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Storyline
In the late 60s, during the Vietnam War, the idealistic soldier Jackie Willow arrives at Fort Meyer expecting to go to the Academy and then to the Vietnam War. Jackie is the son of a veteran sergeant and soon he becomes the protégé of the former friends of his father, Sergeant Clell Hazard and Sergeant Major 'Goody' Nelson. Jackie is promoted and gets married with his childhood friend Rachel Feld, to recommend Jackie to the Academy. He is promoted to lieutenant and asks to go to the Vietnam, returning to the Arlington National Cemetery. Written by
Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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The story of the war at home, and the people who lived through it.
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Did You Know?
Trivia
Griffin O'Neal was originally cast as Pete Deveber, but was replaced when
Francis Ford Coppola's son,
Gian-Carlo Coppola, was killed in a speedboating accident in May 1986 in Annapolis, Maryland. O'Neal, who was driving the boat while using drugs, had attempted to pass between two slow-moving boats, failing to realize in his haste that both boats were connected by a very long towline. While O'Neal barely had time to duck, young Coppola was struck, throwing his body to the metal deck, sustaining head injuries whereby he died instantly. O'Neal was later charged with manslaughter over the tragedy. He was ultimately fined $200 and sentenced to 18 months probation in 1987, eventually receiving an 18-day jail sentence for not performing 400 hours of community service as ordered. A law was later passed requiring short towlines between boats. At the time of his death, Coppola's fiancée,
Jaqueline De La Fontaine, was two months pregnant with their only daughter, Gian-Carla Coppola, who was born on January 1, 1987.
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Goofs
The flag on Willow's casket is improperly positioned while it sits at the altar in the cemetery chapel. The blue field should be at the back left corner of the casket (the blue field is always over the deceased's head, and the deceased's head is always to the left)
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Quotes
"Goody" Nelson:
Well, here's to us and those like us.
Clell Hazard:
Damn few left.
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Connections
Featured in
Hollywood Vietnam (2005)
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Soundtracks
"Streets of Laredo"
(uncredited)
Traditional
Sung by Goody, Willow and Hazard as they return from the bar to the barracks after the fight.
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In the late 60s, during the Vietnam War, the idealistic soldier Jackie Willow (D.B. Sweeney) arrives at Fort Meyer expecting to go to the Academy and then to the Vietnam War. Jackie is the son of a veteran sergeant and soon he becomes the protégé of the former friends of his father, Sergeant Clell Hazard (James Caan) and Sergeant Major 'Goody' Nelson (James Earl Jones).
Jackie is promoted and gets married with his childhood friend Rachel Feld (Mary Stuart Masterson) and Hazard and Goody convince their superior, Captain Homer Thomas (Dean Stockwell), to recommend Jackie to the Academy. He is promoted to lieutenant and asks to go to the Vietnam, returning to the Arlington National Cemetery.
"Gardens of Stone" is another movie by Francis Coppola (without Ford) about the military life and the prize of the Vietnam War, after one of his masterpieces, "Apocalypse Now". The cinematography is magnificent and the cast is top-notch, and it is so good to see the actors, like James Caan, James Earl Jones and Dean Stockwell still young and actresses, like Anjelica Huston and Mary Stuart Masterson, charming and beautiful. The dramatic story has a theme certainly important for Americans and for fans of movies about military life. My vote is six.
Title (Brazil): "Jardins de Pedra" ("Gardens of Stone")