Apocalypse NowMovie Reviews

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Must Go!
Avg. Critic Score: 90 out of 100 Universal acclaim Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
16 Iffy for 16+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 100
    Rolling Stone | Peter Travers

    This is the untamed Apocalypse that Coppola envisioned in 1979 before money and mental pressures made him fear he had created something too long, too weird and too morally demanding for the masses. Read full review

  • 100
    Boston Globe | Jay Carr

    The best film of 2001 was made in 1979. Read full review

  • 100
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    One of the great films of all time. It shames modern Hollywood's timidity. To watch it is to feel yourself lifted up to the heights where the cinema can take you, but so rarely does. Read full review

  • 100
    USA Today | Mike Clark

    The film now seems both mellowed and --thanks in part to the most vibrant-looking prints in its 22-year history -- revitalized. Read full review

  • 91
    Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman

    Remains a majestic explosion of pure cinema. It's a hallucinatory poem of fear, projecting, in its scale and spirit, a messianic vision of human warfare stretched to the flashpoint of technological and moral breakdown. Read full review

  • 90
    Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern

    Whatever thematic clarity the added footage may confer is prosaic or didactic and intrusive; this stuff hit the cutting-room floor the first time around for good reason. Read full review

  • 90
    The New York Times | Dana Stevens

    In spite of its limited perspective on Vietnam, its churning, term-paperish exploration of Conrad and the near incoherence of its ending, (it) is a great movie. It grows richer and stranger with each viewing, and the restoration of scenes left in the cutting room two decades ago has only added to its sublimity. Read full review

  • 90
    Variety | Todd McCarthy

    A weightier, more nuanced and fulsome experience than the film the world has known up to now. Read full review

  • 80
    Washington Post | Desson Thomson

    The more you see of Apocalypse, the more obvious its triumphs AND mistakes. Read full review

  • 75
    San Francisco Chronicle | Edward Guthmann

    The new material makes the film seem lumpy and overstuffed. Read full review


Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 16+ Disturbing tale of war horrors isn't for kids.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this film has dark and violent overtones. It is not recommended for kids. This is not a historical piece that glorifies the moral journeys of American soldiers. It includes excessive swearing, violence, and drug use. The film also presents American soldiers as overall hostile and excessively violent.
  • Families can talk about moral and cinematic issues. The film portrays Vietnam soldiers in various ways: cold-blooded murderers, drug addicts, kids, etc. Does Lieutenant Colonel Kilgore's obsession with battleground surfing present any ideological problems? How does the film draw on Lance's drug use to comment on the overall experience and psyche of the Vietnam soldier? How do Willard's and Kurtz's horrific visions and acts comment on the murkiness of war? How does this film add to the existing historical and journalistic discourse regarding Vietnam veterans? What liberties does the film take with its source material, Heart of Darkness?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: The film does not include positive role models. The main goal of the protagonist is to assassinate a rogue American Green Beret. American soldiers appear out of control, violent, and overall heartless. They do not seem to be fighting for a greater cause. It appears to be an immoral quest undertaken by unethical individuals.
What to watch for
  • violence false5 Violence: Animals are put in jeopardy. Somewhat graphic images of injured/dead soldiers, a lot of generalized images of bombings of Vietnamese villages. Soldiers callously kill civilians who they see as inconveniences. Mangled and tortured bodies. Decapitation. Major characters die. VERY graphic conclusion.
  • sex false5 Sex: Male nudity, brief images of centerfolds, locker-room talk.
  • language false5 Language: A lot of swearing by the soldiers and using of ethnic slurs.
  • consumerism false3 Consumerism: Winston cigarettes, Budweiser, Marlboro.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false5 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Excessive drinking and pot smoking. Use of other illegal drugs and extended drug trips.

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