Heaven & Earth (1993)

Director:

Oliver Stone

Writers (WGA):

Le Ly Hayslip (book) and
Jay Wurts (book) ...

Release Date:

25 December 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Biography | Drama | History | War

Tagline:

An amazing true story of survival.

Plot:

The final movie in Oliver Stone's Vietnam trilogy follows the true story of a Vietnamese village girl...

Plot Keywords:

Vietnam | Buddhism | Suicide | Prostitution | Rape

Awards:

Won Golden Globe. Another 2 nominations

Cast

Haing S. Ngor	...	Papa
Bussaro Sanruck	...	Le Ly - Age 5
Supak Pititam	...	Buddhist Monk
Joan Chen	...	Mama
Thuan K. Nguyen	...	Uncle Luc
Hiep Thi Le	...	Le Ly
Lan Nguyen Calderon	...	Ba
Thuan Le	...	Kim
Dustin Nguyen	...	Sau
Mai Le Ho	...	Hai
Vinh Dang	...	Bon
Khiem Thai	...	Brother In Law
Liem Whatley	...	Viet Cong Captain
Michelle Vynh Le	...	Viet Cong Cadre Woman
Tuan Tran	...	Rapist

Also Known As:

Entre ciel et terre (France)

MPAA:

Rated R for violence, language and sexuality.

Runtime:

140 min

Country:

France | USA

Language:

English | Vietnamese

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:R (Manitoba) | Iceland:16 | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Singapore:R(A) | South Korea:15 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (cut) | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Bangkok, Thailand

Company:

Alcor Films

Trivia:

In the scene where Le Ly is in the jewelry store getting her jewelry appraised by the broker, the jewelry broker is the real Le Ly Hayslip.

Quotes:

Papa: Right is only the goodness you carry in your heart...wrong is all that comes between you and the love.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Quentin Tarantino/Smashing Pumpkins (#21.5)" (1995)

Soundtrack:

Minuet

Powerful, Accurate View of the "American" War

I should state this up front:

I'm an American who was born in 1970 towards the end of the Vietnam War and I know very little about it *first-hand*. Most of what I know is from school and the media -- the men in my family who were there just don't talk about it. My wife and my closest friend for the past 9 years was born in Danang, (central) Vietnam, in 1969 and remembers some personal experiences as a child at the end of the war and after until she escaped without her family in 1982 to Hong Kong.

I've *been* to Vietnam including the areas where this movie takes place. This movie very accurately expresses a common view of the war by many Vietnamese people of the era -- that when a civil war like this occurs around you and your home with both sides there day and night your concept of right and wrong can easily change. (or heaven & earth "change places" as they put it in the movie)

If you can possibly get the DVD, you can see deleted scenes including an "alternate/extended" beginning to the movie. It was actually a 30 minute clip that was cut down to be the first 5 minutes of the released movie. It's very interesting because it illustrates many basic parts of Vietnamese life (mainly rural life) as it has been for hundreds or thousands of years.

Yes, this movie contrasts pre-war, war, and post-war life for the Vietnamese (for the ones who stayed there and also for Viet Kieu or overseas Vietnamese like my wife) sometimes in a ridiculously extreme way. Even though life was "idyllic" before the war and horrible during and after, the Vietnamese have fought for literally thousands of years to retain their national identity and independence not just against Americans but also the French, Japanese, and Chinese to name a few.

If you've been moved by other Vietnam War movies, but haven't seen this one then you have only seen the story told from our viewpoint, which is absolutely vain. If you haven't, you must see this movie for their view of the "American" war. Hopefully it will inspire you as it did me to learn more about the Vietnamese people and their long, proud history spanning thousands of years.