The Green Berets (1968)

Col. Mike Kirby picks two teams of crack Green Berets for a mission in South Vietnam. First off is to build and control a camp that is trying to be taken by the enemy the second mission is to kidnap a North Vietnamese General.

Directors:

Ray Kellogg, John Wayne

Writers:

James Lee Barrett (screenplay), Robin Moore (novel)

Stars:

John Wayne, David Janssen, Jim Hutton

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Wayne	...	Col. Mike Kirby
David Janssen	...	George Beckworth
Jim Hutton	...	Sgt. Petersen
Aldo Ray	...	Sgt. Muldoon
Raymond St. Jacques	...	Sgt. Doc McGee
Bruce Cabot	...	Col. Morgan
Jack Soo	...	Col. Cai
George Takei	...	Capt. Nim
Patrick Wayne	...	Lt. Jamison
Luke Askew	...	Sgt. Provo
Irene Tsu	...	Lin
Edward Faulkner	...	Capt. MacDaniel
Jason Evers	...	Capt. Coleman
Mike Henry	...	Sgt. Kowalski
Craig Jue	...	Hamchunk

Storyline

U.S. Special Forces troops ("Green Berets") under the command of Colonel Mike Kirby defend a firebase during the Vietnam war. War correspondent George Beckwith accompanies Kirby and objects to both the war and the means by which it is executed. Kirby's firebase is overrun and his troops fight bravely to retake it. Kirby and a select group of his men are then ordered on a special mission to capture a high-level Viet Cong officer.

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Plot Keywords:

propaganda film | propaganda | green beret | vietnam | vietnam war | 

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Taglines:

So you don't believe in glory. And heroes are out of style. And they don't blow bugles anymore. So take another look at the special forces in a special kind of hell!

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Vietnamese German Danish

Release Date:

18 September 1968 (France)

Also Known As:

Les bérets verts

Filming Locations:

Ft. McClellen, Alabama, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$21,707,027

Company Credits

Production Co:

Batjac Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

142 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite the strong implication that Col. Kirby had already been to Vietnam, and probably Capt. McDaniel, neither one has a single Vietnamese ribbon when they are talking to Beckwith at Ft. Bragg.

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Goofs

When Colonel Kirby acts as jump master about 109 minutes into the film, he orders his troops to hook up their static lines, but he never actually hooks up himself. After the troops jump, he is seen exiting the aircraft, still not hooked up. This means his main chute won't open, and he will have to activate his reserve manually. A big mistake for a jump master to make.

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Quotes

Hugh Parkinson: Perhaps you could answer a question all of us here are asking?
Sergeant Muldoon: We'll try.
Hugh Parkinson: Why is the United States waging this ruthless war in Vietnam?
Sergeant Muldoon: Foreign policy decisions are not made by the military. A soldier goes where he is told to go, and fight whom is told to fight.

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Alternate Versions

In the original UK cinema version the BBFC edited some shots of a man impaled with a tree branch for an 'A' (PG) certificate. All later releases were uncut.

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Connections

Referenced in Take the Tower: Episode #1.5 (2018)

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Soundtracks

Ballad of the Green Berets
(uncredited)
Written by Robin Moore and Barry Sadler
Choral arrangement by Ken Darby

User Reviews

Hugely Misunderstood Film

It is probably impossible to assess the content of this film in other than the context in which it was developed and presented. My own first viewing was in 1968 a matter of mere weeks before having to report for duty in the US Armed Forces. At that time I did not know whether or not I would have to go to Viet Nam as many of my friends already had. Some had already been killed or wounded in action. In this context, the film is one I will never forget.

John Wayne made this as a political film in an attempt to counter the rising tide of what he and others like him saw as treasonous protests against the government and the military over the conflict in Viet Nam. This horrid almost-war was tearing many families apart in controversy. Wayne wanted to make a patriotic statement of support for the Armed Forces who had been so good to him. He was denied several attempts at enlistment in WWII and was classified 4F. He made films to support the allied war effort then and hoped to show support again even though this was never a real war. Instead he was widely ridiculed by a rabid leftist press.

Yes, the film was definitely not accurate in the way we have come to demand of today's films. Such accuracy may have been impossible in the political climate of the day. There was deep seated anger in the upper military echelon for not being allowed to wage an actual war. Every engagement between forces was won by the Americans, but they were forbidden from the beginning to the end from pressing an attack. The result was perhaps history's worst military "Catch 22"; fight and then wait for the enemy to regroup, rearm and reattack. I still know military people who hate the entire media for the brow-beating they gave the military and Congress, who - in turn - forbade the military from pressing more aggressive action.

Wayne was also attempting to counter people in the entertainment industry whom he and others considered traitors (then and still) such as Jane Fonda, who visited and spoke in support of North Viet Nam.

It was this climate Wayne stepped into. His effort was genuine but it resulted in a cameo of the war rather than something palpable. Something that good has yet to be made. Much of what went on, real high drama and touching personal stories, has been almost entirely ignored by Hollywood. Thus, this also remains one of the few films of the hugely controversial era.