Platoon Leader

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Platoon Leader

Michael Dudikoff stars as Lt Jeff Knight a new commander in charge of the platoon who fight in Vietnam in this really bad and very tedious drama. The problem with Platoon Leader is that nothing happens, the drama is poorly done and Michael Dudikoff isn't the best guy to go with in this type of movie. Platoon Leader is a poorly written, wooden and witless bore.

A Vietnam veteran who has been in the bush and actually experienced combat will tell you that this film is very close to actually being there. Having viewed almost every film made about the "Nam" this film was very well written and directed. I viewed the film with some of the guys I was with in country with and we pointed out a number of small technical flaws, such as the 173rd Airborne patch on some of the uniforms did not have the Airborne tab over it and the lack of jump wings over the US Army patch stood out. The "LT" should be taking direct orders from his company commander the captain who shows up later in the film not from a major at the battalion headquarters. Other from that the film rates high marks and we were glad to see that the military adviser was Airborne.

Platoon Leader isn't a Saving Private Ryan or a Platoon type of movie, but it's a movie worth seeing. The action scenes are very well done. This movie captures the essence of what young officers in our armed forces have to go through to earn the respect of their enlisted counterparts.

Platoon Leader is not as good as the big Vietnam War movies that came out around the same time as this. However, this Cannon Films production is an attempt to make a more serious dramatic war movie than Missing In Action. Speaking of which, this was directed by Chuck Norris's brother (Aarron Norris) and is the only movie he made without his brother starring in this. Platoon Leader is somewhere in between Missing In Action and the more serious war movies like Platoon and Hamburger Hill. Platoon Leader is much less well made and flawed than those films. But for the limited resources and talent on this production, it's clear everyone tries. Michael Dudikoff gives it his best shot and is actually halfway decent in this more dramatic role. Cannon Films also made The Hanoi Hilton around the same time and was good also. Platoon Leader is well worth checking out and is a good watch.

First of all I'd like to state my opinion that this movie does not deserve the 4.4 rating that has been thrust upon it. I read the book "Platoon Leader" by James McDoughal (I'm not sure if that's how you spell his last name), and it's one of the best "Vietnam experience" books I have ever read. Upon that note, I saw this movie at the video store and picked it up, not really knowing what to expect. Well, let me tell you that this is one of the better war out there. Especially when compared to a movie like Apocalypse Now (which is in my opinion one of the worst depictions of the situation in Vietnam ever produced). It realistically depicts the trials of a new infantry platoon leader in Vietnam as he arrives fresh out of West Point and must quickly learn the ropes of being a PL and at the same time earn the respect of his men. Bottom line: this is a damn good movie. If you have any interest in Vietnam or war movies in general, I highly recommend it.

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.

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.