The French Plantation Sequence FINALLY Explained | Ep19 | Making Apocalypse Now
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- Опубліковано 24 лис 2023
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In Episode 19 of Making Apocalypse Now, we are going to take a look at how difficult the French Plantation sequence was to shoot, what the scene adds to the overall story, and why the directing technique that gave Coppola amazing results in the past just didn’t seem to work this time.
French Plantation [Workprint]: bit.ly/3GfTvnb
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This video is by Tyler Knudsen.
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In 1965 I was an American army advisor to a Vietnamese infantry battalion. We were located about 40 miles north of Saigon in a small outpost surrounded by dense forest and some rubber.. There were several French rubber plantations in the area. One Sunday my army boss, myself and several other Americans were invited to the one of the plantations for a Sunday afternoon. We had to wear civilian clothes, and show no visible weapons. Our Vietnamese drivers had to stay with the vehicles just inside the plantation gate. Going through the gates of the plantation was like stepping into another world. Young people were splashing around a swimming pool, ladies in cocktail dresses sitting around tables while Vietnamese waiters in white jackets offered them cocktails. We were served a fantastic meal, served with an assortment of fine wines. As evening approached we knew we needed to leave and make out way back to our base. This we did with incident. We all assumed the French plantation owner paid the Viet Cong to leave us alone that Sunday. I was back in Vietnam in 2019, The French are still there.
Amazing story. Thanks for share this.
Truman's support for The French is why we lost. Even Vietnamese in The South hated the French colonialists. The war was lost by June of 1945. "Apocalypse Now!" would have been more accurate if it included the French experience in Vietnam.
One does not give up a rubber plantation easily
Thank you for your service
The French had been there continuously since the war?
How did they survive the Fall of Saigon?
What was their connection to their plantation?
I really love the French Plantation scene; it feels like an encounter with phantoms-literally the phantoms of Vietnam’s history.
Yeah it captured this Mystique of the Jungle, almost like discovering a lost tribe.
I now wish included.
It’s about race, not political ideology.
@@RoscoPColtrane17imperialism and colonization IS political ideology.
@@greenvelvet The book is about race, I know you don’t want to talk about that so you change it to ideology. Makes it easier to stomach. Like the French officer said “When we came here there was nothing”
I see the whole scene as a dream of the boat crew. Everything looks so shiny, there is good food and peace. It starts and ends in a fog, like it wasn't actualy real.
To me it's Willard's dream.
Great take
Now this is an interesting perspective. Bravo.
I really like this scene. I always thought they were ghosts. The scene is really important It's about America not heeding the lessons of the past and represents Vietnams past colonial presence. Some find that the scene drags but it's such an essential scene imo
@@loganw6156 agreed. It also serves for Willard's character development. The French lady tells Willard about duality of man, I'm sure those words had some influence on Willard when making his final decision of not dropping the bomb on the tribe.
When I saw Apocalypse Now, with the French Plantation scene put back in, it gave me a Hotel California vibe. I can see why they cut it for theatrical release but it does really add a layer of madness to the movie. It's Kubrick's Odyssey.
This is whats so great about Redux. The madness creeping in throughout the journey.
great analogy !
Boring.
@@marknewton6984Stick to your superhero crap.
So when I was a kid growing up in Southern Cal8fornia, Disneyland had this cheesy jungle boat ride. It was a boat with benches where the customers sat and took in the views of a cruise up river, catching glimpses of jungle scenes that was narrated by a “guide” in a pith helmet. The
It was a very slow moving boat, possible moving on submersed tracks. The big action moment was an aligátor attack, and the guide took out a firearm and shot blanks until the alligator mannequin sunk under water.
Like I said, it was cheesy.
But when the movie came out, it reminded me of the Disneyland ride, but stripped of the cheesiness and sterility.
Anyhoo. . . .
The French Plantation was superfluous, but Coppola didn’t realize it until later (and then he put it back in the movie in an act of self-indulgence). It’s a beautiful scene and I think I see where Coppola was trying to go with it. The last vestige of civilization, the last bulwark: family. It’s clear that this way station of the trip upriver is untenable. And it slips behind us as we continue deeper.
It’s a better film without it, but I still enjoy watching it when I watch Redux.
Telling Coppola they don't need extras but keeping a small troop of extras out of his view just in case is a really funny microcosm of this production.
It was Coppola, not Kurtz, who ended up going upriver and almost getting lost in madness. I can't read the Conrad novel without thinking of everything that happened on the Apocalypse Now production.
My mother lived in Manila and was the casting agent for all the extras.
@@fallinginthed33psomeone could make a heart of darkness/apocalypse now parody focused around Coppola’s production
@@fromthefire4176 I think something like how Shadow of the Vampire created a lore-tale around the making of Nosferatu, that would be really cool. GET ON IT HOLLYWOOD ... make me happy for once.
@@cfbastianincredible! She had any stories to tell?
“You are fighting for the biggest nothing in history”. My favorite line in the movie.
It is so French the way he says it. Absolute perfection.
The egg analogy about how violently they are willing to regress the structure of the society to render it "all yellow" also stuck with me. This scene seems to be foundational, while adding padding to the Playboy bunny scene seems to disenchant the magnetic allure of the sideshow- rendering the sweetly sensuous writhing sirens all too human... IMHO
Yeah. As far as I know, as communists went, Ho Chi Minh was very mild, more like a very social democratic socialist, and assumed he was involved in a War of Independence style struggle the Americans would understand. He was open to friendship, negotiation and cooperation with them. It's one of the great ironic madnesses of the 20th Century that the US, a country born of its own Enlightenment-inspired liberation struggle, crushed so many similar movements in small countries all because of its paranoia about communism. Another example is the way they let the British secret service convince them to overthrow Mossadeq in Iran on the grounds that he was a communist, which he simply wasn't.
@@JohnMoseley it is very funny how people think that the US was fighting a colonial war or war of conquest and forget that it was actually supporting an independent Republic of Vietnam in its defense against an aggression of northern communists.
I actually met Aurore Clément some months ago in a small cinéma in Paris for the projection of Lacombe Lucien during a Louis Malle rétrospective. Still a very élégant, simple and nice person. She was perfect for the rôle in the french plantation, solemn and ethereal. Btw this Making Apocalypse Now série is excellent, one of a kind.
Glad to know that her work and those of the others involved saw the light of day, and were seen by the public. Otherwise, walking around with this terrific almost-credit. So cruel..
I had no idea about this scene!? But I’m a dummy..
Very cool 😎 Tres Bien!
@@nilsbrown7996You need to watch the Redux version. It feels like a very different film and really shows how ruthless editors have got to be.
Lacombe Lucien, fabulous.
She was very pretty.
Chef speaks French because he is a Cajun from Louisiana, not because he studied to become a saucier.
I came here to say that...
I’m late, but yep. He was going to the Escoffier school. And then he got orders for his physical.
I thought the same thing.
It was as therefore natural for him to go learn cooking in France. One doesn’t cancel out the other.
I don't think he's Cajun just from Louisiana he says hes from New Orleans which is not a Cajun city also the way he says ne tirez pas does not sound like an attempt to depict a home language speaker sounds like a regular Louisiana person who just knows the language on paper
I love how the Frenchman in the cut scene says that up the river are the "moi", which in Vietnamese translates to "savages" (a very derogatory term). This was and still is reality. The ethnic minorities like the Bru still hunted with bows and arrows when the Green Berets started working with them against the Northern forces (famously exemplified by the MACV-SOG on the Ho Chi Minh trail).
Having been living in Vietnam for a decade, I've had the opportunity to meet some of the remaining minorities, however in a more peaceful context.
The Vietnamese are as bigoted as everyone else on this planet. The mountain people (Montagnard to the French) are still looked down on by those in the cities - much the same way that Americans in large cities refer to those in rural areas as "hillbillies". In addition, the South always turned their noses up at those in the North - which they later paid for when the North took over. One may think the Communists believe in equality but their actions have proven otherwise the majority of the time - just like everyone else on this planet.
VNExperience
Is there a term used by Europeans of the Indochina European settlers similiar to the Pied-noirs of Algeria ?
Hmm. Well, since some migrating Irish were referred to as Black Irish and Australians were referred to as Bogans, I imagine that there exist or existed some term for any European settlers. For example, "Bay Frog" was used by some Europeans to refer to the French settlers who originated from the Hudson Bay area of Quebec in Canada. Also, on a personal level, I have experienced Vietnamese-American immigrants speak of the North Vietnamese in a derogatory way such as how they were low class and unrefined (eg - they spoke of how the North Vietnamese didn't know that French Drip coffee is the best way to make coffee - ironic, huh?) What cities have you lived in or visited in Vietnam? I visited in 2003 and had one of the best trips of my life.
That is incredible. You’re one of the few. Thx for the info. ☮️
@@mahmoudibnemir8704 that's really interesting ... as an Australian I can confirm that the term 'Bogan' has been reappropriated to refer to the rougher, lower socio-economic folks in Australia. But to find out the origin of the term is fascinating. Thanks!
My main takeaway from the Redux version of these plantation scenes was a conversation that Roxanne and Willard had -- Willard said after the war was over, he wasn't going back. That changes a lot of the tone of Willard's journey in the remainder of the movie, IMHO.
I had a feeling that both Willard and Killgore were going to drink themselves to death after the war. there is no way they would go back to normal life.
Willard slowly becoming Kurtz...
yes. thank you.
This scene (The French Plantation) was in the original release in The Philippines before it was ever released in the USA 🇺🇸.
My girlfriend Florencia and I saw the film in Olongapo City Subic Bay 1979.
How was the film received there?
The plantation scene is entirely necessary IMO. If you look at the story just through the perspective of moving up-river in a constant battle against the environment, it might seem out of place, but for me, it was the perfect moment to pull back and remind the crew and audience of the futility and misdirection of the war effort in the context of previous historical failures. It sits at the back of your mind as the final part of the film unfolds.
This scene is even more necessary if you end the movie as I've always felt it should end: in their eventual dialogue, Willard is convinced by Kurtz that he (Kurtz) is in the right and that the madness and futility that he (Willard) has witnessed is not a fact about the war but about the corrupt manner in which French, American, and South Vietnamese politicians have conducted it.
@@QED_there’s no way you’re selling vietnam to the average taxpayer without a false-flag attack
@@peterl3417 Maybe today. Definitely not . . . 60 years ago.
@@QED_ Maybe today? What makes you think so?
I saw this scene when I saw the Final Cut in theaters a few years ago and I actually really love this scene and glad it was put back into the film.
The plantation sequence was fascinating and needed just like an hours layover in Singapore between London and Sydney when they let you off the plane to stretch your legs.
I couldn't have described it better
I really love the dissertation of Apocalypse Now series. I've forgotten how many times I've re-watched previous episodes & it's still brilliant.
When the Redux version came out I was glad to see the French Plantation sequence. It may not entirely fit into Willards story but for the Vietnam war it fits well. The French plantation owners were willing to work with the locals but because of what happened pre-WWII they got greedy & wanted Vietnam for the Vietnamese. Not all colonisers were exploiting the locals. A friend of mine who is Dutch-Australian, his family are from the Netherlands East Indies & had been there since the 1820's. The family had a Timber & rubber plantation on one of the larger islands. The family was Christian & they paid locals to do the work. The family set up a hospital, school, town hall & other infrastructures. They learnt the language, taught Dutch to the locals & married locals. When WWII came by most of the family went to Australia. The family that stayed ended up in concentration camps & eventually died. After WWII, the family came back hoping to resume life again but of course the Indonesians wanted independence. When the Dutch army came through they harassed the locals, introduced martial law & the family protested. Eventually the Dutch army moved on but then they had to put up with the other Indonesians that came through who wanted everything that the family owned & had set up. Even the locals protested but the family were expelled from Indonesia only taking what they could carry. Going to the Netherlands was going to be alien to them so they settled in Australia. They nether talked about themselves at Dutch but as of business owners & were basically native to the Netherlands East Indies. The French plantation scene reminded me of them torn between the Dutch & the Indonesians. All we hear today is how colonisation was extremely harsh & cruel to the locals but not everyone was like that. Try telling that to those whose countries were colonised & they don't want a bar of it, they just want to tell you how bad colonisation was.
Nothing is ever all one thing, even the nazi's for how awful they were did build an excellent highway system. People rarely present themselves or their ancestors as the villains in the stories they tell, so I'd take their version with a grain of salt. It could be that they were nice and wonderful or it could be that they saw themselves this way but the natives didn't or were at least more mixed in their opinions. I'm sure their were some house slaves who saw the end of slavery in the US. as a threat to their position but that wasn't the opinion of most slaves. Colonization is at it's heart exploitive and just because one can find aspects of it that were positive does not mean that it was overall beneficial to those colonized.
@@killgoretrout9000 I know that my friends family were devout Christians & never had slaves. The worst they could have done was convert the locals. They intermarried with the locals & it wasn't by force. Not everyone was exploitive during the colonial years. It's hard to say about the family in Apocalypse Now. I'm first generation Australian & I get hit up that my ancestors were exploitive to the Aboriginals & none of my ancestors ever came to Australia. My parents came out here in the very late 1960's. I grew up with Aboriginals, went to school with them & played sports with them. The 4 Ella brothers that I grew up with played Rugby Union for Australia.
@@1969Risky Saying they were devout Christians means nothing to me, history is littered with evil people who have made that very claim and even used their Christianity to morally defend evil acts. I never said they had slaves I just used an example from US slavery to show how just because a small group of the slaves may have been more circumspect about emancipation does not mean the institution of slavery itself was morally defensible, same goes for colonization. Chattel slavery is but one form of exploitation, look at something like medieval European serfdom they weren't chattel slaves who were bought and sold but they did not have freedom of movement and were required to labor on their feudal lord's land. Plenty of similar examples occur within colonization and even without look at something like sharecropping in the 19th and 20th century US. I do not know the particulars of your friends family, only that I would be more circumspect about getting only one side of the story and even if they were as kind and wonderful as they claim that does not mean that Dutch colonization of Indonesia was overall beneficial to it's inhabitants, in fact quite the opposite.
Those featured can only be marketed as actors/etc. after all.
The dutch were terrible in Indonesia from the very start. Creating a monopoly on commodities, then forcing natives to sell for a pittance.
That's what built all those mansions in Amsterdam
I love this sequence in the recut version. As apparently intended, the entire scene is dreamlike, ghosts of Indocine emerging from the mist, the sillouette perfectly captured; the house like an elevated structure among the canopy of surrounding tropical forests. Ironically the set dressing was lost in the final print but the whole thing is an oasis in the war zone. Lovely work in every regard
The ENTIRE MOVIE becomes dreamlike!! You haven't noticed that??!
The plantation scene is a surreal and interesting escape in a cinematic masterpiece.
Also a lesson in those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
That scene is actually a masterpiece inside a masterpiece.
He could've made a whole other film just about this French family. He's so good with Italian families, I think he could pull off a French mafia type movie. After all, the French were big on drug smuggling, like in "The French Connection", and they got a lot of the opium they used to make heroin from Vietnam. And then shipped out of Marseilles. There's a movie about drug smuggling from Nam called "Who'll Stop the Rain" with Nick Nolte based on a book called "Dog Soldiers". I haven't read or seen it in years but it's very descriptive about the experience of smoking, snorting and shooting smack.
The redux version is my favourite.
Same
I prefer the theatrical cut, I don't like the changes in timelines and the surfboard sub plot.
Likewise. We're in the minority, though. I definitely think many of the criticisms of the Redux versions are valid, but for the French plantation scene alone it has to be the best version, the movie just isn't the same without it. Personally I also like the scene with the stranded Playboy bunnies, although in that case I can definitely see why it was cut from the original release, it does mess up the pacing somewhat and isn't strictly necessary. I just think because the film sucks you into its world so much that any additional world-building adds to the experience, even if it's not ideal from a strictly editing and pacing perspective.
Mine too ❤❤
I wonder if this scene was stuck in Coppola's mind because of the source material? The vehicle that drives the story in "Heart of Darkness" isn't war, but rather colonialism. Perhaps subconsciously he was trying to work out that contradiction even though it really wasn't necessary.
Yes, possibly the part of the book where he meets the immaculately dressed clerk who's working in some camp in the middle of the jungle.
But , war , waging war in a colony is the other tool, the more extreme tool...when simple colonialism isnt working or cant work, the colonilaist must have a war, he must erase the savages. Bernard Fall who was in late French Vietnam and wrote one of the best books , Street Without Joy, says the french and the yanks both believed in the religion of technology, that there was mo way theyd lose as they had superior technology...
My favorite part of this film is how each stop along their river trip was designed, in the story, to be representing points in the history of Vietnam, itself.
This sequence, for instance, represented the French colonization back in the 19th century.
What era do the playboy model represent?
@@Alex-cw3rz
The river journey in the film is often interpreted as a metaphorical journey through various aspects of Vietnamese history and American involvement in Vietnam, though it's important to note that these interpretations can be subjective and are not explicitly stated in the film.
The US Army Base: This represents the contemporary (1970s) American military presence in Vietnam. The chaos and disorganization of the base reflect the confusion and moral ambiguity of the war.
The Playboy Bunny Show: This stop is often seen as a representation of American culture and its export to Vietnam during the war. The show symbolizes the intrusion of American entertainment and consumerism into the war-torn country.
The Do Lung Bridge (The Last Army Outpost): This area, where the bridge is constantly being repaired and destroyed, symbolizes the endless, cyclical nature of war and its futility. It can also be seen as a representation of the front line of the war and the psychological impact it had on soldiers.
The Tiger in the Jungle: While not a stop per se, the encounter with the tiger in the jungle is significant. It represents the unpredictable and perilous nature of the Vietnamese jungle, as well as the unseen dangers that soldiers faced, both literally and metaphorically.
The French Plantation: This part of the journey explicitly represents the French colonial era in Vietnam. It highlights the historical roots of the conflict in Vietnam, predating American involvement.
Kurtz's Compound: The final destination, this area represents the ultimate moral and psychological degeneration brought about by the war. Colonel Kurtz, who has set himself up as a demigod among the local tribespeople, embodies the extreme consequences of prolonged exposure to the violence and madness of war.
@@DrNothing23I'd argue that Kurtz represents the war itself at its core. Kurtz is the war - his followers are primitive men (showing that War existed since dawn of Man), he's ruthless and unforgiving, yet he draws people to himself like flies to shit (sorry) - especialy best seen in the scene where Kurtz is surrounded by kids who are symbol of future soldiers. Humanity was always fascinated by war, and everyone (excluding Willard) who had contact with Kurtz eventualy went on his side.
@@Alex-cw3rz I think that scene more represented how both the soldiers and the playmates were conditioned to do things a normal person would find humiliating or obscene, but by this point they're ready and willing to do whatever to takes to do their job and get the hell back home. It is easy to think of a soldier as a walking gun with no childhood, or jerk off to a Playboy playmate and forget that she is someone's daughter.
@@Alex-cw3rz You don't think Playboy is relevant to Vietnamese history?
One of my favorite lines from the movie.The female tells Shean that "there are two of you,one that loves and one that kills"
While they smoke the opiun😵💫
I personally liked the French Plantation scene. It gave it some unexpected color bringing in the French and reminding the viewers that there was a war before the United States got involved in it.
Same here. IT just an extra demention to an already way out there piece of film history.... However IT must have been at the time, IT just gets better with time
It reminds the viewers that the NVA are fighting for freedom
Maybe somebody could have just - you know - DISCUSSED the fact that the French were there before us. Maybe that would have worked.
@@Paul47TatIt is a shame that many people don't know history. I am German and went to a French school in Berlin. Indochina was a part of my history lessons. Maybe not so in the US.
The redux version is my favorite with these scenes in , it works for me . It's a bit like the Paris Peace accords .
Same
I stumbled upon it, having watched the final cut and I much preferred the redux
building a kitchen in the set is total and beautiful madness
In a movie with so many incredible scenes.... this sequence holds its own and adds a fantastic part of history and a side story to the movie. Well worth the time, effort, and money it took to make it happen!
Personally, for me, this is the single most important part of the movie. It is the counterpoint to the cruelty and desperation of the rest of the movie. It also offers a powerful chance for Willard to escape the mission, which challenges his humanity. Wonderful, magical
Easily the most interesting and relatable segment of the Redux version. I believe all of the actor’s performances were superb.
I love that cut after 25:48 during George Lucas' candit comment. It looks like Martin Sheen is saying "look who is talking. It's that guy."
26:09 I was just reading your comment just as it happened! And yes, I agree it does. 😄
The French plantation was always my favorite scene. It really helped to give a good insight into why we were in Vietnam. The part where they talk about Dien Bien Phu always gives me goosebumps.
Dien Bien Phu="Voluntary mistake!"
I started reading about that battle because of this scene.
Recommend you watch Pierre Schoendoerffer's film on the battle
@@vrishnikgupta
Why is Dien Bein Phu a " voluntary mistake" ?
@@vincentgoupil180 oh I was just referring to what they said in the French plantation scene regarding the battle
@@vincentgoupil180a battle ordered by the politics but they didnt give the ressources
@@cargaisontuba3361
Also, the French army general *Henri Eugene Navarre* . Dien Bein Phu was his top to bottom strategic to tactical FUBAR (Fked Up Beyond Any Repair) plan. In hindsight almost as it was done "voluntarily" to throw the French army under the bus and get kicked out of Indochina.
I have to agree with Coppola’s thoughts on food in a scene. Some of my favourite scenes of his films involve food and the drama that proceeds. I.e. Michael with Solozzo and McCluskey in The Godfather.
The French plantation scene was always one of my favourite additions of the Redux cut.
"The French plantation scene was always one of my favourite additions of the Redux cut. "
Agreed
But it's an anachronism!
There were no French left back during this time.
Besides some missionaries, they all left the country with the military.
There were no _"hold-out_ planters in the late 60's. None...
@@yannick245you may be right but its not beyond the realm of possibility there were hold outs in the 60s therefore it works for the movie.
@@loganstroganoff1284 No! There definitely were none! The Vietnamese would've burned down their plantation. In no way would the Vietnamese tolerate such hold-outs. Whether in the North or South...
@@yannick245 have you taken into consideration that these people and whole plantation might not even be real at all? It genuinely feels like a dream.
Just recently rewatched the Redux cut and I love the French Plantation scene. It may not add much to the overall MISSION in the film, but does add some interesting historical context, as well as a bit of a respite from the mayhem.
I have the Redux version, and while it doesn't add much to the narrative of Willard going down the river, I like the french plantation scene. It's interesting, beautifully shot, and it's the first time I ever saw Aurore Clément, for which I am grateful.
But it's an anachronism!
There were no French left back during this time.
Besides some missionaries, they all left the country with the military.
There were no _"hold-out_ planters in the late 60's. None...
They were going up the river.
@@yannick245 it doesn't matter, the point of the scene is to show the last vestiges of colonialism holding on against the inevitable. Like the american army holding on to a war they're going to inevitably loose
@@TheLaFleur To me, it does matter. Because it doesn't make sense.
@@yannick245 not everything is historical, specially when you're talking about art in cinema, the movie touch subjects like colonization and imperialism, as well the lack of humanity in a senseless conflict, lots of things don't make sense in the movie since already they're descending into hell in a boat
I personally love Final Cut the most because it trims the fat a little bit but keeps to me important bits like to french sequence, Cleans funeral and one of my favorites the board stealing bit😂. I felt the original to be too bare bones and the redux to be too much but the Final Cut is the golden medium to me.
funnily enough, I do not care at all for the "surfboard stealing" scene. It is completely out of character for Willard (would have made more sense if Lance was the one who stole it.. and not as a practical joke, but as a souvenir for meeting a "great man"). I would have rather had the Playmate scene simply because it humanizes the women, and correlates the playmates with the soldiers: both are doing things they might have considered immoral at some point in their life, but now they only care about doing their job and getting home.
I am still disappointed that Coppola still does not include the "devolution of weapons" scene, where Willard rises out of the water with a standard issue K-bar knife, kills a guard to get a spear, which he runs through a child to kill another guard to get his weapon, which is some piecemeal machete, which he uses on Kurtz.
@@TheRealNormanBates Willard stealing his board isn't totally out of character, Kilgore ignored and made fun of Willard in many occasions and wasted a lot of his time, he was supposed to transport the boat to the Nung River. It was just Willard's way to get a small revenge on a crazy lunatic like Kilgore
I agree that the plantation scene in Final cut is the perfect "amount" of French plantation scene. But I still don't like surf board scene. It just doesn't suit Willard's character to endanger the mission to get some petty revenge. And even less that he enjoys the petty revenge so much.
You watch the entire thing? Are you aware of being harmed?
@@bunk95 what do you mean by harmed? Its a movie
YES!! Been waiting years for your take on this! Thank you!
I always felt there was something very offputting about this scene, how it felt... anachronistic, and dreamlike. After seeing this video, Coppola totally nailed it.
Pure “Cinema Tyler” Gold….as always, as expected, as delivered! Congratulations, and thank you for astounding us, educating us, and entertaining us!
You're killing it with this content man, really gives me a whole new perspective on a film I've seen many times. Keep up the great work!
I'm glad this video popped up in my feed. Redux was the first version I saw, and I always thought the sequence seemed out of place with the rest of the film, but in a good way. A dreamy way. Like the calm before a storm or the eye of a hurricane.
I dont know how you have been doing this series, and your other stuff, for so long with such amazing quality. I am always incredibly impressed and have watched all of your videos multiple times and will continue to watch them.
Love the exposition in the French Plantation Sequence:)Cinema Tyler-great material being shared far & wide!:)
This scene added so much context it deserved to be included
But it's an anachronism!
There were no French left back during this time. Captain Willard mentioned hundreds of them. This is just fiction.
Besides some missionaries, they all left the country with the military.
There were no _"hold-out_ planters in the late 60's. None...
@@yannick245True perhaps, but as Coppola said in an interview it was meant to portray going back in time to the 1950's approximately when the French colonials were still present. (When Vietnamese boat refugees were welcomed to my country they opened bakeries as the French had taught them how to bake French bread so their histories lived on.)
@@sharpbends the french was long gone but the french way of life never left Vietnam. Im talking as a south vietnamese. Colonial time was bad but the French did bring us the western civilization. Many aspects of life were in fact better during the French time than now. In the colonial time many vietnameses were dreaming about making Vietnam a strong and independent nation. Now the majority just want to make quick money and get the heck out of this miserable place. Even those first class privileged citizens are doing the same😢
My day always gets brighter when I see this upload. I have something awesome to watch with my coffee and cigarettes. I'm not super familiar with this sequence of the film, so this was a super insightful episode. Fascinating history too. Good stuff as always. You're putting together a really great thing here.
Always a great day when an episode of this series comes out.
THANK YOU for finally releasing this vid!!!!!
One of my favourite scenes in the film. So weird and beautiful.
I saw Redux in the theater and found the film ground to a screeching halt during this sequence.
I agree.
I have always loved that scene and it fit well into the journey. The lighting of the dinner reminded me of the Barry Lyndon pub scene filmed in candlelight - it was breathtaking.
Barry Lyndon was on another level entirely. One of the most underappreciated films ever.
It's one of those: on the one hand, I can see why cutting it from the film made sense. On the other, I came to know the film on DVD with it included viewed in a home setting, so the extra time included was ultimately worth it and more rewarding. However, throwing this out into the universe the first time w/ it cut was the one that made the most sense at the time.
Fortunately for us, the market allowed us to have the expanded one.
Great channel. Channels like this make YT worth watching.
When I saw the final cut for the first time I was very impressed that such an incredible scene was cut out. But I have to say, it does change the overall tone quite a bit and I find it interesting to compare it to the original theatrical version, two versions that are great in their own way
I lived in a past plantation in cambodia, lived there for 4 years, my son was born there as well.
What a great house that was, beautifully designed and great layout.
All I know is I love that scene for that one part when the accordion guy falls down. Cracks me up every time.
I love the plantation scene. The French honor the death of the Chief with a respectful military funeral. Putting the French experience into the movie helps to explain how all the madness started.
Baldwin could hear the sea from Paris. France is [fake].
this is one of the most fascinating things you've covered yet; beautiful work.
That Coppola cut this scene is why Apocalypse Now is such a masterpiece, and it's the purest example of why he was so brilliant in his heyday. His process on making this film was as if he blew up a mountain to mine its riches, then threw away the millions in silver that he found...because silver is not gold, and only the gold matters.
In hindsight, it's obvious why the plantation scene doesn't work - it's about the minutiae of Vietnam War itself, when the movie in total is about far, far more than that. But when he had invested so much of himself creatively and financially into such a lavishly beautiful sequence, it must have been nearly impossible to get rid of it -- no matter that the scene, when finally seen context of the film, was nothing more than a gilded anvil that drags the film to a dead stop, and reduces the meaning of the story to something historically incidental, instead of haunting, human and eternal.
That he had the creative integrity to cut something so temptingly gorgeous as this, is one of the most brave and brilliant creative decisions in the history of American film.
Absolutely agreed! The fabled 'French Plantation' sequence adds a big nothing to the beauty of the theatrical release version. Sometimes, you have to bin the stuff that doesn't work.
Theatrical version is the worst imo. Feels rushed, paced like an action film.
I enjoyed redux the most as not only its the craziest journey up the river out of all 3 versions, It also adds plenty of boat Crew interactions which is a big plus. I like to immerse myself in movies, and theatrical is the least immersive version - too short. Redux with all its added content makes the story more impactful.
I really love how you go som in depth on these movies, ESP. Apocalypse Now. Keep up the awesome work!
Thank you for another amazing in depth analysis of this film , I’m still happy with the theatrical version I saw at the theater, but now it’s great to see everything cut out and appreciate ít more
Chef survives the movie and becomes the pawn store owner in falling down. Coppola said this is canon
He was decapitated, how do you survive that?
@@garagemetalshop7975 It was a hullicination from Willard.
I've always felt this was like a short film within the movie, one that boils down to the duality of man line 'there are two of you, don't you see, one who kills and one who loves". Really love the scene and glad it exists in Redux, but it does slow the river pacing enough that I also like the original without it
great detailed breakdown, still learning new things about my favorite film
That scene shot during the "golden hour" was brilliant, that beautiful warm light reminds me of a Rembrandt painting.
it's a bit metaphorical, given that French cuisine is indulgent, and how deep Coppola got indulgent with this sequence that he got sick of it, just like indulging in the aforementioned regional food. Lucas nailed though tbh. Another banger, CT. Thank you so much.
Having seen the final cut, i can affirm that i agree with 100% of the cuts made on the original theater version.
Once again, very impressive and excellent work, sir.
I like to think that Captain Willard returned to the plantation after dealing with Colonel Kurtz. Especially when he said "They were gonna make me a Major for this, and I wasn't even in their f*ckin' army anymore".
Me too and he found peace at last
The French Plantation sequence was no doubt ambitious but ultimately unnecessary to the final film.
Having said that, Aurore Clément in this scene and later in Paris, Texas, fantastique!!!
Disagree that it was unnecesary, here are the reasons for it being neccesary :
-one of the main themes of the film is going back in time, this scene makes that statement stronger as It goes from modern military to French colonists then to primitive tribe of Kurtz
-its adds more Bizzare nature to the film. Journey up the nung River is supposed to be weird, and psychodelic and this scene first those criterias, It feels dream-like or like ghosts from the past who can't escape their bubble.
-one of the themes of the film is duality of Man, final scene of French plantation mentions that, and the French girl was probably the major driving force influencing Willard with his final choice of not dropping the bomb on tribe.
-its helps with the awkward cut from Clean getting killed to Chief dying in theatrical, I hated how Chief's death happens a scene after Clean's death, It felt rushed.
@@PolishGod1234 Good points, but this segment -- like the elongated Playboy bunny scenes following the stage performance (though not wholly objectionable) -- only slowed and bogged the film down, at least for me.
I agree with you the French Plantation segment does add a bizarre quality or dimension to the film but for me it ultimately gets too far away from the basic plot of the film, Captain Willard's mission to assassinate Colonel Kurtz.
Obviously, as Tyler's vid demonstrated, it gave Coppola huge problems and at least for the 1979 theatrical run of "Apocalypse Now" the director wisely left that segment out.
I saw Redux in a theater, and the plantation scene benefitted quite a bit from coming right after an intermission. There, I didn't mind, but if I'm watching the movie in one swoop, I can't stand it.
It makes me think the movie should have been split into two parts. Each part about 2 hours.
I remember seeing this when IFC showed such things. Actually one of my favorite scenes.
This is one of my favorite scenes of the movie. I just love how end-of-era of the French plantation scene is.
I understand this sequence has its downsides and runs a bit too long, though the Final Cut might have fixed that. However, I feel it has merit, in some ways, for the exact same reason people dislike it. It's like a pit stop, it allows the characters to rest up. We never really see them rest up after the Valkyrie sequence, so having them stay the night here and have a large meal fills that in. I also like how they interact with someone other than fellow Americans, it shows the history of the country.
It was just Coppola treating the crew, after the gruelling schedule. Make it a scene and the company pays.
@@happinesstan The company paying being Coppola.
@@CornishCreamtea07 Have you ever owned a company?
@@happinesstanI just peed into my own pants
My reaction to the scene when I first saw it was that it was like the boat had landed in a different movie- a movie I wanted to see, but as an actual separate movie because it really didn't fit here. I still want to see the movie about that French rubber plantation.
Cool idea. What an interesting sequel
It's one of my favorite scenes from the movie. So glad it was restored.
I freaking love this series so much, I’m big on UA-cam and have a LOT of likes but this ongoing series is my absolute favorite, out of dozens. This is top notch coverage of my favorite film of all time, only the most intelligent will understand the brilliance of this film
This sequence is brilliant! I enjoyed all the extra footage in the Redux Deluxe DVD. But if Coppola had left it all in it would have been a 4 hour movie. Way too long for release. But I found all the footage fascinating. I thought it improved an already great film.
Thanks for the examination of this lost footage.
The theatrical cut is my favourite, it's the better version of the film in terms of pace. Interesting to note that Willard doesn't do anything until the midpoint of the film when he kills the boat woman, until then he's an observer.
Funny, because for me theatrical is the worst when It comes to pacing. Its too fast, almost like an action film.
I love that scene in Apocalypse Now. And Francis Ford Coppola was right it going back in time.
ooooh yeah now this is a good Saturday eve!!
You're right, it is superfluous. So why insert it in the "Final Cut,," except as an incentive for fans to invest yet again in another physical media product? It's the gift that keeps on giving for Coppola, Lionsgate, whoever else has a stake in it...
It was cut because it keeps going, then it keeps going, then it keeps going, and then, when it's finally time to journey into the heart of darkness and come face-to-face with narrative crux of the story...IT KEEPS GOING!!
Brain rotten speedwatcher.
Agreed. I just don't get the praise for the this scene. It drags the story to a halt and destroys the pacing of the film.
thanks for all you do man.
This scene was so weird but I'm really really glad you finally told me what's up, Tyler!
Whatever genius editing god Richard Marks prayed to, the 1979 theatrical cut is absolutely the one everyone should worship, it's by far the most clear and powerful version. Surfboards, stranded bunnies, and grumpy French colonials are detours that ultimately lead nowhere, even more daylit Kurtz is superfluous. The beauty of the original release transcends these minor and incidental cul-de-sacs that the maestro Coppola explored during production. Having said that, excellent essay on this sequence, although I hated it!
Imagine being George Lucus and criticizing Francis' lack of cohesion...
When Raiders was finished, Spielberg showed it to Lucas, who then recut pats of it.
“It’s substantially the same movie I showed George, except it was leaner and more taut and it had little more energy in the middle, where all middles of all movies always sag, and he did a wonderful thing; I had made a much longer special effects scene at the end and George cut in half. And in cutting the run time of the last sequence where the ark is opened in half, it was so overwhelming and powerful that you wanted to see the movie again just to experience that last 3 minutes, whereas my version was 6 minutes. I think George’s strongest suit is editing. He is a brilliant film editor.” - Spielberg.
Source: George Lucas - Creating an Empire, 1h 11m in. Lucas had also helped Kasdan trim his script down before shooting began.
Always a good start to the day when you see one of these 😁
I think it helped flesh out the history of the whole conflict
Great scenes beautifully filmed.
but how good is martell cognac tho? gotta try it if u haven’t. it’s pretty great.
While I always saw this scene as a way to educate Americans on a bit of the history of French Indochina, it feels wrong for the pacing of the film - interrupting the journey to Kutrz & madness. It also felt like a way to add a bit of sex to a war movie - which didn't feel right moodwise at all - given Clean's death. You feel like Willard is on this physical journey upriver, but also on a spiritual journey discovering how empty he is, how cold & separated from those around him - earlier companionship and hijinx like stealing Kilgore's surfboard, have to give way to the Captain who executes the wounded sanpan girl & uses the crew up in getting to his goal - the tenderness, sexual attraction & the feasting all interrupt this journey/ transformation, so despite being an interesting scene on its own, it detracts from the actual storyline & tone at this point & the film is better without it.
How does It detract from the tone of the film? It adds to the Bizzare nature of the Nung River.
In theatrical the journey up the river after crossing Do Lung bridge, before Kurtz Compound feels too normal its basicaly just Clean and Chef dying, the added French plantation adds to the dream-like Bizzare Vibe of the river after crossing the bridge, the River is supposed to feel alien-like and without a sense after the bridge, theatrical version fails to portray that Vibe.
Totally agree
So Clean's death demands celibacy ?
Another superb video. Always super interesting
If I remember right Willard in one of the first screenplays goes back to the boat at night to remove the ammo and weapons from their crates, stashes it under the floorboards and substitutes a body(s) he killed, in anticipation of the supplies being reappropiatred, while on opium.
The meal scene should have been much shorter. The endless monologue by the French plantation owner is what kills it. Coppola would have been better off adding some voice over on this scene and keeping the dialogs for the more intimate bed scene. Also, shooting at dawn when you have paid for such an expensive and good looking set is kind of a weird decision.
I will always prefer the original theatrical cut to the extended versions. Keeping the story straightforward and focused was the best decision and those scenes reinstated for the Redux version added nothing of any significant value to the story. I did like the few new scenes with Brando and found it strange that they were removed from the Final Cut version. At least Coppola removed the sequence with the stranded Playboy bunnies. The French plantation sequence is just too long. If it was just a little shorter it might have been tolerable but it just goes on and on. I doubt that we've seen the "final version" as there is probably still hours of footage in his possession. Some was included in the Special Features sections of recent releases. I bought the Complete Dossier version many years ago just to hear Brando do a full recitation of the T. S. Eliot poem The Hollow Men, which we only hear a few lines in the actual film. It was accompanied by a lot of raw footage that looked like a Werner Herzog film.
I just love Werner Herzog.
It's sad that he doesn't do epic dramas anymore. But his documentaries are always great watch too.
His voice is perfect for narration. So soothing.
The series with him doing interviews with people that got sentenced to death in Texas, is available here on UA-cam. Last time I checked.
I totally agree with you. I love this film as many people do. The original version is the better film and by some margin.
The decision to remove the scenes added to the redux and the final was the correct one. Yes they are beautiful and yes to fans they are a wonderful, add on. But do they improve the film? Not in my opinion.
What’s interesting is I honestly believe Coppola was an intuitive film maker and also could listen to others. It’s a pity Scorsese doesn’t take a leaf out of his book. His last two pictures have been bloated and over long. They could’ve told the same story with 60 minutes cut out. I know they were made for home viewing but still.
Excellent post, thank you for sharing.
Thanks for making content that offers some original insight and info.
Chef was from New Orleans so he probably knew Cajun French anyway.
Redux is the best version of the film imo.
hey, polish guy
Might be of interest ?
Play on the surnames of Hubert de Marais (played by Christian Marquand) and Roxanne Sarrault (Aurore Clement).
Marais is a Parisian district where Jim Morrison lived (whose father Rear Admiral Morrison was involved in the Bay of Tonkin Incident). Harrison Ford was a roadie filming the Doors.
Marais is close to marquis, a nobility title given to those who fought on the frontier for their country. Marquis is below a duke and above a count. A duke is referred to at the dinner table.
Marquis is an urban resistance group during the Vichy era. Also, marais is a derogatory term meaning a "frog" living in a swamp or marais.
Roxanne Sarrault's surname is similiar to Albert-Pierre Sarraut who was twice Colonial Governor-General of Indochina, 1911-13 and 1917-19.
("An angel passes ...", indicating an awkward pause.)
Who knows. Morrison might be an extra in the movie ?
kidding :)
Always Quality Research 🎬 Thank you*
This has always been my favorite part of the movie. Love the Redux. There are two of you one that loves and one that kills.
I love these videos and I think this channel is incredibly great and important for cinema, but I can't help but think what interesting and diverse videos would've existed had this series on Apocalypse Now ended sooner.
I like the sequence too, and fully appreciate what Coppola was trying to achieve. But yes, ultimately it did not work. My problem is not so much with the dinner scene per se, but with the lack of any real payoff from the sexual tension between Roxanne and Willard. Unfortunately, there is zero on-screen chemistry between Clement and Sheen once they get up to her bedroom. This may have been due to compromises from Clement's reluctance to show frontal nudity, or Coppola's choice to turn it into a kind of stoner scene, or perhaps both. Regardless, a more satisfying conclusion here would have done a lot to salvage the entire plantation sequence.
Excellent video - Thanks!
The source for Coppola was Michael Herr’s book, “Dispatches”. Herr was a journalist who spent time in Vietnam, and his book is a collection of his encounters. Coppola strung these stories together to create the movie. The book is written from the perspective of a normal recreational drug using American and his journalist friends, not from the perspective of a soldier. Coppola attempted to recreate this outsider perspective through CPT Willard.