Point Man

I was there, this one gets it right. Bad times respect to the fallen who didn't make it back John Davis

Poor mans version of Casualties Of War with Sean Penn but it is ultra low budget so you have to keep expectations in line with this which most reviewers forget - Having said that it was a boring story with not much action, most of which was poorly choreographed and very unrealistic, with the usual machine guns firing as if they had unlimited amounts of ammo, silly Vietnamese in brand new cloned bamboo hats and ultra clean clothing which further detracts from the supposed Jungle this is supposed to be set in.

Add to this the copious amount of vulgar language and its a fail.

What is it with film makers these days, they seem to think they have to cater to the lowest common denominator with scenes replete with foul language which in most places is totally unnecessary and it is not just this movie but some of the big ones, heck even Picard and Star Trek are now getting involved; I thought we were supposed to be more advanced in the future but it seems we need the "f" word prefacing every sentence these days to cater for the knuckle draggers that society seems to becoming. The days of great acting, script with no need for intense sex scenes, foul language of the worst kind or brutality seem to be a distant memory - How sad and this is what the younger generation learn from, is it no wonder society is in retrograde evolution. In short this movie exemplifies the lack of intellect and vocabulary in society these days which is very sad, it does not add to the movie, it detracts from the movie which sadly this director seems to have missed - some of us are fed up with it, almost as bad as the woke narrative that also weaves its way into this film, I am just surprised there was not a trans GI or gay scene added for extra wokeness!

The acting was not of stellar variety but it is not as bad as some of the reviews make out; they seem to get better as the film proceeds (Learning on the job methinks) but without a decent script or convincing scenario the thing falls flatter than a snakes belly!

While clearly made on a budget, Point Man is a refreshing take on a genre that seemed to have outlived its lifespan. But maybe that's that point - it is not a film of its genre... its a solid drama. And at the heart of drama is conflict and Point Man had plenty of it. The SFX aren't great, but that's forgiveable, and the audio could have been more solid... but what sets this apart from films of its scale and budget are a few things. The writing: stellar scripting by writer/director Phil Blattenberger. Poetic, cinematic, filled with subtle nuance. The cast was also top notch. But mostly it was the big moments: when a solider decides to intervene in a war crime; the ending (I won't spoil), and when our lead actor - who was outstanding - confronted the 'I love the smell of napalm' style character in Sgt Calhoun - a wild, ferocious, charismatic performance by Paul de Havilland (any relation to Olivia?). That meeting between our hero and anti-hero is the turning point of not only the story but also the theme: it introduces Casper to his central plot problem and also the moral ambiguities that arise in conflict. Outstanding on almost all fronts.

My review of POINT MAN.

First, let's be clear: Point Man has a budget. You won't see any actors you've heard of (yet) and if you're looking for ten million dollar Hollywood pyrotechnics you should probably move on. In fact, this film should probably be marketed as a drama rather than an action, as Vision/Sony's trailer leads us to believe. This is a high-stakes, dramatic gambit set with the Vietnam War as the backdrop.

But none of the budget constraints (I judge it at 3mil) have any real effect on the story, which is the best part of this film. Protagonist Casper and antagonist Meeks are well crafted and bounce off of each other dynamically throughout the film. The supporting cast round out nicely. The acting is stellar. Christopher Long is mesmerising as the film's lead. There are no real weak points in the cast.

Point Man is a departure from the classic Viet Nam films of the 1980s and 1990s we're used to seeing from American cinema; it's not a heavy-handed political criticism of the war and it's not a propaganda piece. At its core it's an ethical conundrum embedded in the tapestry of the American conflict in Southeast Asia. It's a Kantian dilemma with palm trees and gunfire.

If you are looking for a 100mil studio feature, Point Man may disappoint you. If you're concerned with narrative and performance - and originality in a cinematic landscape littered with shameless derivation - give it a go. You may find yourself a gem.

DJM

It's a trap! lol

Only cast or crew could have written those!

So bad, it's like the terrible movie production company, "Asylum" hired Spike Lee to make this one.

I suffered through thirty minutes before needing to bleach my eyes.