Pretty Good

Absolutely the worst movie.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

It's interesting that when this film was released in 1993 that the prominent scene shown in film review shows is the scene where the South Vietnamese Army enter the village of Le Ly and come under attack by the VC . This gives the impression you're going to be watching a Vietnam film and the early part of the film does concentrate on the history of Vietnam . Too much so because if you do have a rough outline of Vietnamese history then you'll find the main story is being held up by Le Ly's potted history of Vietnam at every opportunity . There is a train of thought that if a film is too reliant on voice over then the film is failing on that level and this may well be a case in point That's not the only flaw . The way everything is shot gives an idealised view of a far off exotic land . If the Vietnamese government want to do a plug for visiting Vietnam then director Oliver Stone has done the country a big favour . There's a war on don't you and no matter what Le Ly's village still manages to look like a Utopian destination and despite people getting frequently killed and raped one wonders why on Earth anyone would want to leave here . Indeed the cynic in me wonders if Stone is seeking a personal redemption by making this film . I know Stone volunteered for military service in Vietnam and I know prior to that he volunteered to be an English language teacher in Vietnam but yet I never felt I was watching a real world view of Vietnam , more of a clichéd Lonely Planet romanticised Westerner view of the country There's also another flaw and that is Stone seems obsessed with Eastern mysticism . Heaven and Earth ? Ying and Yang ? Slumdog non millionaire and other new age nonsense as Stone concentrates on Karma and other metaphysical nonsense . The Vietnam war came about via Cold War politics and had nothing to do with nature or anything else outside of human engineered power struggles . Stone wants us to believe that a spiritual force is controlling everything but I'm afraid I'm more likely to listen to historians and scientists rather than soothsayers . The main flaw of the movie is that the story is ugly but the visuals are beautiful and while the audience can understand the point Stone is making via this technique it doesn't make new age thinking anymore credible

Heaven & Earth (1993) was the final part of Oliver Stone's Viet-Nam Trilogy. The story follows a Vietnamese Peasant girl named Ly Le who's idyllic life in her village is changed forever by a civil war in her country. Both sides deal horrific atrocities against her and the rest of the village. Can Ly Le weather the storm that is the Vietnam War and keep her head up? What will happen to her village as the war gets more violent and brutal on both sides? How far can the human condition be under such extremes and still remain sane? You'll have to find out by watching this harrowing film Heaven & Earth.I really like this movie, Oliver Stone is such a masterful storyteller and the acting, directing and writing kept me on edge throughout the entire film. I have to highly recommend this film. Joan Chen (who still looks hot underneath the make-up), Tommy Lee Jones, Dr. Haing S. Ngor co-star as well.Highly recommended

''Heaven & Earth '' is an amazing story of a woman called Le Ly,and I consider it to be specially a story of not only survival, but victory in life.The fact that this story was real,makes this film even better,since we can see that optimism and a real power to go ahead,can make our lives change for the best. Le Ly is a Vietnamese village woman, who lives during the hard times of Vietnam war. She passes through the worst things in her life, since being tortured by Vietcong,being a fighter and also a teenager mother,who needs to be a prostitute in order to have something to her and her son to eat. When she marries an USA soldier called Steve Butler and goes to America,her life was about to change for the best,but years passed and Steve became a violent man and also an alcoholic,and again, Le Ly have big problems in her life. The good thing is that she will become a rich woman with her business in USA,and even today (yeah, she is alive!) she helps many people from Vietnam.

I don't understand why this film has been rated so poorly, it really deserves better. The breath-taking landscapes, subtle imagery, the overall excellent craftsmanship alone make this movie worth seeing.The unique and very personal perspective of this movie makes it hard to keep your distance. Some scenes are rather brutal, but these scenes are necessary for telling a realistic story. Definitely no Disney family movie though.I give it a 9 out of 10, because even with 140 minutes runtime the story feels rushed and crammed. Sometimes less is more, I shall read the books now.