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:

Green when they began...like the color of their berets...but when the going got rough...they became the toughest fighting force on earth!

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Genres:

Drama | War

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Certificate:

G

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Vietnamese German Danish

Release Date:

27 July 1968 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Green Berets

Filming Locations:

Ft. McClellen, Alabama, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

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

John Wayne was prompted to make the film as a response to the growing anti-Vietnam War movement in the U.S.

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Goofs

The mortar tube that the crew is using in the pit is a 4.2 inch (diameter) mortar. Yet they are dropping 81mm rounds down the tube. Also, when a round is fired out of a mortar, it sounds like an explosion, not like a small "poof".

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Quotes

Captain Coleman: Oh, uh, I noticed a load of corrugated tin has miraculously appeared overnight.
Capt. MacDaniel: Sergeant Petersen provided it.
Captain Coleman: Well, that's a good man you've got there.
Colonel Mike Kirby: Sergeant Petersen say where he got it?
Capt. MacDaniel: He, uh, said The Good Fairy left it.
Colonel Mike Kirby: [smiling] I hope he said The Good Fairy left it, SIR!

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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

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Vietnam War Movies (2014)

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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

Read The Book

While I like this movie for all the wrong reasons, it doesn't come close to doing justice to the Robin Moore book on which it was very loosely based. It's pretty obvious that much of it was filmed stateside, but in that it was one of the few - if not the only - Vietnam War movies made in the 60's it's historically significant. I also know that The Duke visited several US Army SF camps in SE Asia in preparation for this film - as well as to show his support for our service men.

If you're interested in the subject matter, however, READ THE BOOK! It's very gritty and much of it is from a unique first-person perspective.