The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

a place to discuss anything of interest to owners of M151 jeeps

Moderators: rickf, raymond, Mr. Recovery

Crusader_22
1st Sergeant
1st Sergeant
Posts: 446
Joined: February 7th, 2010, 3:59 pm
Location: Tucson, AZ

The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by Crusader_22 » January 4th, 2011, 2:33 am

I am a VN film connoisseur. I have seen all I can find (let me know if you have seen any obscure ones, like "The Anderson Platoon", etc.)

I collect Vietnam uniforms, equipment, and everything else...but really, I research all of it, and love to see it in the historical sense, more than anything.

I rewatched "The Green Berets" tonight. Well, what a film. I have seen it a bunch of times, but...watch it again, I tell you.

You can say what you want about the politics (which are unabashed and forefront), but what a film. U.S. Army support, fully, so you get to see equipment and men you just cannot see in a Hollywood production. MUTTs everywhere, and I mean lots of them, with so many radio variants, weapons configurations, and they drive them like they should. Now, mind you, these are US Army M151 trucks, they are not made up "interpretations" of what Vietnam era trucks should look like. Take care to look at the markings, colors, antenna mounts, and on and on. I know it isn't combat footage, but the US Army was the provider of the equipment, not some Hollywood company that just did what they wanted to get the contract.

Uniforms, weapons, and on and on are great...the aircraft alone are enough to watch the film. I mean, the real deal Huey gunship 7.62 quad mount close up. plus rockets, just there. The real deal, no BS.

Man, it is good stuff. If you love M151s (which YOU DO), rewatch this film. I know you all have seen it, but see it again.

Jeff
Image
11 yrs Army NG, currently full time AH-64D Apache Longbow crewchief
Former 11B, 32 IN BDE, WIARNG "RED ARROW!" OIF 3 2005-2006
General know it all jerk 42 years and running.

SOLD 1971 AM General M151A2
SOLD 1966 USMC M416

myitinaw
Private First Class
Private First Class
Posts: 12
Joined: November 29th, 2010, 12:45 am

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by myitinaw » January 4th, 2011, 3:50 am

There is a fantastic Vietnam War film, titled: Người tình không chân dung

It was filmed in Vietnam in 1970. Everything in the movie is as it was!

From the standpint of a drama, meh.. But the equipment in the movie is the real-deal.

It is worth the time to watch it.

Here's a wiki link:

http://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ng%C6%B0%E ... 3%A2n_dung
1966 M151A1

WC Matt
Colonel
Colonel
Posts: 1648
Joined: March 29th, 2009, 11:59 am

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by WC Matt » January 4th, 2011, 11:20 am

A friend of mine was In Country at the time when John Wayne's "The Green berets" came out. He watched it while on leave over there. I think to this day it is the funnist movie (according to him) that my friend has ever seen. Jeff like you, I also watch that movie for the gear. The Viet cong guy with the full beard & moustashe armed with a mattle M16 is just the icing on the cake :lol:
Matt

ohiomgman
1st Sergeant
1st Sergeant
Posts: 474
Joined: September 4th, 2009, 4:06 pm
Location: The Great White North of N.E. Ohio

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by ohiomgman » January 4th, 2011, 11:28 am

Deleate...double post?
Last edited by ohiomgman on January 4th, 2011, 2:19 pm, edited 2 times in total.
NRA Life Member. Class 7 FFL/ SOT
1964, M151-A1
1950, US M-38 Jeep. Serial # 36.
1952,US M-38 Jeep
1965, Willys M-274 Mule
1945, CCKW, closed cab, 353
416 Trailer
M100 Trailer
US Army 5 year RA. RSVN 1968-1970

User avatar
rickf
General
General
Posts: 19738
Joined: November 26th, 2007, 1:28 pm
Location: Pemberton, NJ.

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by rickf » January 4th, 2011, 1:20 pm

I had a boss that was a Green Beret and did 4 tours. Got shot up every one of them and just kept going back until the last one where a VC threw a grenade out of a tunnel and blew most of his face off along with a lot of internal injuries. He actually waited at the tunnel entrance for the VC to come out for souvenirs and when he did Bill shot him. I had heard about this when I was there and dismissed it as a "war story". Never thought I would be hired by the same man from the story. That movie came up in conversation one time and he was less than enthusiastic about it. He mentioned that they didn't have a clue what it was all about in the jungle. His name was Bill Hodge in case anyone here was familiar with the GB's.

Rick
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

ohiomgman
1st Sergeant
1st Sergeant
Posts: 474
Joined: September 4th, 2009, 4:06 pm
Location: The Great White North of N.E. Ohio

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by ohiomgman » January 4th, 2011, 2:15 pm

ohiomgman wrote:JW & the GB's.... I doubt the 5th SF Group Commander ever led clandestine field ops into North Vietnam during the war.

I have it on DVD. Watch it a couple times per year.

Many years ago I had the unique experience of watching "The Green Berets".. in Vietnam, while sitting on a sandbagged ammo bunker, watching the movie, outside at night, on a screen we made using a white sheet nailed to 2x4's...so you could watch it from either side of the screen. THAT was in 1969 at a USSF, "A" Camp with hundreds of CIDG, and MIKE force strikers sitting ever where. On either side of me were two 'Yards, I saw every day and ALL of the 'Yards just loved the Duke. Every time they saw the brass ring on his right wrist they went nuts.... Now THAT was how I remember seeing JW & the GB's...the BEST.

The Duke's Vietnam didn't much look like what was outside the wire... but his "camp" looked a bit like ours... Loved them "Khaki Summer dress "A's." I will now prob watch it again today and stroll down memory lane.... again. Does the movie seem a little "hokie" as far as some of us having been there and done that? Well yes...in many ways it is. But. It was un-PC then and still is. The Duke spent his own money making it happen and it was not filmed on location in a tropical rain forest with an un-limited budget. It was filmed at Ft. Bragg with help from the US Army. Pineland ain't Tigerland. But it was OK.

Yeahbuddy! We were young and soldiers...ONCE!


Image


Image


Image
NRA Life Member. Class 7 FFL/ SOT
1964, M151-A1
1950, US M-38 Jeep. Serial # 36.
1952,US M-38 Jeep
1965, Willys M-274 Mule
1945, CCKW, closed cab, 353
416 Trailer
M100 Trailer
US Army 5 year RA. RSVN 1968-1970

Crusader_22
1st Sergeant
1st Sergeant
Posts: 446
Joined: February 7th, 2010, 3:59 pm
Location: Tucson, AZ

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by Crusader_22 » January 4th, 2011, 3:39 pm

Yeah, I know it is not very accurate at all regarding anything like tactics, etc. It is essentially a WWII type film set in VN, and a non-PC jab at communism and the people who didn't think the war was important, done by the Duke himself. It plays like pure propaganda, really. But the gear and equipment is really cool to see!

Someday, I will get to see movies about Iraq come out, and maybe they will make some attempt at realistic portrayal. "The Hurt Locker" really got a lot right, if not the sillyness of an EOD team running off on thier own looking for some dude in the dark...but the uniforms, equipment, and "feel" of it are not bad.

Jeff
Image
11 yrs Army NG, currently full time AH-64D Apache Longbow crewchief
Former 11B, 32 IN BDE, WIARNG "RED ARROW!" OIF 3 2005-2006
General know it all jerk 42 years and running.

SOLD 1971 AM General M151A2
SOLD 1966 USMC M416

SEABEE62
Fleet Admiral
Posts: 2621
Joined: January 3rd, 2009, 9:56 pm
Location: ~ Heaven ~

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by SEABEE62 » January 4th, 2011, 6:43 pm

I saw the Green Beret when I was 18 + -, and you could tell who all were of draft age in the theater .....by the way, the Seabees came to save John Wayne. I also had a good laugh when I saw what actors they had playing the Seabees.....looked too clean cut ! Seabee
1971 M151A2 MUTT , M416 trailer
NMCB 62, Delta Co.,BU2, Gulfport, MS Home Port
VFW 3838, American Legion 63
Seabee Association of America LM , NMCB 62 Assoc.
"Performance Under Fire" US Navy Seabees '69-'72
National Assoc. of Atomic Veterans/ Amchitka
SEMO University Vet Corp Alumni
MVPA#32091

WC Matt
Colonel
Colonel
Posts: 1648
Joined: March 29th, 2009, 11:59 am

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by WC Matt » January 4th, 2011, 7:13 pm

In the end of that movie (The green berets) I don't remember if the sun is rising or setting but in real life it does the exact oposite over the South China sea. One of the things my buddy (he was USMC MFR) who was over there thought was particularly funny was that "only the Duke could change the rotational direction of the Earth." The movie was filmed at Ft. Bragg, NC (or so I was told).

As for the Seabees coming to the Duke's rescue well, I guess they owe'd him after all, he did make that movie "The fighting Seabees" :) .

Another good movie about Vietnam was "Apocolypse Now". That was made in the mid to late 70s so a lot of the gear used in that film was period correct (it was still in general issue). They re-released that movie a couple of years ago with a bunch of extra footage that was not shown in the theaters when it originally came out.

Also liked "Platoon" and aside from some technical fauxpas (CAR-15s & a push dagger) I felt it centered around all of the negative stereotypes of the people who served over there but it was huge step away from the "Rambo" movies of the period and I guess that's good.
Matt

SEABEE62
Fleet Admiral
Posts: 2621
Joined: January 3rd, 2009, 9:56 pm
Location: ~ Heaven ~

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by SEABEE62 » January 4th, 2011, 7:29 pm

John Wayne and Seabees......." CAN DO ! " Seabee
1971 M151A2 MUTT , M416 trailer
NMCB 62, Delta Co.,BU2, Gulfport, MS Home Port
VFW 3838, American Legion 63
Seabee Association of America LM , NMCB 62 Assoc.
"Performance Under Fire" US Navy Seabees '69-'72
National Assoc. of Atomic Veterans/ Amchitka
SEMO University Vet Corp Alumni
MVPA#32091

ohiomgman
1st Sergeant
1st Sergeant
Posts: 474
Joined: September 4th, 2009, 4:06 pm
Location: The Great White North of N.E. Ohio

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by ohiomgman » January 6th, 2011, 7:30 pm

WC Matt wrote: Another good movie about Vietnam was "Apocalypse Now". That was made in the mid to late 70s so a lot of the gear used in that film was period correct (it was still in general issue). They re-released that movie a couple of years ago with a bunch of extra footage that was not shown in the theaters when it originally came out.
"Apocalypse Now," was another anti-war film with no basis in reality. It was a loosely based on, "The Heart of Darkness," by Joseph Conrad. It should thus be viewed strictly for it's intrinsic entertainment value, the same as "Full Metal Jacket."

Also liked "Platoon" and aside from some technical fauxpas (CAR-15s & a push dagger) I felt it centered around all of the negative stereotypes of the people who served over there but it was huge step away from the "Rambo" movies of the period and I guess that's good.
Matt
"Platoon" was much better, than "Apocalypse Now," but it was still an Oliver Stoned anti-war, anti-military movie, made to feed the old stereotypes of the Vietnam Vet baby killer and heroin addict that the far left seems to thrive on. IMHO.

.
NRA Life Member. Class 7 FFL/ SOT
1964, M151-A1
1950, US M-38 Jeep. Serial # 36.
1952,US M-38 Jeep
1965, Willys M-274 Mule
1945, CCKW, closed cab, 353
416 Trailer
M100 Trailer
US Army 5 year RA. RSVN 1968-1970

WC Matt
Colonel
Colonel
Posts: 1648
Joined: March 29th, 2009, 11:59 am

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by WC Matt » January 6th, 2011, 9:12 pm

ohiomgman wrote:quote]

"Apocalypse Now," was another anti-war film with no basis in reality. It was a loosely based on, "The Heart of Darkness," by Joseph Conrad. It should thus be viewed strictly for it's intrinsic entertainment value, the same as "Full Metal Jacket."

Yes anyone that's ever seen anything about that movie knows that. It's like mentioning the Who's "teenage wasteland" is actually Baba O'riley (sp?)- fun little factoid that everyone knows. In an earlier post someone mentioned that the gear used in JW's TGB was correct if only because it was filmed at the time of the conflict the movie was actually about. My point about Apocalypse was that even though it was filmed post war, it was also accurate from a gear standpoint (although too many 30 round mags in the M16s) Not a historical standpoint. Don't think it was supposed to be anyway?

Also liked "Platoon" and aside from some technical fauxpas (CAR-15s & a push dagger) I felt it centered around all of the negative stereotypes of the people who served over there but it was huge step away from the "Rambo" movies of the period and I guess that's good.
Matt
"Platoon" was much better, than "Apocalypse Now," but it was still an Oliver Stoned anti-war, anti-military movie, made to feed the old stereotypes of the Vietnam Vet baby killer and heroin addict that the far left seems to thrive on. IMHO.

Platoon also had it's "Hollywood" moments and yes it is (IMHO)a slap in the face to VN Vets but the technical people on that film did get alot of the small details right. The subject of this thread is Vietnam Movies with a particular emphisis on the Duke's "The green berets".
Matt

.

DEAN
Private First Class
Private First Class
Posts: 14
Joined: June 8th, 2010, 9:44 am

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by DEAN » January 7th, 2011, 9:38 am

Try 'The Odd Angry Shot' - its a film about the Australian SAS in Vietnam and gives a different perspective from the usual US involvement. Haven't seen it for a long time, but do seem to remember that its anti-war.

There was also an Australian mini-series on Vietnam, called (imaginatively) 'Vietnam'. Can't remember if its any good or not.

Of the popular Vietnam films:

You may be interested to know that Full Metal Jacket was entirely filmed in London.....there are odd bits that give it away like road markings etc, but still a good film.

I don't think Platoon has aged well and seems very contrived now. Apocolypse Now is very moody and atmospheric and as a consequence seems deeper than it really is (filmed in the Philipines with the local military). I think Good Morning Vietnam is actually one of the better era films.

Regardless of its technical aspects, The Green Berets is a terrible film on many levels, but does stand-out for being pro-Vietnam war. The only other one I can think of is We Were Soldiers, which is also not a good film, but pretends to be purely because it is graphic.

There seems to be an inability to produce a film that shows the military invlovment in Vietnam in a more balance manner, but thats a long subject....

Theres a comedian over here who jokes that Britain didn't get involved in Vietnam because we like our war films to be fun... :)

Crusader_22
1st Sergeant
1st Sergeant
Posts: 446
Joined: February 7th, 2010, 3:59 pm
Location: Tucson, AZ

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by Crusader_22 » January 7th, 2011, 10:16 am

I generally agree with the above comments regarding "Apocalypse Now" and "Platoon". Platoon, in particular, is a little difficult to watch without becoming frustrated as the result of Stone's overwhelming op/ed bent on the whole production. I mean, not everything about that war was a train wreck. Though Oliver Stone is said to have based it on his personal experience, it is finally just an all-out blatant anti-war soapbox piece.

I think "full Metal Jacket" did better at capturing the experience and was more realistic, in that it just shows war, and allows war itself to sell the anti-war message, if that makes sense. It was partially written by Michael Herr, author of "Dispatches", and a Vietnam war correspondent. Little stuff from that book shows up in the film. He is a good author, I did like "Dispatches" a lot. I haven't read "The Short Timers" yet, which is the main basis for it, by Gustav Hasford.

While we are listing others, "Hamburger Hill" comes to mind. It is technically excellent, the uniforms, equipment, even the "Oporder/warning order" process is documented at one point in the film, it really is a window into modern Infantry life. My major problem is, it seems the creators had a "checklist of Vietnam issues" that they addressed one by one, like little skits - somebody had to get the punji stake booby trap pit, there had to be a "Dear John" sequence, there had to be a vignette about the multi-tour vet returning home to disdain and back to 'Nam he goes, only to die...etc., on and on. It plays more like a string of crappy short melodramatic stories than a powerful period piece.

"Casualties of War" was also technically proficient, but over the top in the anti-Vietnam sense, maybe the worst offender. Just no objectiveness at all. (But I give it a little star for being the only VN film I have seen that actually bothers to use a real XM177E2 instead of CAR-15s or other wrong carbines! After all, I am a weapon guy.)


I'll think of more later. Anyone else?

Jeff
Image
11 yrs Army NG, currently full time AH-64D Apache Longbow crewchief
Former 11B, 32 IN BDE, WIARNG "RED ARROW!" OIF 3 2005-2006
General know it all jerk 42 years and running.

SOLD 1971 AM General M151A2
SOLD 1966 USMC M416

Bill, Idaho
Master Sergeant
Master Sergeant
Posts: 324
Joined: December 14th, 2007, 5:54 pm
Location: Caldwell, Idaho

Re: The Green Berets: John Wayne (The film)

Unread post by Bill, Idaho » January 7th, 2011, 12:56 pm

Ok, so if one was to completely remove any and all political overtones, which movie would be technically the most correct as far as equipment?
My problem is whenever I go to a movie (which is hardly ever anymore), I become too involved in how accurate the thing is in regards to gear and vehicles, rather than going with the plot and simply enjoying it as a couple of hours of entertainment.

Post Reply