Zwischen Himmel und Hölle

A different perspective of war, and very much needed one. This story covers the lives affected by war. The male lead undergoes emotional strain while the female lead contrastingly grows strength from, or perhaps in spite of the war.

The movie's subtext is thankfully never handed to you in a Hollywood-direct manner - yet the movie develops it thoroughly for the viewer. This is the most plain statement there is that war is much more than the sides of the conflict, the survivors, the wounded, the dead. And, it makes clear that the trauma caused affects many for a long long time, and for each it is their own journey.

Oliver Stone is obviously a master movie maker. He is a great story teller and you are always provided a visual and sound experience like no other. This movie contains some incredibly beautiful shots which all by themselves are worth the viewing. When combined with the plot, the beauty contrasts with the brutatilty to help develop the subtext mentioned above.

You might notice I have never said if I like the film. Because the subject matter makes me queasy, uneasy, I don't think I could ever say I like this. But, this is a very powerful film that got under my skin. So, here I am recognizing the movie for its message and method, not necessarily for providing me a Pavlovian reaction seeking more.

Instead of plopping in another war DVD, try this one. I bet you will walk away and it will continue to live with you.

I don't understand why most people don't appreciate this movie. I guess one reason is that it's not easy to look at your own people, US soldiers, as enemies, or at your country - in the final - as the land of fatty meaninglessnes. Or maybe they were expecting something different from Stone, something more than that history - not so unusual as someone observed - of a simple vietnamese country girl. The point, for me, is that this is not a film about the vietnam war, which is only the background. If you make the effort to forget the vietnam war, its historical and cultural legacy, to avoid being on the side of one of the armies (maybe is easier for me, being an italian), you'll discover one of the most intense movie about the family and the bonds with the earth where you belong. Stone through the story of this simple girl succeeded in telling the story of entire humankind, analizing those which are its roots, its ties, its hopes, its condemnations. Honestly, one of the best movies I've ever seen. Sincere, profound, touching. True.

After a long string of box office and critical successes, Oliver Stone tried making a different kind of war film, this one being shown from a Vietnamese woman's perspective. Very interesting and entertaining throughout, but it does have some extremely unpleasant and cruel scenes, not unlike many other war films. The first hour of the film takes place in Vietnam during the war and is full of Vietnamese culture and feeling. As soon as Tommy Lee Jones comes into the picture as an unstable American soldier, the film soon feels and becomes much more Americanized and eventually very depressing. An interesting work from Oliver Stone that unfortunately was barely released in 1993 and received lukewarm reviews from critics. Still, its worth watching, and its never boring. 7/10.

As he did with his first two Vietnam films, "Platoon" and "Born on the 4th of July", Oliver Stone creates a powerful tale of the devastation of the Vietnam War. What makes this movie so unique, both from Stone's earlier work and virtually every other American movie about the Vietnam War, is that "Heaven and Earth" is told from the perspective of a Vietnamese woman. This movie is based on two books of memoirs written by Le Ly Hayslip, a Vietnamese woman who grew up in a simple farming village in central Vietnam but whose life --- and those of most Vietnamese people, we can infer --- is turned upside-down by the madness of the Vietnam War.

Strictly as a movie, this is a good but not great film. Even at almost 2 1/2 hours, the structure is a bit stilted in order to accommodate such an extensive story. The first 30 minutes are mostly voice-overs and the movie doesn't pick up steam until later, when scenes are allowed to flow for extended amounts of time and we become caught in the drama. Tommy Lee Jones gives another brutally realistic performance as a lifetime military man who can't leave the war behind. Hiep Thi Ly is okay as Le Ly Hayslip; not Tommy Lee Jones caliber acting, but she competently plays a very difficult role. I read she was an amateur actress only chosen after an extensive casting call, and I'm glad that they decided to go with an actual young Vietnamese woman instead of choosing a generic asian actress. It might not make a difference to most, but it certainly felt more "real" to me with an authentic Vietnamese-American in the main role. Oliver Stone shows his mastery of mood and camerawork as he jumps from the beauty of the Vietnam countryside, to the ravages of war, to the shocking (for Le Ly) wealth of suburban America. The movie occasionally drags but overall I'd still give it an 8 out of 10 because it's such a powerful and important addition to the cinematic depiction of the Vietnam War.

The movie also inspired me to read the 2 books ("When Heaven and Earth Changed Places" and "Child of War, Woman of Peace") it was based on. Stone had to compress many events in order to fit the run time; for example, the Tommy Lee Jones character is a fabrication based on 3 different men (and probably meshed into one man as much for the drama such an explosive character provides as for the time constraints), while her books spend extensive time on all 3 relationships. However, the dialogue for several key scenes were taken almost word for word from her books, and I thought it captured the spirit of the story remarkably well, especially for a major studio movie. I highly recommend anyone interested in the film or in the war to read these books, and I commend Oliver Stone for making a trilogy of important films not just for cinema, but for American history.

Oliver Stone's "Heaven and Earth" is a fantastic film that shows what the effects of war are on the human spirt. Now, more than ever this film is very poignant. The movie is based upon two of Lelay Hayslip's memoirs which chronicle her growing up in Vietnam and the effects of war upon her, her family and her country. It was fascinating and at times very difficult to watch. I couldn't help but thank God that as Americans we have not had to experience what the Vietnamese went through. The view of war that Stone portrays is very humanistic. One line in the film was especially riveting.... "Rebuilding a country after war is like having a family thru rape". We see how the war throws apart Lelay's family. If you haven't seen this film.. I highly recommend it!