On B List of Movie Reviews

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A Bright Shining Lie (1998)

Rate: 6
Viewed: 7/15

7/15: I was with A Bright Shining Lie until the last half hour, and then it started fall apart by overreaching to make a big statement that's too complicated for a simple film.

In other words, it's better to read the book to understand the full story. One mistake is showing instances of Vann's infidelity. They don't add much to the grand scheme of things. Instead, director Terry George should expand the Vietnam War to help me understand the circumstances better. Trying to cover everything as possible, he should instead focus on the most important parts.

I'm not a fan of Bill Paxton and don't think much of him as an actor, but I'm impressed with his performance here. I like how he keeps himself in character military-wise. However, Bill Paxton can do much more because he has a lot of potential to be special.

All in all, A Bright Shining Lie is the mild version of Platoon that succeeds in showing the political side of the war.

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