Platoon Leader

If you want to see the Vietnam War as it was experienced by a real Platoon Leader, this is it. Authentic, down to the mannerisms, slang, terror and disillusion of it all, this film has none of the wierd phantasms of Apocalypse Now or the left wing political hype of Oliver Stone's Platoon.

Richard C. Caporiccio, LTC, US Army, Retired, former Platoon Leader, 3rd Battalion, 503rd Infantry (Airborne), LZ Uplift, Republic of Vietnam from Jan 2 to December 24, 1969.

As a marine in Vietnam, in 1968, I find bits and pieces of this movie right on technically let's start with Explosions... Hand grenades do not make fire balls an M 60 machine gun does not sound the same as an M 16 AK-47s do not sound the same as an M 16 you do not salute officers in the bush. Everybody is not always yelling at each other. Claymore mines are generally not all bunched together Aiming down Generally the gooks did not wear their white straw hats while hiding in the grass or in a fire base you generally have a killing area without trees, or tall grass when using pop-up flares, you do not look at the pretty light or you will completely lose your night vision... Just to name a few they had no tanglefoot or trip flares around the fire base you don't have your shiny dog tags hanging outside of your T-shirt... Other than that I enjoyed the movie.

Platoon leader is often at it's most effective when when it reminds us that these men are human beings and not machines and that they will show emotion at times of stress. It's tense, atmospheric, and exciting at just the right times, with plenty of gunfire and explosions to keep the viewer entertained. Michael Dudikoff gives an excellent performance in this well above war movie from Cannon Pictures. Shame about the village though. bcarruthers-76500

This movie is underrated probably because of the prejudices held by critics against Michael Dudikoff. Though his acting is widely thought to be mediocre (it is), he shines in this movie. "Platoon Leader" is gripping fare and deserves more respect than it currently garners. It is not just another throwaway Vietnam movie. It is, in fact, entertaining and is required viewing for any fan of action movies. 5/10

Most of Cannon Pictures' product is pretty much junk (they make Chuck Norris and J-C Van Damme movies, so what do you expect?), but this one is different. It doesn't have the rock-bottom cheapie look of most Cannon pictures, and the script, for once, actually makes sense (amazing, considering that Harry Alan Towers was one of the writers). The story concerns a young army lieutenant on his first combat assignment in Vietnam, and how he comes to earn the respect of his men. Michael Dudikoff is surprisingly good as the young officer who arrives at his post not knowing quite what to expect but determined to do his duty, and Robert F. Lyons is outstanding as the platoon's veteran sergeant who doesn't want a new lieutenant to get any of his men killed. The action scenes are very well staged and give you a real sense of being there, as opposed to the cardboard pyrotechnics that Cannon usually grinds out. All in all, a refreshing change from the usual Cannon crap. Recommended.