentrates more on the Williams character's quest to make our beloved soldiers forget their horror,at least for a while.Highly recommended.

[–] stevenackerman69 14 years ago

Hasn't Bruno Kirby passed away too?

[–] RobBase086-1 15 years ago

See back in Vietnam there was certain things that can be said and could not be said. It was to keep moral up even though Robin Williams was playing a person who went through these things in Vietnam. He was big back in Vietnam the character that Robin Williams was playing but it was very true as to what the movie was showing. I liked the movie and thought it was very good to watch.

My father was a Vietnam veteran and some of the things that he saw in this movie he said actually happened to him.

Dedicated to USA UP ALL NIGHT and the fans of the show! www.deefilmroll.com/usa-uan/

[–] JazukaiX 14 years ago

You damn English types... always ruining the fun.
I'm Australian, and i understood it.

However, it was more of a fantasized what-if version of history that touched on a number of personal, historical, and moral issues.

[–] Puxed 13 years ago

For the record, I am English and liked the film (though I didn't really 'get' the humour), but we had very little involvement in the Vietnam war, unlike the Australians and the Americans, we weren't even part of it. So of course you understand it, but it's not in our history, we don't learn about it and we don't hear about it - you can't expect the British to immediately understand it.

[–] Myth-and-Mayhem 14 years ago

The film was basically just a vehicle to showcase Williams' electric talent as a comedian.

"...the young man would love it too, but he can't afford it."

[–] jayson_firestorm 14 years ago

I'm English (and love this movie)... and in my whole life have never heard anyone saying "old chum". I detect a wind up.

Jay Firestorm
www.thea-team.org