Best movie of this year hands down!

Absolutely Fantastic

The acting in this movie is really good.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

This superbly crafted drama was too good for American television, and even though highly rated at 8.2, was prematurely ended. It amazes me that dreck like Grey's Anatomy drags on and on (for the life of me I can't figure that out and having worked at one of the nations top medical centers for years can attest it is rife with inaccuracies) with its sophomoric "office romances." The problem with that show is not the actors who are a talented bunch - it is the writing. China Beach was just one of those shows you awaited with anticipation because the character development was so good and the material was universal regardless of whether it was a Nam drama or medical series - it was just beautifully done. Oh well, mediocrity prevails and excellence is shunned.

After watching the pilot episode I found, as a real life combat veteran of Vietnam, that the portrayals were propagandistic to the point of buffoonery, and could not bear to subject myself to further abuse. As example, "Chou Om" does not mean hello, it means "hello, sir" The proper term (used within the context of the nurses/donut dollies), would be "Chou Ba".Much, much, worse was the portrayal of Combat Infantrymen, who apparently head straight from the helicopter pad to the USO, still filthy and armed to the teeth. This would have been impossible in real life, as the first thing you did when returning from the field was clean and store your weapons/field gear. Not to mention that no Infantryman would want to go anywhere, let alone a place where they are certain to encounter "round eye women", without a bath and a change into clean fatigues. There was more of the same (directed at Nurses/ USO workers)but why belabor the point? If the pilot episode was any guide, this series bore as much resemblance to reality as the movie "Starship Troopers" did to the RAH book of the same name. Thumbs down from someone who was actually there.

While Dana was awesome in this series the best moment of China Beach was the opening credits. It's overlay of characters, footage and "the" song expressed so much of the emotion that the show tried to portray. I've also got to say that Picardo's character was so memorable that it was about five seasons into Voyager before I could think of him as that Doc and not the one from China Beach. Many episodes were just beautifully written about "people" rather than "characters."Unlike so many of the Vietnam shows and films of the time it wasn't ( for the most part) about rescuing a few guys that were abandoned out in the bush. It covered both the complexities of life in Vietnam and life in general. Watching it could alternately make you feel homesick for the voices of your family, even when they were just upstairs, or angry at the unfairness of life, despite the fact that you weren't getting half the bad deal that some of the characters got.One of the great classic dramas of the eighties!

I just wanted to express my sincere thanks to everyone associated with this series. I have seen it before, and watching it again on The History Channel reminds me how important it was. I am a 36 year old American Male. Without this show I never would have had the desire to learn about Vietnam. The show inspired me to take on a bit of effort and learn some things for myself. It is sad that a television show had to inspire me to learn about my country's history. That my own country didn't care enough to teach me. I am so thankful for that knowledge. That knowledge has allowed me to speak to my uncles, bosses and others about the war and to be able to relate in general. I learned a lot. The most important things I learned: living an honest life; being true to one self; never taking life for granted; never, ever holding a grudge, and most of all compassion. Simple things. Little things. But oh so important. These things are no longer generally taught and are seldom seen.I have introduced the show to my 15 year old nephew and hope he too will see some of things in the show I did. I hope he is inspired.Thanks again!