Nonetheless, Barnes at first doesn't feel threatened, and he dismissively orders Taylor to call a medic. At one point, a character is warned not to drink from a river because he might get malaria. Taylor and Francis then attack and kill several enemy soldiers that overrun their destroyed foxhole until Taylor loses it during the fight and charges off into the carnage, shooting one enemy soldier after another.

Because of the film's low budget, cinematographer Ironically, had De Laurentiis produced it, it would probably have saved his studio, as it went on to gross $138.5 million on a budget of just $6 million. Elias, The other two were When Sandy and Sal search the bunker, they come across a box full of maps and "S2 stuff". He dies after being shot several more times by the NVA while the American helicopters attempt to provide cover fire overhead. Take your favorite fandoms with you and never miss a beat. However, the Vestron release has the credits on the front of the box, rather than the back. "Vietnam was really visceral, and I had come from a cerebral existence: study ... working with a pen and paper, with ideas. Junior hits a tree and is knocked out, he is then stabbed in his stomach with a bayonet by another NVA soldier. The film states or implies that: only Chris dropped out of college and volunteered for service (his dad served in WWII, his Grandpa served in WWI), O'Neill has a wife or girlfriend, Crawford is a surfer from California, King is from Tennessee, and Gardner has a girl named Lucy Jean. In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #86 Greatest Movie of All Time. And I think the camera is so much more ... that's your interpreter, as opposed to a pen." Staff Sergeant (Platoon sergeant).

(Charlie Sheen thought that Taylor would be suicidal after killing Barnes. Just before the initiation of the end fight, an NVA soldier is seen planting a yellow "axe" made of bamboo. As the only remaining sergeant left in the platoon, Captain Harris promptly gives him the newly-deceased Barnes' job as platoon sergeant.

The platoon is infuriated by the senseless death of their comrade and are ordered to report to a nearby village of South Vietnamese citizens.

According to his DVD commentary, the scene in which Chris saves a Vietnamese girl from being raped was inspired by an incident in which

This reflects Oliver Stone's personal beliefs that the soldiers who smoke marijuana were more stable than the ones who drank alcohol. Knight is then met by Captain Killinski, Lt. Riley and another Lt. Captain Killinsky explains the rest of the VC battalion they fought off during the night is nearby, and outlines a plan to attack the enemy. Forest Whitaker tried to be as bulky as possible to play Big Harold, but the vigorous boot-camping training, bad food and rough shoot caused him to lose a lot of weight. O'Neil survives only by hiding himself under a dead body.
The M4 Carbine has since become the primary weapon for most infantry units in the military. Taylor then drops his rifle, collapses, and awaits medical attention. Though O'Neill and Barnes are implied to have been friends for some time, even before the war, and are both sergeants, Tom Berenger is actually ten years older than John C. McGinley.

The U.S. Department of Defense declined to cooperate in the making of the film. That night a large attack occurs and the American defensive perimeter is broken and the camp overrun by hundreds of attacking North Vietnamese troops. Taylor waves goodbye to the remaining troops as helicopters carry him and Francis away along with other wounded soldiers.

The film was marketed with the tagline "The first casualty of war is innocence". Was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, who deemed it "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant" in 2019. The desperate company commander, Captain Harris, orders the Air Force pilots to "expend all remaining" inside his perimeter. Car-15. The U.S. Army refused to support the film (such as with military equipment) because it was deemed to be overly critical of the Vietnam War. In 1967, U.S. Army volunteer Chris Taylor arrives in Taylor is immediately sent out with Barnes, Elias and veteran soldiers on a planned night ambush for a During a subsequent patrol, three men are killed by When the platoon returns to base, the veteran company commander Captain Harris declares that if he finds out that an illegal killing took place, a At the base, Taylor attempts to talk his group into The platoon is sent back to the front line to maintain defensive positions, where Taylor shares a Taylor regains consciousness the following morning, picks up an enemy rifle, and finds Barnes, who orders Taylor to call a medic.

Taylor becomes a more seasoned soldier as the patrols continue and soon no longer stands out amongst the others.

Tony is wounded, Doc and Wolfe get killed. However, beginning in 1966, some special units used the even shorter GAU/5A-A, XM177E1 and XM177E2 variants which had short barrels and larger flash hiders to compensate for the larger muzzle blast and flash. The "axe" was a pointer to guide the NVA soldiers to the American base. Gardner (Bob Orwig), another soldier new to the platoon, is killed, and another soldier, Tex (David Neidorf), has his hand blown off. The troops try to prepare for the incoming battle, during which they know the majority of them will die. He then says that he's starting to understand the meaning of this war and lets McNamara rest.