Medevac Scene: The CRAZY Story Behind Filming in a REAL TYPHOON | Ep15 | Making Apocalypse Now
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- čas přidán 29. 03. 2023
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Audiences who saw Apocalypse Now when it came out in 1979, did not see a scene in which the patrol boat crew arrives at a Medevac area, which has been decimated by a typhoon. This scene would be one of the toughest to shoot and would blur fiction and reality-I mean, the production design was pretty much done by a real typhoon.
And all this for a scene that would be cut from the theatrical release, put back in for the Redux version, and end up being the only sequence from the Redux version that does not appear in the Final Cut. We’ll explore the crazy story of filming this scene and see if we can figure out exactly why Coppola feels it doesn’t deserve to stay in the movie on this episode of Making Apocalypse Now.
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This video is by Tyler Knudsen.
Affiliate Links:
(Coppola) Notes on the Making of Apocalypse Now by Eleanor Coppola: amzn.to/3K9B9XH
(Cowie) The Apocalypse Now Book by Peter Cowie: amzn.to/3Zh8rZp
(Travers) Coppola's Monster Film: The Making of Apocalypse Now by Steven Travers: amzn.to/3ZybjS1
(Commentary) Apocalypse Now: The Final Cut: amzn.to/3npMry6
(Playboy)The Playboy Interviews: The Directors: amzn.to/40Ez8IO
(Martin) New Waves in Cinema by Sean Martin: amzn.to/3FSCdge
Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse: amzn.to/40CnoGB
(Phillips) Godfather: The Intimate Francis Ford Coppola By Gene D. Phillips: amzn.to/3lCPlzj
Sources:
[Cinephilia & Beyond] Incredible collection of resources on Apocalypse Now: bit.ly/35Mvv7M
(Zeismer) Ready when you are, Mr. Coppola, Mr. Spielberg, Mr. Crowe by Jerry Zeismer - amzn.to/3lFsmUh
(Neon) Neon Magazine - bit.ly/2BBR5Ol
Music:
Epidemic Sound - Zábava
It's crazy how your channel produces a higher quality documentary than a lot of network products. The only thing it is missing is interview excerpts and there would be no difference professionally.
Yes there would
This guy doesn't have to worry about legal clearances over what he talks about. Networks have to clear content with people named.
also: learn how to say place names accurately... it was so damn jarring when he kept saying Subic Bay as "sub-ik" instead of "sue-bick" as it is actually said. That stuff matters a lot.
@Unism guess what troll - you can get 99% of it right, but that blunder on the key word he keeps saying does ruin it. That's sadly how it does work - it has nothing to do with snobbery; indeed quite the opposite, as he's being snobby by failing to research how to say the word he knows he will have to say several times in the video he's about to record. You either do the work and do it right, or you fail. There's nothing in between.
Ummm..this was stolen from the blu ray bud...he's not posting anything new at all so....derp
Sorry babe cinematyler posted another Apocalypse Now video
no cap
Facts
And it's a Playboy Bunny one honey...
I think this was the most haunting scene in the film and really showed the clash between human ideals and human nature
I thought the point of the girl being ok with being pimped out was to show that it had happened to her so many times that she's become desensitized to it.
BTW. I can't stress how much I love your work. I thought that your work on Kubrick films was amazing and probably the best documentaries on him out there, but I don't know if your Apocalypse Now series isn't even better!
I always assumed basically the same.
I assumed the same. Especially considering people like Epstein and Harvey Wenitstein were normal and common and still common. I heard about a recent actress saying that it still happened.
Bingo.
When that part came up, I said out loud, "She's a playboy model" at the screen.
😊😊😊
15:00 i think that its okay to feel close to the men, having followed them so intimately up river, and then have that thrown into question, when they take advantage of the women: its the amoral fog of war -- has any surviving participant ever come back entirely whole? call me a cynic, but i find that one of the more grounded sequences. Love your work CinemaTyler.
I appreciate that you pointed out the effect the Typhoon brought to the people of the Philippines as well
These videos are O-U-T-S-T-A-N-D-I-N-G. Apocalypse Now has been my #1 favorite movie since I first saw it in Westwood in 1979.
The more I learn about this legendary shoot, the more I would have loved to be there.
Same here. I wish I had worked on the film. I'm always at my best during a disaster. It sucks while you're in the middle of it but once you're done, there's an incredible feeling of accomplishment that no one can ever take away from you!
Have you seen "Hearts of Darkness"? on the making of the film? At times it was an insane asylum on set. If that's what you'd like, then more power to you. It's a miracle that this film got made at all.
It would've made for quite a few stories in retrospect. But being there probably would've sucked.
U would of love to be there but hated to be there 😂
It’s easy to say that from the comfort of your living room, but be real- no you wouldn’t.
Having seen it in the theater in 79 that version is still my favorite although all the extra redux is interesting and hey more of this film is always good to look at , thanks Tyler!
I watched it in an Alamo Dolby theater for the first time like 2yrs ago and it was insane
Coppola removed the original ending too, fading to black instead of the explosions. So stupid! The '79 ending keeps you in the experience - war never ends - instead of "Oh, it's over" with fade to black + normal credits. Dude ruined his own perfect ending. I refuse to accept it.
@@java4653 yes the original ending was great, for myself it was saying Willard was a soldier to the end and completed his mission by calling in the air strike , remember him saying after this one he’d never want another so I figured he probably had enough and went home
Original 1979 version was best!
This is an incredible piece of work. Every entry leading up to this one has been nothing less than stellar, but this one actually manages to level up and go to another plateau. The brilliant middle section laying out the whole typhoon disaster is like a missing cut scene straight out of Hearts Of Darkness.Your content has went into another dimension. It really has hit a quality benchmark on par with the Coppola doc. This was very rewarding, revieting and manages to do something no other materials or medium previously has been able to convay and that is the absolute sh*t show that was that typhoon production hell shut down. Even in Hearts of Darkness it's treated as a footnote. This is the first time I've really felt it, the misery, the conditions, the hopelessness, the, well, yes, the horror. Again, this is so informative and immersive that just that portion of the vid could be spliced into Hearts doc seamlessly, it's that good.
Close second: that Rachel Welch joke is epic. EPIC. That antidote is so freakin great, you could forget the rest of the series and just publish the joke.
This entry has everything. Thank you genius sir.
Thanks so much!
*anecdote
@@CinemaTyler you rock
We're finally getting to Do Lung. I can't wait. That was single greatest scene in all of cinematography.
This just shows how hard it is to make a movie. It really is. All the things that can go wrong. Coppola went through a living Hell on earth to make this movie. More than anyone should ever go through. Also, I know one of those actresses that played a Playboy bunny that was in the movie. Colleen Camp. She was the one dressed like a squaw (Indian). She tells some great stories nowadays about her experience on that movie. A very wild ride!
15:52 - reminded me when I had a Tarot card reading from a similar type girl - of course wanted to sleep with her which she ignored. She said a specific card in the pattern meant “the current situation” and put down “The Lovers” - embarrassed, she reshuffled and again the card that came up was “The Lovers”.
Great video as always tyler love all the insights as usual! This apocalypse now docuseries is becoming my favourite series on youtube and can't believe it's been going over such a long period of time! and can't wait for the episode about the Do Lung bridge scene since its one of my favourite scenes of all time
Nice, I love this series, and all of your others.
Whoever got Bill Graham to do this cameo of sorts is an awesome human being.
can you imagine if they got Bob Hope? That would'a been pretty cool too. Very surreal.
Redux version is my favorite, love long movies and extra lore/story
Same
Same as well
Yea, it's like 'Aliens' Special Edition... The longer i can stay in that world, the better. BUT, i do see why each film was cut how it was. You don't NEED the French Plantation Scene to tell the story but it's a more rich and nuanced film with it.
A truly eerie part of the movie, right there with the Laos border bridge scene. Love how this movie makes your skin crawl.
This channel is one of my most re-watched channels. Love it
That's crazy. But I am really glad they stuck it out and finished the movie. Top Gun I could live without, but not Apocalypse Now.
I am amazed by your ability to study the same film for such a long period of time.
The most important question is left out: why is there a body in the freezer? Who is it? Where does it come from?
Hard core………not to be a nerd but the PBR ran on diesel and the Huey would need JP3 so swapping for fuel wouldn’t have made any sense.
THANK YOU!!! Someone finally mentioned the 800 pound gorilla on the room! Keep nerding, my friend
Hi, I worked with Adam Savage for two years to make an exact reproduction of the Kurtz Dossier if you are interested in seeing the process and final result.
That would be very interesting to see.
It's on CZcams! czcams.com/video/ruSOwI2xAYI/video.html
I saw the CZcams vid about that! So cool! You guys did a really great job!
@@CinemaTyler Thanks. Your series on the movie, like all your work has been outstanding.
You wasted two years of your life doing that?
Once again, Tyler, thanks for the great work! This is yet another great documentary in your APOCALYPSE NOW series.
When you start writing your own scenes for the movie you’re reviewing, you may have gone to far up the river … 🐅🌴🌊
Haha, touché 😉
Never get off the boat...
People argue over the Theater cut, the Redux, and the Final Cut....but real hardcore Apocalypse Now fans watch the 5 hour work print.
I want it.
1979 version was best!
2019 final cut is the best.
1979 version is too short and redux adds few unnecesary scenes like the one from the video.
Edit : I changed my mind. Redux version is the best version of the film.
We do...?
because i like this universe. i want to see every single frame filmed. i usually say im glad they cut this or that, but i cannot get wnuf A/now
Another amazing 10/10 episode!
Absolutely fascinated by your series- one of my favorite movies of all time.
BTW- I'm a former U.S. Navy sailor, and for future reference, Subic Bay is pronounced SOO-bick, not SUB-ick! ;-)
I love these episodes. Top notch quality, thank you.
Amazing videos my man!! One of the absolute greatest movies ever made!!!🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
one of these flicks where the "making of" is every bit as fascinating as the movie itself.
Love it. For some reason the notification didn't pop up for me for this video. Anyways I'm five days late to it, suppose better late than never.
Keep it up Tyler.
this is excelent breakdown. I was always curious as to why the 3rd playmate wasn't featured. Cinematyler doing the work. thumbs up
I watched Redux while drinking - a lot. Starting somewhat sober and ending, dancing drunk and going mad with the characters felt otherworldly.
Your channel is so underrated. This content is great to listen to in the background.
Thanks!
i love these apocalypse now episodes bc its my number 3 favorite movie of all time behind godfather 1 and 2!
incredible amount of research. just fantastic
Hell yeah!! Love the vids
Love all yr work buddy... excellent 👍👍
This is wonderful, thank you 🙏🏼
Thank you cinematyler
This is such a great series!!!
The original theatrical cut is by far the best. Everything that got put back in for Redux deserved to be cut.
Dear FFC, CAST, and CREW...I know it was living hell, but thank you for enduring it all to bring me my favorite movie.
Never knew there was a version without this scene
Also I agree with all the other comments, this series is outstanding! Amazing work here. This is Blu-Ray feature quality.
Thank you for this!
when they say they don't make films like that anymore... this one takes the cake, wow
Today Kurtz would be transgender.
I'd love to do this this is living seeing and doing what most people never see, that was the best part of my military service.
Tyler, have you considered doing a series on LAWRENCE OF ARABIA? THERE WILL BE BLOOD is my 2nd-favorite film, and APOCALYPSE is in my Top 10...but LAWRENCE is my all-time favorite film and there is so much interesting stuff that could be discussed considering the production (cinematography, score, actors, history the film is depicting, Lean's directing, etc.). Anyway, keep up the great work! :)
1 EACH
BUFFALO, WATER
US ARMY
It's almost worth keeping the scene in just for that gag alone.
GODDAMN love this, Tyler!!
Killing it bro
One of my favorite movies 🎬 love watching things about it. I always watch Redux and the final cut with both the French plantation and time with the bunny's
Final cut only Has French plantation. Redux is the only version with this scene with the bunnies
Great stuff again on my favorite movie!
I think it would be interesting to compare the making of Apocalypse Now with Werner Herzog's making of Fitzcarraldo. Both films have very good documentaries about how each one was made. Both were filmed in the jungle. Both had filmed large chunks of their film and had to scrap everything they shot and re-shoot because they had to replace their lead actors. Herzog filmed in the Brazilian rain forest and faced equally difficult conditions. Both directors suffered greatly in making their films. Both filmed seemingly impossible scenes, Coppola with the helicopter scene and Herzog moving a huge steamship up a large hill thru the jungle by hand and one single bulldozer. Both had to deal with the very real war and violence. Both films were made around the same time. For those not familiar with the making of Fitzcarraldo check out the film Burden of Dreams. It's almost better than the finished film! I hope someone does a comparison piece sometime.
Interesting idea!
@@CinemaTyler Thanks! Yeah, imagine if you could get Herzog and Coppola in an interview together discussing all of that from a directors point of view???!!!! THAT would make a fascinating talk!
Fantastic video. Such an ace channel you've got here. Your commitment is top to content and information. BTW when Eyes Wide Shut videos?😀
Thanks! Research has begun on EWS, but it might take a little while.
Ok… so we need Francis Cooppola to make the Afghanistan movie.
These videos are excellent.
One of my professors in film school was one of the producers of this movie, he told the craziest stories about his time on this set. He passed away late 2022
Did he/she have a name?
When I watched the Redux cut, I really felt both the French plantation scene & the medivac scene basically existed to get the boat crew laid - the French scene I suppose gives a little context about French Indochina that most probably didn't have - but really felt like a gratuitous way of "sexing up" the movie.
Both scenes suck and added nothing.
@@marknewton6984 yeah they both suck and blow get rid
@@marknewton6984wrong. French plantation gave a lot of depth into the whole situation in Vietnam. It also serves as one of the Main themes of the film of going back in time - French plantators being ghosts from the past. They were there colonizing Vietnam before Americans. It added more complexity to the film.
The playboy scene with typhoon was pretty useless though
@@PolishGod1234 OK good points. I still think the surfboard scenes were overdone. A good movie, not a great one!?
@@marknewton6984 its a masterpiece of a movie imo. Also I don't think surfboard scenes were overdone - in whole film there was only a couple of Seconds of dudes in the back surfing while bombs were dropping into Water, and then another short scene of Lance surfing while being carried by boat. And that's pretty much all surfboard scenes in the film.
Imo 2019 edition of the film is the best because It still Has French plantation scene which is actualy shorter than in redux, and removed the useless typhoon scene completely.
🌊💧🌴Sharing Far & Wide CinemaTyler(Can't Believe we're up to Episode15!)🌴🌊💧
This scene leaves me kinda wondering if thinking it adds or detracts of the movie. I think it helps a lot in the surrealism feeling, but logistically feels really weird as they had just left the place the bunnies made their show, and I never understood why the bunnies would go even closer to the front.
I just love this making off series, i even stay for the sponsors and turns off the addblock, thanks man
It may have been a case where the pilot got lost in the storm and needed a place to land. In a way you could say it further reinforces the themes of Vietnam showing how America "lost it's way" and rather than make it safely home, the country crashed in the remains of a jungle.
@@TheRealNormanBates I would they still would have to be headed towards Cambodia for that purpose. I guess you may be right, but it still feels weird to me
In the script, it was explained that the pilot was called in to evacuate some wounded soldiers during Operation Brute Force and when they got to the medevac area, there wasn't enough fuel left to get to Saigon.
@@CinemaTyler Aaaah ok. At least that's an explaination ^^
well the thing is it doesnt have to be a reference to the odyssey, or it can, its subjective, I liked this part because it added to the journey in the boat, from the tiger and the hunters/temples and all, it wasnt just the plot at that point.
That we were ever able to watch this movie is amazing.
Best part about the Redux version. Prime Colleen Camp!!!
The scene is Amazing and absolutely should have been kept in
Nice!
Can’t wait to read the books you’ve referenced here
This is a great addition to the lore.
The cut bunny scene added nothing to the story, was creepy, and seriously diminished the viewers empathy for the crew.
His use of river water after a typhoon was stupid or criminal.
Coppola seems to have had no concern for the welfare of others. Genius aside, it is disconcerting.
Bunny scene and French plantation drag down the film.
Yes please
Had the scene been in the movie from day one, we'd have gotten used to it and accepted it as part of the weird ride into a figurative hell. However, the movie we grew to love didn't include it and seemed perfect. This did feel a bit tagged on, even though it's a great scene. It's too weird, too soon, at least that's how I felt after watching the Redux fist. The colour change doesn't help either. Gone is the golden sunlight, the brightly coloured flares. It's like a beautifully shot scene..from another movie entirely!
If you really want to see where the film drags look for the workprint scene of Willard's torture. It goes on forever!! I think if he cut it down dramtically ( it lasts for at least 20 minutes) it might have added a little more evil to the Kurtz compound and how far the people under Kurtz's spell had fell into madness.
@@kowalski3769 I found a clip on line of Willard killing the Green Beret that was sent to dispatch Kurtz before him. The work print is so grainy, it looks like he stabs himself and straight away I thought of that scne at the end of Life Of Brian where the 'crack suicide squad' kill themselves instead of saving Brian! Did you know that is a young Scott Glenn playing the part?
@@davidlean1060 I did. I wish they had kept in a little more about him the movie but I'm glad they took that scene out of the film. Colby didn't stab himself, Willard killed him by throwing a knife in his chest. It was a little too corny and convenient for Willard to just kill him that way.
I always thought it be great to know how Colby ( Glenn) turned out the way he did and went to the other side with Kurtz. Like a prequel movie.
Have you read any of the original Milius scripts/drafts for AN? Before we pick up with Willard there was a scene of a bunch of Kurtz's Special Forces and Montagnard guys and they go in and wipe out a whole village and then there's some stuff back at the compound with Kurtz and his troops. Maybe do a scene about the pile of tiny arms Kurtz saw and a couple of other messed up aspects of war. Maybe show a young Kurtz experiencing some of the hypocrisy of the Army. How he became more and more disillusioned by it all.
I try to think of how you could take Colby, who had the same mission as Willard and follow his and Kurtz's plunge into slipping further and further away into Darkness. You could have almost a separate path and see how Colby turns evil.
Don't know if you could make a whole movie about it but I'm trying to picture how a story could come together for a Prequel.
@@kowalski3769 I know Willard threw the knife, my point was the print was so grainy, you couldn't tell and it looked like Glenn did himself in, Monty Python style! All it needed was the 'that showed 'em' line!
I'd love for you to do a series on Dr Strangelove
When the film opened I saw it at the Cinerama Dome in Hollywood that featured as much of a surround sound system that they had the technolopgy in 1979. The film was overpowering and everyone left the cinema silently, all of us trying to absorb as much as possible. My favorite cut however is Redux, with the planation scene that really puts the icing on the cake for me.
Damn, saw this at the Cinerama Dome at the same time. Remember it vividly as if it were yesterday.
Redux sucks. Prefer the original.
I love the channel, Subic Bay is pronounced Sue-bic not Sub-ic. I spent several weeks there on deployment. Semper Fi
impactful
First, excellent documentary series. Second, when I finally got to see the "Med Evac" scene(s), it had been many years since I first watched Apocalypse Now. I was a bookish precocious child and had read Joseph Conrads "Heart of Darkness" when I was in middle school (some 40 years ago). Thus, I found the movie transcendent, a brilliant adaption of the book. However, when decades later I saw the Med Evac scene, I found it didn't relate to my understanding of the book. I also found it profoundly darker than the rest of it, oddly out of place. I tried to apply my usual filters given that humans like original versions and once we have seen one version for decades, we are less likely to view any changes as positive. Still, I'm glad they didn't use it.
I would add that the scene with the French plantation owner did seem to fit and did add considerable context to the film. I recognize that it's likely both scenes were originally created to establish and then reinforce the surreal nature of the war, and Williard's and the boat crew's journey. As they advance up the river, things get stranger and stranger. After all the weirdness, death and tribulations, sitting down to a formal dinner is incredibly surreal. It's also historically accurate as I would learn in college that this mess used to be a French mess, an ugly artifact of French Colonialism.
In the end, this movie is a masterpiece, one unlikely to be seen again as movies get dumbed down, flattened, simplified.
.
Drop the scene.
Looking forward to your analysis of the French plantation scene.
I remember an SNL skit when Martin Sheen was the host. The making of the movie mirrored the movie and he was sent by the studio to deal with Coppola with extreme prejudice.
Heart of Darkness has a sequence where they stop at the "ruined station", I sort of thought this part of the film was a bit like that part of the book. Although it could be argued the Do Lung Bridge sequence was the "ruined station".
Another superb presentation on the movie. Graduate level analysis of the film making process.
Though, helicopters run on jet fuel not diesel which the fuel tank traded is clearly marked.
While it’s ultimately disposable I rather like this scene, too; certainly more than I like most of the other footage that made its way into REDUX. While it doesn’t refer to anything specific in “Heart of Darkness,” it nevertheless feels very Conradian to me, as the characters start to leave civilization behind and the very structure of reality seems to come apart, culminating in a moment of real horror as the soldier’s remains spill out of a casket into a scene that starts with the promise of sex with a pretty girl and ends with the reality of an anonymous death in the jungle. I’ll take it over the French plantation any day.
The French plantation scene is boring.
@@marknewton6984Disagreed. It adds a lot of depth to the film, and Has certain Blizzare aura about it like they are some kind of ghosts from the past.
Just about every typhoon in the South Pacific goes through the Philippines. I flew into Manila in '98 just after a typhoon and the water was nearly 3 feet deep in Manila. Power outages and brownouts were also common.
This is a terrific series, and I can't wait for the next installment - but one correction: Ken Russell did NOT direct Myra Breckenridge. Possibly it was Mike Sarne?
Not the only scene cut from Redux to Final. Also the scene where Brando reads newspapers to Willard at the end of the film is missing. 10:25
Exterminate the scenes!
Hey man just wondering where you got the photo for 4:11? That nametape is my name
goddamn you do great work, bud
I watched Apocolypse Now tripping acid when it came out in the theater. All that and a box of popcorn! Very heavy shit. Joined the Navy later that year. Good times.
I saw the original theatrical release when my grandmother took me to see it (she was a Martin Sheen fan). I loved it. When Redux came out, I saw it on my birthday in the theaters. I loved it, but thought this medevac scene was odd (and still do). I actually liked the French plantation scene. So, for the Final Cut, I was OK with eliminating the medevac and keeping the plantation.
Eliminate them both-- with extreme prejudice.
French plantation scene is great imo. Adds more depth to the film
I thought Walter in The Big Lebowski was just based on John Milius but damn they have the same voice! Would love him to say "You're out of your element, Francis"
One of the best movies ever
Never saw final cut and probably never will..he and his buddy Lucas love to re release things 5 or 6 times don't they
Yo… this is a great documentary. Never knew any of this, but one of my favorite movies.
👏 good job
The fuel for sex really happens in many war situations.
Should have seen Iraq during war from 2003-2011
WHAT!! I’ve Just Found someone Else Geeked Out as much as me about This film??
When I 1st viewed this movie in 1979/80 Not knowing F ford C and team had left out the French Plantation Scene.
What background track is @ 2:00 awesome video btw
This scene used to give me nightmares. As people have already said, something very grim about it.
Man, you KNOW Netflix is trying to figure out how to render this production into another miniseries like THE OFFER.
I would love to watch that!
I don't like any of the scenes that are added in the redux because they really mess with the pacing and just feel out of character for Willard. Last night before the show Willard gets mad and nearly attacks someone over the delays and he later shoots someone for potentially delaying the mission. Yet here he's giving up the fuel and then they have a long drawn out dinner and stays the night. It just feels weird.
This is a good point. But I wonder if part of his acceptance of the French Plantation delay was possibly due to Clean's recent death and maybe feeling guilty for seeing him as just a kid who is always 'busting his balls.' It's possible too, that he was mad at the guy at the Playboy show because he had no patience for someone who isn't part of the PBR crew. He had already begun bonding with the crew when he went searching for mangos with Chef (but there is the added Redux context of them having to hide from Kilgore). I think, too, that shooting the woman on the Sampan was part of him clashing with Chief over who is really in charge and he was saying that his mission is more of a priority than following Chief's protocol.
@@CinemaTyler Willard's motivations aside, the added scenes in the Redux really do mess with the pacing. Whether or not you think the French Plantation belongs in a different movie, stealing Kilgore's surfboard and hiding out, this MedEvac scene and the longueurs at Kurtz's compound all add run-time, and flesh out the characters somewhat, but the theatrical 1979 cut is by far the tightest edit and the one that is most compelling. I really love this channel, and your research and presentation work is second to none where this film is concerned. I know I've mentioned it before, but I really hope you'll cover the 'two endings', the really incredible Carmine Coppola score and Walter Murch's innovative sound design. Great work!
Agreed, also the point of the film for me is the descent further and further into darkness down the river (like the original book material). These scenes took you out of that linear journey to the heart of darkness.
That was hilarious when young Lawrence fishburn spooked (hehe) the playboy bunny at the window, he said “I’m next ma’am” and she reacted with fright. She was surprised that a young black guy wanted to do his thing with her and she probably was afraid of how he was going to perform his moves when he ‘make whoopy’
I did not know Jerry Ziesmer was an assistant director as well as an actor in the movie.