"There is no way to tell his story without telling my own."

[swashbuckler332]

Francis Ford Coppola designed Apocalypse Now as a completely subjective experience. He wanted to immerse the audience into his mythic journey through the eyes and ears of Captain Willard (Martin Sheen), and to that end he created some of the most awe-inspiring imagery and broke new ground in sound design. His maniacal attention to detail and (at

Comments

[ehowton]

What a magnificent write-up! While I enjoyed Redux, I did not prefer it. Much like the "Directors Cut" of Aliens I felt it injured the pacing and suspense.

Someday I too, will watch Apocalypse Now on Blu-Ray, and share in your glory.

[swashbuckler332]

The extended version of Aliens isn't a "director's cut" as the theatrical version of the film was assembled by Cameron himself and (as with Redux) never intended to supplant the original version. That said, I tend to feel that there are many more dramatic compensations in the special edition of Aliens than there are in Apocalypse Now Redux. You may find certain elements that don't work as well in either version (for example, the relationship between Ripley and Newt is much more fleshed out in the extended version, which raises the stakes in the finale), but both versions of the film are viable storytelling.

I think that much of the material in Apocalypse Now Redux undercuts what was so effective in the original cut. Willard is an observer, the only time you see him act decisively is when he is furthering his mission, so I found his stealing Kilgore's surfboard to be out of character. Furthermore, Kilgore himself, such a chilling presence in the original version of the film especially with his haunting final line, is reduced to a