StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
The New Internationalist September 1988 review of Good Morning, Vietnam recognizes the film as a refreshingly entertaining portrayal of the Vietnam conflict. Robin Williams, playing Air Force Deejay Adrien Cronauer, is given enough leeway in this position to deliver his patented fast-paced and observant humor (surprisingly accurate in regards to period references), while the plot development allows him to flex his dramatic muscles for one of the first times…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER94.5% of users find it useful
Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality"

Download file to see previous pages

The film is fairly accurate in what it does portray: Croanuer is a hot-shot Deejay brought in to entertain (and thereby distract) the troops and is welcomed by his peers while several of his superiors are nervous about his lack of respect for authority. Cronauer blends well enough in his new environment, even taking on a class teaching Vietnamese - although this is to meet a love interest. He befriends the girl's brother, Tuan, fighting to get him into the locally owned G.I. Bar Jimmy Wah's.

Cronauer is supended from the air when he ignores the censor by announcing the subsequent bombing of Jimmy Wah's. After his return to radio, Cronauer goes into the field to do remote interviews, unknowingly walking into enemy occupied territory. Tuan finds and rescues Cronauer, who returns to find that he is be reassigned to a different location, due to his involvement with Tuan, who proves to be a Vietnamese guerilla. After bidding farewell to all of his acquaintances, Cronauer departs, while a taped broadcast of his farewell show is played to the troops.

Sadly, the focus of the film proves very limited. Despite the film's entertainment value, the narrow locality of it's story (primarily in the radio station) does not allow for a more comprehensive view of American soldiers in the field, the shifting political situation or the political history, and makes almost no effort to recognize Vietnamese history and concerns. Part of this is explained by Sergeant Joe P. Dunn, of the 199th Infantry Brigade, 1969-1970; who completed his tour with the 1st Air Cavalry.

He observes that there are three primary methods today of studying the Vietnam conflict: 1) Asianists, who are specialist in the history, culture, and so forth of the Asia, who treat American involvement "as merely one stage, in the long history and series of conflicts", 2) Americanists, who are primarily historians and focus on various aspects of American issues that led to U.S. involvement (although the Asianists denounce the absence of Vietnam history and culture in this approach), and 3) Literature/Pop-culture, which Dunn contends too rarely have "the analytical tools of the historian and the political scientist.

" Good Morning, Vietnam proves to have a slight leaning to this second category, but an overwhelming influence by the third. How then does the film attempt to justify it's blatant entertainment orientation It does this through a small inserts of liberal efforts of social equality. Cronauer seeks to equalize the military hierarchy by constantly lampooning the upper echelon. Likewise, Jimmy Wah's, a place where there has been a small measure of cultural acculturation in so far as the Vietnamese are benefiting from American presence (and exploitation), is the only real battleground in which Cronauer struggles for Vietnamese equality, i.e. the right to patron the bar.

Unfortunately, the Vietnamese is only lightly touched upon by Tuan and his sister, and then only in lamenting the impact of America on an already war-torn culture.

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality Essay”, n.d.)
Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality Essay. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1525227-good-morning-vietnam-good-night-reality
(Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality Essay)
Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality Essay. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1525227-good-morning-vietnam-good-night-reality.
“Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality Essay”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/miscellaneous/1525227-good-morning-vietnam-good-night-reality.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Good Morning, Vietnam; Good Night, Reality

Prisoners of War and Missing in Action

instructor MIAs/POWs - Did prisoners of war get left behind in vietnam, with the knowledge of the US government?... hellip; One perfect example was Rambo: First Blood II in which the starring (Sylvester Stallone) was a war veteran sent to a country called vietnam and while there he leaves other army officers behind who are then captured and the guilt forces him to go back to rescue the remaining Prisoners of War (POW).... I actually came to realize that there was a vietnam War that was fought hard although the US lost and the effect was made worse by the number of prisoners taken during the war....
5 Pages (1250 words) Essay

The Impacts of Tourism in Vietnam

This paper outlines that to the outside world, vietnam is associated with war and poverty.... On the world map of tourism, vietnam has lagged behind due to the 11-year old war which started on 7th August 1964 and ended on 30th April 1975 leaving the country crippled with destruction all-around.... hellip; The blurring impact of war drew a curtain to the scenic beauty and cultural heritage of vietnam.... vietnam is quite rich in external visible natural beauty and the cultural diversity which goes as far back as 4000 years....
10 Pages (2500 words) Case Study

Vietnam War

His poem's main question is to help individuals prevent a brief description of the intruders came up with strategies to kill most of the Vietnamese society and leave them in morning due to the mourning and deaths caused by the war.... The Vietnamese war had a huge contribution to the individuals that suffered its impact and came up with ideas to stop the war....
4 Pages (1000 words) Research Paper

American History of The 1960s

Much of the present day civilized nation resulted from struggles and bloodshed for the many who initiated the processes.... The 1960s… A focus on some of the occurrences is emphasized with support or opposition given in the form of advice from my point of view. The first violent episode Unequal conditions among the blacks and the whites were rampant in almost every sector and part within the country....
8 Pages (2000 words) Term Paper

Cyclo and Vibrant Urban Space in Modern Vietnam

Unfortunately, the process of decolonization in vietnam was marked with a long bloody war that resulted in the establishment of a communist… When Vietnamese government decided to reform the economical system and shift to capitalism, the transition turned out to be quite painful and caused much turmoil.... A standout Vietnamese film director, Tran Anh Hung, Tran Anh Hungs brilliant film exposes to light how poverty and inexorable pressure of robber capitalism in high-crime area make ordinary people face ethical dilemma and experience problem of choice in a vibrant urban environment of modern vietnam....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay

Marketing Plan of McDonalds

In the essay “Marketing Plan of McDonald's” the author examines the major strength or key for McDonald's, which is their strong global presence worldwide with its nearest competitor.... The fast-food chain is the market leader in both the domestic and international market.... hellip; The author states that the organization's enormous size and global presence lead the firm to experience economies of scale, which helps in diversifying risk....
11 Pages (2750 words) Research Paper

Role of Media in Vietnam War

This coursework "Role of Media in vietnam War" describes that shortly many of the films and writing or research shows both two aspects of villain and heroism.... nbsp;When the media show the bloodstream of people killed in vietnam was an act of Villain that America was contributing to helping South vietnam and showed more a villain role in the War and for the Vietnamese.... nbsp;… vietnam War compiled the 1st War of Indochina and was crusaded among North vietnam and South vietnam....
8 Pages (2000 words) Coursework

Vietnamese Traditional Family Values

As regards the rights of children to express themselves, I believe that it is a good way to train and develop among children certain respect for the elders.... Mother stayed at home and took good care of us, (no.... nbsp; Like other Asian countries, vietnam gives high importance to family values.... n vietnam, women are usually dependent on their husbands.... he neighborhood in vietnam is totally different, especially in provinces....
6 Pages (1500 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us