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Margot Roussel’s Blog Post

After watching Platoon I was in shock. I didn’t know much about Vietnam and so I was shocked with the horrors it depicted. There were many times that I had to look away because it was too gruesome. I found the scene when they destroyed the village especially when they raped the young girl and killed the mom. I was shocked at the war crimes that were committed and how little accountability there was. I always thought that the military had a strict power hierarchy and when there were good people on top, it worked out. That was not the case for the characters in Platoon because even though Lieutenant Wolfe was in charge all the men deferred to Barnes.

This movie really highlighted the horrors of war and how easily people can be pushed to do things they normally wouldn’t. I cannot imagine going through what these men experienced and wonder how much it truly effected their mental health. I know PTSD is a common diagnosis after returning from war, but I wonder if anyone truly saw into the soldier’s minds. I think taking someone’s life in such an up close and personal manner can be truly harming and that made this war different from others where they were constantly hiding in a trench.

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2 Comments

  1. Madeline Orr Madeline Orr

    I also was shocked at the scene in the village and how the soldiers treated the people as inhuman. The war crimes and the horrible actions that many of them committed shows how the war has horrific effects on the mental and emotional stability of the soldiers. It is extremely difficult to imagine that soldiers really went through that experience and fought against their will. I wonder how this movie was perceived by the American public, especially the war veterans.

  2. Pierce Kaliner Pierce Kaliner

    With how horrible war I don’t understand how mental health issues aren’t even more prevalent. The war crimes honestly disgusted me, and to know that these awful acts are a part of our history is just terrible.

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