"[♪♪♪]" "Well, I won't have to trim my nose hairs for a while." "Bihn Khe valley is a good place to use it." "There's supposed to be some tunnels up there, possibly some caves." "Isn't that where you got wounded?" "Yeah." "I'm feeling real sentimental about going back, especially with the added fire power." "Besides, it'll put on a good show for that reporter who's coming with us." "Reporter?" "Coming with us?" "You guys are gonna look real good on the evening news." "Come on." "Who's that coming?" "Santa Claus or something?" "No, some reporter-- Wants a tour of the bush." "That's all we need." "Yeah, probably some out-of-shape guy with 3-inch thick glasses." "I ain't babysitting the chump." "We'll get Horn to do it." "Oh, man." "Forget what I said about babysitting, sarge." "I'll take her all to myself." "Oh, Lord." "She brushes her teeth with something nice." "Yeah, I'd like to see her on a wave at Tressles." "Medic, Medic!" "Oh, I think I'm in love, man." "[BEEPS]" "Okay, you rolling, Coy?" "Just a second." "Okay, go." "Hi." "I'm Vicky Adams, and I'm here with Captain Rusty Wallace from the Bravo Company." "We're here to ask him a few questions." "Captain Wallace, can you tell us something about this mission?" "Intelligence has picked up some NVA movement in the Bihn Khe valley, so we're going to take the whole company out and do some recon and maybe grab some prisoners." "Well, that doesn't sound like much action." "Well, if that's not exciting enough for you, why don't you call the Marines?" "Well, you look like you're pretty good at handling trouble, sergeant." "Yes, ma'am, I am, but I don't go looking for it." "We're not here to create stories for the press." "[SIGHS]" "Great, okay." "Coy, cut it." "[BEEPS]" "I'm not asking you to create news." "I'm just looking for the truth." "We've got enough of that for you to take some home with you." "I appreciate it." "Don't speak too soon about that." "[SIGHS]" "Permission to check on the troops, sir." "Permission granted." "Ma'am." "He's quite a guy." "He's probably one of the best sergeants around." "He's very direct." "Well, we can always count on Sergeant Anderson to speak his mind." "Besides that, we found that being direct can be a very effective tool in the bush." "All right, Johnson, check all the ammo, and make sure all the weapons are clean." "I don't want the rifles jamming now." "Anything else, sarge?" "Yeah, tell Baker to change his socks, will you, please?" "Boy's getting a trifle musty." "Sergeant?" "Yeah." "I think this is going to be a real interesting experience." "[CHUCKLES]" "Yeah, that's one way of looking at it." "What's the matter?" "Those public information types in Saigon didn't give you enough news about the war?" "At the press briefings?" "The 5:00 follies?" "That's what they call them now?" "The truth is the last thing they want to tell, so I'm here to see it myself, firsthand." "Miss Adams, the truth is it's very hot and dirty out there, and very dangerous." "You think I can handle it?" "I think my men are gonna be very distracted about having a beautiful woman along." "Well, thank you." "I meant that as a fact, not as a compliment now, and it is a fact." "I'd rather my men be looking at booby traps than looking at..." "looking at you." "Whatever." "I just want to make sure you give me a fair shake, just like you would some guy." "I'll tell you what, Miss Adams." "You do your thing." "Just don't get in the way of me doing mine." "My name's Vicky." "What's yours?" "Sergeant." "I don't think Walter Cronkite is gonna want this footage." "Well, a little local color never hurts." "So whose idea was it to dispose of it this way?" "I don't know." "Some anonymous genius whose contribution to this world will be forgotten by history." "LT!" "Need any help, sir?" "Guided tour?" "Maybe a demonstration of weaponry?" "Tomorrow, guys, tomorrow, you can demonstrate all you know on the operation." "Sir, could you ask her to say something?" "Say what, soldier?" "Say anything." "Anything at all." "Well, I'm Vicky Adams, and I'm looking forward to knowing you guys." "I'm Marcus Taylor." "Alberto Ruiz." "Danny Percell." "You don't know how nice that is, hearing your voice." "It's just a voice." "No, it's an American woman's voice." "It's been nine months since I've heard an American woman's voice... nine months." "Thank you." "[GURGLING]" "You might as well give it up, Ruiz." "You're never gonna get as pretty as me." "You're pretty, all right..." "pretty sorry." "Pretty apt to stay that way." "Yeah, but don't tell Miss Vicky." "I think she's pretty partial to the kid." "Taylor, dream on." "I was dreaming last night, Jack." "Whoo, was I dreaming last night." "Yeah, well, dreaming is about all you're gonna do where she's concerned, because once she gets a look at me, ooh, it's all over." "Yeah, because she'll probably drop dead." "[LAUGHING]" "Hey, man, I just want to be on TV for the folks back home." "Yeah, me too." "Ruiz the terrible and his smoking 60, the nightmare of every Bronx gang." "Your Mama could be everybody's nightmare." "Well, I hear they call you "double ugly"" "back on the block." "Well, you heard wrong, caveman." "As a matter of fact, they call me Coffee, because I...grind so fine." "I'm ready." "You're sick." "Yeah." "[BEEPS]" "You ready?" "Mm-hmm, action." "These are the young men of the second platoon of the Bravo Company preparing to go out on Operation..." "What are you calling this operation, captain?" "Uh..." "what about Operation Vicky?" "Be serious." "No, I am serious." "Operation Vicky it is." "Look what you've done for morale." "I've never seen these guys looking so good." "All right, then." "Operation Vicky it is." "Platoon!" "Ten-hut!" "Well, well, well, now, ain't you sweet, Percell?" "You look as clean as a Mississippi sheriff on election day, don't you?" "Hey, Cook, your boots are nice and shiny there." "Why don't you go scuff them up before Charlie sees us coming a mile away?" "Did you shave, Ruiz?" "You did, didn't you?" "You shaved, didn't you?" "I thought you didn't shave unless you were going to see Mama's Aunt Linda." "What do I smell?" "What do I smell?" "I smell after-shave lotion, that's what I smell." "Y'all went and put on after-shave lotion, didn't you?" "Didn't you?" "Well, don't get me wrong now, a handsomer group of fellas never existed, and I'm sure," "I'm sure the nice lady there is gonna pass that on to the people back in the world." "Ain't you?" "Yeah." "But we do not go out to fight the enemy in the jungle smelling like a house of ill repute on a Saturday night." "No, we do not." "No, we want to smell like dirty dogs and water buffalo so that the enemy doesn't get our scent and kill us." "So... you've got 60 seconds here to go wipe that nice smell off your nice face and then get your butts back here, smelling like the dirty dogs and animals I know and love." "Now, fall out!" "Go, go, go, go!" "Move, move, move, move, move, move!" "[♪♪♪]" "I guess the hardest part of being a commander is losing people." "Someone told me I'd get used to it." "No way." "Do the faces blur after a while?" "I remember every one of them." "Anyone in particular you'd like to talk about?" "There was one guy up in the A Shau valley, a real nice kid from Kentucky." "A mine took off both his legs." "He was so calm about it." "He just looked up at me, and he said," ""Sir, I'm going to die, ain't I?"" "I guess you have to encourage them." "Couldn't do it." "Kid had these bright green eyes." "They were so clean." "They were the kind of eyes you just can't lie to." "The doc offered him some morphine, said, "Here, this way, you won't feel anything,"" "but the kid waved him away." "He looked up at the sky, and he said, "It's a beautiful day, doc." "I'd rather die feeling something."" "He was 18 years old, and he was dead in a minute and a half." "You know, it tears you up when you see these brave young kids dying anonymously, out here in the middle of nowhere, and the people back home just don't seem to give a damn." "They've got other concerns about the war." "But I wish they could see the kind of sacrifices these kids are making, and that's what you reporters have to do." "You have to take people inside so they can see and feel what's really going on, so that it means something." "It's got to mean something." "It can't just all be for nothing." "I'm sorry." "Okay, cut it, Coy." "[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]" "Don't move!" "I ain't in a good mood." "[SCREAMING]" "[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]" "Hey, no, no, you'd better turn this camera off now." "No, I can't." "What do mean, you can't do it?" "I asked you to turn the camera off." "Because we just missed the capture." "I'm not gonna miss the interrogation." "The camera's going off right now, lady." "Captain, listen, you just" "You're ruining the story." "No, no, that is not your story." "That is the story." "That's just great." "Ever heard of freedom of press?" "Come on." "What does he say?" "Captain, he say you are surrounded by NVA battalion." "No way out." "Is he serious?" "Well, you want to stick around and find out?" "Sir, they could be getting into position right now." "Yeah, and maybe this joker's full of it." "We still have a lot more area to recon." "Captain, I think we ought to take this man back in and turn him over to the brigade." "That's your discretion, isn't it, captain?" "Let's keep going." "We've only been out half an hour." "Look, I know you guys don't like it, but this isn't much of a story." "Well, captain, I didn't think we were out here to get a story." "Come on, Zeke, you know how it works." "The folks back home haven't liked what they've been seeing on the evening news." "Big operations haven't turned up much of anything." "So we're under orders to get good PR." "No, come on, you know they don't give orders to do things like that, but the pressure is on from brigade, from battalion, you name it, and it's heavy, believe me." "Yeah, and it all rolls downhill, don't it?" "Right on top of the men there." "Sergeant." "Sir." "I wouldn't be doing this if it didn't make some good military sense." "Yes, sir." "Sergeant." "Shh." "Keep your voice down." "Sorry." "What is the matter?" "The matter is we ought to be taking this prisoner back home." "Well, maybe you'll get more intelligence this way." "Yeah?" "Maybe we'll get shot up too." "As long as you get your story, that's all that matters to you, isn't it?" "Getting a good story's my job." "And my job's keeping these men alive, and I'm happiest if nothing happens out here." "Sir." "I'm gonna take Cook and Baker." "I'm gonna recon in semi-circle up this trail for about 800 meters." "I'm gonna circle around." "I'll meet you right back here." "Sir, are you sure you want to do this?" "Yeah, I am." "Cook, Baker." "What's going on?" "I don't know, it looks like the captain's taking out a patrol." "You don't see that very often." "He must want these guys awfully bad." "Maybe too badly, Johnson." "Take five." "Maintain security." "The patrol should be back soon?" "Well, they'd better be, or we've got to go out there and find them." "So... is it true the war protesters are spitting on GIs now?" "Anybody spit on me, they're gonna get the max, Jack." "Well, those people aren't so much against you guys as they are against the war, so a lot of people don't think we should be here." "Oh, so they're giving aid and comfort to the enemy, right?" "They call that treason where I come from." "Oh, come on, man, you know, a lot of folks think our involvement here is a load of bull" "Horn..." "I don't think you and I ought to have this conversation again." "Anyway, people got to stand up for what they believe." "Make love, not war, right?" "They got a point there, Ru." "You know, the more I hear about all this free love, the more I like it." "Maybe I ought to stop by off at this Haight-Ashbury on the way home, introduce these hippie hammers to some real love, the love medicine of Marcus Taylor." "Just don't wear your uniform." "Told you that yard bird was full of it." "Nothing out there but some sandal prints and an old campfire that hasn't been used in days." "Well, now, captain, just because you didn't find them, it doesn't mean they're not out there." "Oh, they're there, all right, but they're just not close." "The two we rousted were doing long-range recon." "So we heading back?" "Oh, no, lieutenant, we're heading forward." "We're gonna find these boys." "Mount up!" "Sir." "Yeah?" "Can we talk to you for a second?" "So talk." "Are you okay, sir?" "Why shouldn't I be?" "Well, the mission, sir, it just seems like we're going overboard for no apparent reason." "Oh, there's plenty of good reason." "Well, the press ain't exactly" "It ain't the press, Zeke." "Well, what is it, sir?" "I knew it was important when I was here in '67, but I forgot about it during those three weeks I was in the hospital." "Captain, Charlie doesn't stay in one place." "I mean, he moves around." "He ain't gonna be right where you knew he was." "Unless he's got a real good hiding place, and unless we haven't done any recon." "I think we may just surprise these buggers." "Seems like sound logic to me." "I just hope the surprise ain't on us." "Nah." "Come on, let's move out." "Hey, look sharp, soldier." "This might be on television." "Hey, you mind keeping your voice down, please." "Hey, lighten up, Zeke." "Have it your own way." "Yo, y'all, smile now, you might be on the TV." "It's my cousin Elmer." "Say hi there to the folks back home, Elmer." "War is hell" "Somebody's got to do it." "Move!" "Caught a prisoner." "Hi, and welcome to scenic Vermont." "Click-click." "Hola." "Que pasa?" "So, Miss Vicky, how did you get into this racket anyway?" "Well..." "I covered homicide in Boston for two years." "Then I..." "Ouch." "Ooh-wee." "Your first war trophy." "Yeah, that's a nasty leech." "They usually go for me, but this one found something sweeter." "What?" "Look at yourself" "Eating ham and limas out of a can, covered with leeches." "Why are you putting yourself through this jive for?" "It's part of my career." "Girl, you're too beautiful to have a career." "You should be holed up in some mansion, bringing beautiful little babies into the world, or at least working behind a desk." "What if I don't want that?" "Then you ought to have your head examined." "The world is changing, guys." "A lot of women don't want to sit around the house anymore." "There's plenty of things we can do, not being dependent on men." "Fine, a woman who wants to work, that's cool with me." "Then I'll sit home and eat bonbons and watch soap operas all day." "Hey, you know, I can see you barefoot and pregnant too." "Yeah, well," "I don't think that's quite what women have in mind." "Hey, wait, wait, wait." "Where are you going?" "To answer a rather pressing call of nature." "Okay, but you can't go out in the jungle by yourself." "Well, you want to hold my hand?" "I do." "You are." "Hey, Ru, pass those lima beans." "Party time." "Yeah." "What are you doing, man?" "You're trying to sneak a peak at her, or what?" "Do I look that crude to you, doc?" "I'm just up here to get the coconuts, that's all." "You are coconuts." "I love coconut milk." "You like coconut milk?" "I'm gonna get you some." "What you want is what I get." "Uh, Coy, come here." "I want you to film this." "Get a tight shot." "[LAUGHING]" "I got you two." "One for me, one for you." "You like?" "[LAUGHING]" "[GUNSHOT]" "Down, Down." "Look out!" "Where is he?" "Watch out." "Defensive perimeter!" "Hold your fire!" "How is he?" "Can we do anything?" "He's dead, sir." "You've got to do something." "There's nothing I can do except zip him in a body bag." "[RUNNING]" "Taylor, the prisoner!" "The prisoner!" "Percell, Taylor!" "Come on, let's get him." "He's getting away." "Don't kill him, don't kill him!" "Damn." "That's all we need." "Maybe they'll catch him." "And maybe they won't." "I need a prisoner." "I think we're all aware of that, sir." "It's like the jungle swallowed him up or something." "Terrific." "Yeah, he's on his way back to warn his buddies, so we'd better DD out of here, I'd say." "Five minutes." "...And this is a very sad example of the irony of the war." "Okay, Coy." "Did you get that all on film, did you?" "Coy is a good cameraman." "He doesn't miss much." "So you're just adding a little narration, huh?" "I'd like to get some comments from you too." "Some comments, huh?" "I'm sorry about your man, sergeant, but the footage of his death is very dramatic." "Yes, indeed, it was dramatic footage, but I'm afraid you can't use my comments on TV." "Here, give me the camera." "You can't take" "You can't take the film, sergeant." "Sergeant, don't do this!" "Get out of my face." "It's a a very good story." "What about the First Amendment and our rights?" "What about Cook's rights?" "We shot the story." "That's our job, damnit!" "And it's my job's to protect my men, and I'm gonna do that job, even if it's only protecting a memory." "You're like everybody else in this war, doing whatever you can to keep the truth from the American people." "You wouldn't know the truth if it bit you on the behind." "The film doesn't lie." "But what does the film say about four months this boy spent over here soldiering?" "You're gonna let the American people know he got killed getting you coconut milk?" "Get the men ready, sergeant." "We're moving out." "Back to the LZ?" "No, we're not going back to the LZ." "I don't even have a prisoner anymore, and I sure as hell ain't going back till I get one." "Yeah, well, you had one!" "And I don't have a story anymore since he ruined the film." "You got souvenirs, lady." "You had coconuts." "You haven't heard the end of this, sergeant, and if you don't do anything about him," "I'm taking it higher." "You are going to treat these people with respect and cooperation." "I will not have you sabotaging their equipment." "Is that clear?" "Is it?" "Yes, sir." "Now, let's get out of here." "That was a lousy trick you pulled back there." "All right, now, listen." "I just didn't want Cook's parents to see him die like that." "You're gonna tell them he died a hero?" "No, Cook's parents will be told he died from hostile fire." "There's no need for them to see him die acting like a jackass or something." "What?" "Forget it, will you?" "You blame it on me, don't you?" "You're damn right I blame it on you." "I do, I blame it on you, and I blame it on Captain Wallace." "You don't play around with people's lives like that." "I'm out here risking my life too." "Yeah, right, and then when you get your little story, you go on back to the good suburban life, and leave these guys out here in this crap." "What are you driving at, sergeant?" "I ain't driving at nothing." "It's just I get the feeling that this...this whole thing is--is not real to you." "It's like some experience you go to the store and you buy, then you take home, and you put it on your shelf." "I care about your men, sergeant." "You don't know squat about my men." "You don't know squat." "Most of these guys, they come from nothing." "They've got no money to have fancy ideas about the war or lawyers to get them out of it." "The most of them, if they're lucky enough to get home, they ain't got nothing waiting for them." "I wish life weren't so unfair, I really do." "Well, I guess there's nobody to talk to about that, is there?" "You see, I'm gonna make it home, and I know I'm gonna drive by a VA cemetery some day, and I'm gonna look out there, and I'm gonna get to think about what I did over here," "and I've got to know that not one of those tombstone is out there because of something I did, not one of them." "Can you say the same thing?" "What have you got, sir?" "I think we've got us a bunker, halfway up that hill, by 11:00." "Pretty well concealed by vines, but it looks big, what do you think?" "Well, it could be storage space." "Yeah, it could be a hiding place for a platoon of well-fed infantry too." "Well, let's just lob a couple of grenades up there." "I don't think it'll do any good from here." "Yeah, it'll just give the dinks a chance to DD out of there." "No, I say we move closer." "We do more thorough recon." "Well?" "You're the boss." "Yeah." "I'll take Third Squad, and I'm gonna flank them through those bamboo." "I want to go with you." "This could get rough." "So let's get on with it." "Third Squad, you're with me." "Percell." "All right, I want to set up a blocking force all along this line here" "You make sure Ruiz gets that pig behind the rock, and tell Horn to get up here." "Captain." "[GUNSHOT]" "Sarge, we got him, sarge." "Can you move?" "Yeah, yeah, let's get out of here." "This way." "[GUNSHOTS]" "Take cover." "Are you all right?" "It'll heal." "I knew we'd find something up here." "Yeah, ain't we lucky." "I suggest we DD on back to the LT." "Right." "All right, Taylor, leave the blooper." "Johnson, Baker, you take these news people." "You get out of here." "No, I'm staying, sergeant." "No, you ain't." "We'll cover." "Ready?" "Go!" "Now what?" "You, me, and the lady." "Wha--?" "All right, you follow the captain this time, you hear me?" "Okay, ready?" "Zeke." "Yeah." "I'm sorry, man." "It don't mean nothing." "Cook, this mess, it's all my fault." "Oh, man, there's plenty of time to patch this up at Ladybird." "It's all right." "I'm going to take the time now." "I just want you to know." "Captain, let's just get out of here." "Right, man." "Are you ready?" "Go!" "[SCREAMS]" "Wallace!" "Captain!" "Captain." "We've got to get out of here." "Don't you shut down on me now." "Come on, there's a stream about 200 meters from here, and we can make it." "You just stay real close to me, and you run like hell." "You got it?" "Ready?" "Go." "[SCREAMS]" "Were you hit?" "It's not bad." "Okay, let's go, let's go." "Come on." "Can you make it?" "Yeah, yeah." "Come on, come on, come on, come on." "[SCREAMS]" "All right, all right all right, all right." "Let me have look at it there." "Let me have a look at it." "No, it's fine, it's fine." "No, lady, it's not fine." "You've got yourself a hole in your leg here." "Shouldn't you get back to your men?" "Yeah, I intend to do that as soon as I get you squared away." "[GUNSHOTS]" "The LT's in it now." "It all happened so fast." "Are you sorry you didn't get it on film?" "That is cruel." "I'm sorry." "All right?" "I'm sorry." "Look, lady, come on, you get a hold of yourself now." "I can't afford have you going South on me now." "Save your tough talk for the barracks." "All right, lady, look, Vicky, Vicky." "Listen to me." "You were very brave back there." "Now don't sit here and beat yourself up about that." "But the man is dead." "Yes, he is." "He is dead, but there were more before him, there's gonna be more after, but it wasn't you that got him killed." "I just wanted to get close, you know... really feel what it was like." "Well, you did that." "Yeah." "Yeah, I did, and look at me now." "I feel like a fool." "All right, you'll be all right here." "Okay?" "It'll be safe right here, but you stay tight." "You understand me?" "I will be back." "Okay?" "Hit him with a 9!" "LT, LT." "Where's the girl?" "She got shot in the leg." "She's back over there." "Captain?" "You're in command now, Lt." "You okay?" "Yeah." "How you doing here?" "Well, we lost a couple." "There's definitely some up in that bunker." "Let's go." "Wallace was right." "They're all over the place." "Yeah, I'm starting to get ticked off." "I'm gonna give them the Zeke Anderson touch up close and personal." "Yo, you with the flame-thrower, follow me." "Hang on." "I'm going with you." "LT, it's your company now." "You'd better stay with the men." "All right, go." "Cover, cover!" "Sergeant Anderson's going up there, isn't he?" "Yeah, but you're-- Come on, Coy." "Hey, I don't think you should be doing this." "I'm a reporter, soldier, and I'm gonna get my story." "Let's go." "Sanders!" "All right, Coy, just follow him." "[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]" "Smoke this, suckers!" "[TRUMPET PLAYING TAPS]" "The Lord bless you and keep you." "The Lord make his face shine upon you and to be gracious onto you." "The Lord lift up his countenance upon you to give you peace, both now and forevermore." "Amen." "Sergeant Anderson." "Platoon, dismissed!" "I'm sorry this happened, sergeant." "Well, Captain Wallace was right about the bunker." "I mean, Intelligence is gonna have a good time with all the documents and stuff they found, and they did get their high body count." "Somehow, that doesn't quite make up for it." "No, ma'am, it does not." "Will you ever forgive us?" "It's over." "I'm not saying it was right, but you've got to understand, this Captain Wallace here, he was under a lot of pressure." "I mean--I mean, Brass was pushing him too hard." "He was carrying around a "Dear John" letter from his wife." "Oh, God." "They wonder why we go wacky when we're going back home." "I'll tell you what." "I want to say something good about these men, sergeant." "I think they're getting a bad rap back home." "They're not a bunch of murderers or baby killers." "Oh, no, look here now, you keep looking hard enough, and you will find those." "I mean, we're just a group of people, just like any group of people." "I think it's just too bad we don't ever get looked at as individuals, you know?" "What do you want when you go home?" "When I go home?" "When I go home..." "I want to be treated like a human being when I go home." "Hell, we're all gonna need somebody to talk to." "It ain't right, man." "It feels like I'm just turning my back and walking out on Captain Wallace." "Goodbyes are always hard, especially this kind." "It's not gonna be hard to say goodbye to this place." "That ain't it, Horn." "We're trying to say goodbye to the captain." "and nobody seems to know how." "LT." "I think the men could use a few words." "I wish there was...something I could say to make this easier on everybody, make it easier on myself..." "But a good man's dead, and there's nothing easy about that." "We've all got memories." "That's where this man will keep... keep on living." "I think it might help to remember all the times that Rusty Wallace put himself on the line for us, and the guys who came before us..." "Remember the silver star, bronze star, two purple hearts, remember the times that he stuck his neck out for all our personal problems." "He was a good soldier... and he cared." "This is Vicky Adams in I Corps, South Vietnam." "[♪♪♪]"