This is a Masterpiece! In my younger years back in 1978 I worked in a small restaurant in San Juan Puerto Rico that stayed open overnight on weekends and specialized in different kinds of sandwiches. Right across the street there was a Discotheque called the Lion's Den and many of it's patrons would visit us to get a bite before going home. One night a English speaking American guy with a thick black beard came in and asked for a Cuban Sandwich and while he was waiting for his order he was telling me that he had just returned from making a movie in the Philippines and that had gone through a terrible Typhoon which nearly wiped out the area where the filming was being done. He mentioned a couple of times during the narrative "You probably don't believe me because I am drunk" which was what I was thinking because he certainly had a few too many drinks and it was very frequent to have intoxicated patrons coming in. He got his sandwich, ate it and left. Some months later I was watching TV and saw the same guy talking about this movie he directed in the Philippines! This guy was Francis Ford Coppola!!!
Like most masterpieces this film was not really appreciated until years after it's release, I saw it the second day after it opened in 70mm 6 track Dolby at the Ziegfeld in NYC, it was a seminal event, It was an early cut of the film and we all got a printed playbook as there were no ending credits, it just faded to black at the end with sounds of the rain and the jungle, we all sat there in stunned silence, then virtually everybody stood and clapped, it was like a religious experience. Dozens of people stood outside the theater all talking about what we had just seen, the eager people waiting in-line for the next show knew this was no ordinary film.
I had that exact same experience when I saw the final cut in imax recently, although I’d seen the movie a million times before I was stunned when it ended, I didn’t know what to say. It was like a just saw it for the first. You cannot truly experience this movie until you see it in the cinema. Coppola originally planned to only show the film in the center of the country where people would visit it almost like a theme park.
I STARTED SCOUTING IN SUMMER OF 1975.....FAR EAST, MALAYSIA, HONG KONG, TOKYO, & THAILAND (JUST BEAUTIFUL/CHAING MAI IN THE FAR NORTH) & AUSTRALIA, ETC.....& WHEN I SHOWED PRODUCTION DESIGNER, DEAN TAVALAROUS THE "PAG SAN RIVER" IN THE JUNGLE OUTSIDE OF MANILA, ....HE SAID/YELLED:....THIS IS IT! ..THIS IS OUR RIVER! & YOU ARE A GENIUS, JACK! YOU HAVE TOPPED YOUR WORK ON "GODFATHER, PART 2"....I SAID, THANK YOU DEAN, BUT I DONT WANNA BE HER WHEN THE TYPHOONS HIT!....IT ALL CAME TRUE....JACK ENGLISH LOCATION MANAGER WEHO
Francis Ford Coppola in the late 70s was force of nature! he's always been a true artist and a visionary and i pretty much love all his films, but in my opinion Apocalypse Now is Coppola's magnum opus and one of the greatest human achievements.
WHEN WE SCREENED IN WESTWOOD, AFTER THE END, JOHN MILIUS PUT HIS FIST THRU THE BATHROOM DOOR AT THE "BRUIN"THEATER.SCREAMING:"HE RUINED MY MOVIESCRIPT!"....JOHN COULD HAVE DIRECTED IT. WOULDA BEEN A DIFFERENT FILM, I'M SURE....BRILLIANT GUY, TOO...JACK ENGLISH..ACTOR/SINGER/LOCATION MANAGER.....WST HOLLYWOOD, CALIF...11/2018
4 years to make this crazy, self indulgent flick..dean's genius & victorio's talent made it watchable..4 years!.almost as long as the war..i found the locations, & told/warned them of the danger/pitfalls...& francis calls me a weatherman!..?..je..weho..5/2021
Michael Barrett I saw that ending too. I think that was on the European cut. Copola subsequently removed it from later versions to make the ending more ambiguous.
I feel like Francis in a way has become Marlow in this time, as he now reflects on his time in the jungle and the pit of darkness that he fell down while trying to complete his journey
POOR ME, ALWAYS ABOUT FRANCIS!....& WHEN I TOLD HIM ABOUT THE DANGER OF FILMING THERE & THE BAD WEATHER FROM MAY 15 THRU OCTOBER 15 OF EACH YEAR, ...HE SAID:"WHAT ARE YOU , A FUCKING WEATHERMAN?"..I LEFT THE NEXT DAY!..TYPHOONS ARE NOT FUN....& IT ALL HAPPENED, SETS DESTROYED?....
This is a Masterpiece! In my younger years back in 1978 I worked in a small restaurant in San Juan Puerto Rico that stayed open overnight on weekends and specialized in different kinds of sandwiches. Right across the street there was a Discotheque called the Lion's Den and many of it's patrons would visit us to get a bite before going home. One night a English speaking American guy with a thick black beard came in and asked for a Cuban Sandwich and while he was waiting for his order he was telling me that he had just returned from making a movie in the Philippines and that had gone through a terrible Typhoon which nearly wiped out the area where the filming was being done. He mentioned a couple of times during the narrative "You probably don't believe me because I am drunk" which was what I was thinking because he certainly had a few too many drinks and it was very frequent to have intoxicated patrons coming in. He got his sandwich, ate it and left. Some months later I was watching TV and saw the same guy talking about this movie he directed in the Philippines! This guy was Francis Ford Coppola!!!
Ty for sharing. Awesome story!
Yeah, okay
Stop please
Sure. And then you woke up.
You don't have to believe me....
Like most masterpieces this film was not really appreciated until years after it's release, I saw it the second day after it opened in 70mm 6 track Dolby at the Ziegfeld in NYC, it was a seminal event, It was an early cut of the film and we all got a printed playbook as there were no ending credits, it just faded to black at the end with sounds of the rain and the jungle, we all sat there in stunned silence, then virtually everybody stood and clapped, it was like a religious experience. Dozens of people stood outside the theater all talking about what we had just seen, the eager people waiting in-line for the next show knew this was no ordinary film.
SuperStig23 What a memory. I love that.
SuperStig23 I too saw the movie at the Rieg Ziegfeld on the premier showing in 1979. I still have my program.
I had that exact same experience when I saw the final cut in imax recently, although I’d seen the movie a million times before I was stunned when it ended, I didn’t know what to say. It was like a just saw it for the first. You cannot truly experience this movie until you see it in the cinema. Coppola originally planned to only show the film in the center of the country where people would visit it almost like a theme park.
THANK YOU, GRAY FREDERICKSON FOR ALLOWING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE THE LOCATION SCOUT ON THIS CRAZY/POP FILM.
I absolutely love these clips. Thank you for uploading them...SBN
I STARTED SCOUTING IN SUMMER OF 1975.....FAR EAST, MALAYSIA, HONG KONG, TOKYO, & THAILAND (JUST BEAUTIFUL/CHAING MAI IN THE FAR NORTH) & AUSTRALIA, ETC.....& WHEN I SHOWED PRODUCTION DESIGNER, DEAN TAVALAROUS THE "PAG SAN RIVER" IN THE JUNGLE OUTSIDE OF MANILA, ....HE SAID/YELLED:....THIS IS IT! ..THIS IS OUR RIVER! & YOU ARE A GENIUS, JACK! YOU HAVE TOPPED YOUR WORK ON "GODFATHER, PART 2"....I SAID, THANK YOU DEAN, BUT I DONT WANNA BE HER WHEN THE TYPHOONS HIT!....IT ALL CAME TRUE....JACK ENGLISH LOCATION MANAGER WEHO
Thanks for sharing this Jack
Jack English That is very interesting.
typhoons....etc
"Apocalypse Now", must have been the way Francis, himself, really felt, while making that movie.
BIG NIGHTMARE, FROM START TO FINISH....GLAD WE SURVIVED..JACK ENGLISH..ACTOR/LOCATION MANAGER
CRAZY TIME..JACK ENGLISH..LOC SCOUT."APOC. NOW"...WEHO..5/2021
I WAS THE LOCATION SCOUT ON "APOCALYPSE NOW"
Jack English very interesting! I’d be interested in talking to you if you’d care to share some stories? Send me a message and I can give you my email
Francis Ford Coppola in the late 70s was force of nature! he's always been a true artist and a visionary and i pretty much love all his films, but in my opinion Apocalypse Now is Coppola's magnum opus and one of the greatest human achievements.
WHEN WE SCREENED IN WESTWOOD, AFTER THE END, JOHN MILIUS PUT HIS FIST THRU THE BATHROOM DOOR AT THE "BRUIN"THEATER.SCREAMING:"HE RUINED MY MOVIESCRIPT!"....JOHN COULD HAVE DIRECTED IT. WOULDA BEEN A DIFFERENT FILM, I'M SURE....BRILLIANT GUY, TOO...JACK ENGLISH..ACTOR/SINGER/LOCATION MANAGER.....WST HOLLYWOOD, CALIF...11/2018
OOPS..THAT'S WEST HOLLYWOOD..JE
4 years to make this crazy, self indulgent flick..dean's genius & victorio's talent made it watchable..4 years!.almost as long as the war..i found the locations, & told/warned them of the danger/pitfalls...& francis calls me a weatherman!..?..je..weho..5/2021
dennis hopper was the best thing in this flick..je
Brilliant film.
MASTERPIECE
I saw an ending where in between the credits an airstrike destroyed Kurtz' lair and the surrounding village, years ago.
Michael Barrett I saw that ending too. I think that was on the European cut. Copola subsequently removed it from later versions to make the ending more ambiguous.
I saw this ending too. On a local TV station, in the late 1980s, in Honolulu.
YEP..THAT TO KEEP OTHER FILMAKERS FROM FILMING THE BRILLIANT SET THAT DEAN TAVOULARIS BUILT
@@smoog I like the original bombing ending better.1979
I WAS THE LUCKY ONE...PRE-SCOUTING FOR SEVERAL MONTHS.
Were you one of the people who tried to warn Coppola of the rain?
That's really neat! How do I become a location scout in the film industry? That sounds like a cool job.
Great movie. First in 1979, I don’t know How many times I have seen it
i wouldnt say great..
I feel like Francis in a way has become Marlow in this time, as he now reflects on his time in the jungle and the pit of darkness that he fell down while trying to complete his journey
YEP! "PIT OF DARKNESS"...JE..5/2021
yep...je
so much fire they must have drank to make this happen!
POOR ME, ALWAYS ABOUT FRANCIS!....& WHEN I TOLD HIM ABOUT THE DANGER OF FILMING THERE & THE BAD WEATHER FROM MAY 15 THRU OCTOBER 15 OF EACH YEAR, ...HE SAID:"WHAT ARE YOU , A FUCKING WEATHERMAN?"..I LEFT THE NEXT DAY!..TYPHOONS ARE NOT FUN....& IT ALL HAPPENED, SETS DESTROYED?....
I would do anything give anything to be in a jungle with Coppola
I I would do anything to not enter that jungle.