Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse
by Fax Bahr, George Hickenlooper
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VHS Tape Cover Information
Actor: Colleen Camp, Francis Ford Coppola, Gia Coppola, Marlon Brando, Roman CoppolaDirector: Fax Bahr, George Hickenlooper
Primary Contributor: Marlon Brando
Primary Contributor: Francis Ford Coppola
Primary Contributor: Robert Duvall
Primary Contributor: Albert Hall
Edition: VHS Tape
Audio: English (Original Language), Analog
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, HiFi Sound, NTSC
Running Time: 96 minutes
Release Date: 1998-01-01
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Publisher: Paramount
Studio: Paramount
VHS Movie Reviews of Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse
Movie Review: A small dissent
Summary: 4 Stars
Like the other reviewers, I found this documentary to be fascinating. If you are a Coppola fan, it's a can't miss. That said, I have a couple of caveats to the unconditional raves given by other reviewers: First, if you already have the VHS version, the DVD "extras" are pretty weak (of course, if you no longer have a VHS player, you may want to pick up a copy of the DVD anyway). The "Coda" is actually about Francis's recent film "Youth without Youth," not about looking back on the making of "Apocalypse, Now" from the present. A good chunk of this short documentary consists of Francis reclining in bed pontificating about what turned out to be a pretty weak film. Both Francis and Eleanor Coppola (Francis's wife) provide commentaries on "Hearts of Darkness" - the commentaries are mixed together, although recorded separately. Unfortunately, neither commentary is very interesting. Francis apparently contributed his mainly so he could assert multiple times that the unfavorable press he received while filming "Apocalypse, Now" was unfair. He argues that he should have been seen as an artist risking his own money following a dream, rather than a filmmaker descending into psychosis. Fair enough, but he didn't need to keep repeating the point, and after all these years with the film having turned out to be a huge critical and commercial success, why does he still care what the trade papers were writing about him 30 years ago? In addition, the commentaries are pretty skimpy; there are long sections where the film plays with no commentary. Francis passes on the opportunity to provide additional insight into such things as the replacement of Harvey Keitel with Martin Sheen during the early days of filming. Second, although this documentary relied heavily on film shot by Eleanor during the making of "Apocalypse, Now," she wasn't actually the director - Fax Bahr and George Hickenlooper were. Apparently, they were responsible for the interviews with all of the film's stars - except Brando, who refused to participate. As far as I could tell, the two directors don't seem to receive credit on the commentary track.
So, certainly worth picking up if you haven't seen it before. But not a DVD to buy for the extras.
Summary of Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse
Hearts of Darkness is an engrossing, unwavering look back at Francis Coppola's chaotic, catastrophe-plagued Vietnam production, Apocalypse Now. Filled with juicy gossip and a wonderful behind-the-scenes look at the stressful world of moviemaking, the documentary mixes on-location home movies shot in the Philippines by Eleanor Coppola, the director's wife, with revealing interviews with the cast and crew, shot 10 years later. Similar to Burden of Dreams, Les Blank's absorbing portrait of Werner Herzog's struggle to make Fitzcarraldo, the film chronicles Coppola's eventual decent into obsessive psychosis as everything that could go wrong does go wrong. Storms destroy sets, money evaporates, the Philippine government continually harasses the director, Coppola has romantic affairs, and he can't write the story's ending. Everything is captured on film. In the most disturbing scene, we watch Martin Sheen have a drunken nervous breakdown while his director goads him on (he eventually suffered a heart attack, but finished the film).Other incredible footage is not visual, but aural as the film includes tapes Eleanor Coppola recorded without Francis's knowledge. In them, he truly sounds like a madman as he confesses his fears about making a bomb of a movie. But while Hearts of Darkness is an amazing, voyeuristic experience, its importance lies in the personal reflections offered by those involved. Sheen, Coppola, and Dennis Hopper speak frankly without embarrassment, offering us an essential piece of film history. --Dave McCoy
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