Platoon Literary Elements

Platoon Literary Elements

Director

Oliver Stone

Leading Actors/Actresses

Charlie Sheen

Supporting Actors/Actresses

Tom Berringer, Willem Dafoe

Genre

War Movie, Drama

Language

English

Awards

Academy Awards : Best Picture, Best Director, nominations for Best Supporting Actor for Tom Berringer and Willem Dafoe, and for Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography

Date of Release

December 19, 1986

Producer

Arnold Kopelson

Setting and Context

South Vietnam, 1967

Narrator and Point of View

The point of view is that of Chris Taylor, who also narrates.

Tone and Mood

Somber, threatening, with a feeling of madness.

Protagonist and Antagonist

The "platoon" are the protagonists, the Vietnamese the antagonists

Major Conflict

The conflict is the Vietnam War, however, there are conflicts amongst the men themselves which increase as the movie goes on. There is an underlying "conflict" also between Sergeant Barnes and his hardline followers and Sergeant Elias, who tends to be more mellow and thoughtful.

Climax

Taylor and Francis are returned home because they have been wounded twice.

Foreshadowing

Barnes' injury has driven him to insanity which foreshadows his increased feelings of violence and his attempt to kill Taylor.

Understatement

No specific examples.

Innovations in Filming or Lighting or Camera Techniques

No specific examples

Allusions

The movie alludes to many real-life experiences of soldiers on the ground in Vietnam.

Paradox

Taylor will not call a paramedic for Barnes but he is willing to kill him, obeying one command, but not the other.

Parallelism

There is a parallel between the length of time the men are fighting and the unravelling of their mental state.

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