Scene of the Week: The Green Berets
Revisionist dip-shits love to take people who were born over one hundred years ago and drag their names through the mud for comments they made. Times change. All you have to do is look at the state of movies over the years and you’ll get an idea of what I mean. Could John Wayne be such a mega-superstar in today’s climate? No chance. John clearly stood on the opposite side of the political aisle as most folks in the movie industry today and I doubt he would be given much latitude to make the same types of films. So why should we be reacting to quotes from 75 years ago when we can instead watch him kick Communist ass as a Green Beret?
What better way to celebrate the birthday of John Wayne over this fine Memorial Day Weekend than to check in on this 1968 hit The Green Berets. Filmed and released during the Vietnam War, The Green Berets was one of the most controversial films of its day. It was given extremely negative reviews upon its release for its views on the War but many of the actors and “half the crew” were of differing opinions on the movie’s message, according to Wayne. Roger Ebert gave it 0 stars and the film is a weird amalgamation of the book it was based on, Wayne’s own ideas on the War, and just some bullshit that looked good on screen. To say that this movie reflects the actual conflict in Vietnam would probably be the equivalent of calling Willow a historical drama.
I freaking love The Green Berets, though. I watch it with the understanding that it’s not a historically accurate film in any shape or form. It was filmed entirely in Georgia and some of the actors playing the soldiers are in their 60’s. I don’t know if you could lump it in with other films like Braveheart and The Patriot which blur the hell out of historical events in order to make exciting movies, but The Green Berets is certainly a film that feels like a John Wayne movie and I will always appreciate that.
