Film: Good Morning, Vietnam (1987)

From WhyNotWiki

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/

[DJs (category)] [Based on true story (category)]

[Censorship by U.S. military (category)]: Most disturbing was how they would only let him read "official news" -- that is, news that had been censored to remove all the news that -- I don't know really know what they were trying to remove -- probably anything that made the military look bad or what they thought would lower the soldiers' morale. But Cronauer went ahead anyway and told what "unofficially" happened with a bombing in Saigon, at which he was personally present. He didn't like the fact that they were intentionally withholding the fact that the conflict was there in the city, too, not just out in the jungle. I agreed with him. "It's the truth. I just want to report the truth. It'll be a nice change of pace. / This is not official news, airman. As far as I'm concerned, it didn't happen. / Adrian Cronauer: It did happen." (See full quote below.)

Hilarious: Cronauer teaching English to a bunch of Vietnamese students. And how he talked his way into becoming the teacher. Teaching them slang and cuss words...

Hilarious: Cronauer back-talking to the lieutenant and talking behind his back, which was quite amusing to the other radio personnel as well.

The bad: There's a bit of an excessive amount of foul language in this film, but I think it's still worth seeing. Probably about half of the humor involves some offensive language, so I wouldn't mind if that part could be taken out. I bet it would still be pretty watchable if all of that were removed, but I'm not really sure, because like I said, there's quite a bit of it throughout.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, SmileysWorld

Vietnam without a doubt was a dark period in our history. Any comedy film surrounding Vietnam would indeed have to be done delicately. This movie pulls it off. What amazes me most about the film is the flawless, improvisational radio dialog from Robin Williams. This, as most of you may know, was completely unscripted to allow Williams an opportunity to work his magic. Also, it had to be timely,for the movie is, of course, set in 1965. The fact that he was able to do this is nothing short of amazing. The supporting cast was also incredible, with great performances by Forrest Whitaker, Bruno Kirby, and the late J.T. Walsh as "Sergeant Major Dickerson", the man you love to hate. Although some of the horror that was Vietnam is here, it's only giving you a taste of it, as it concentrates more on the Williams character's quest to make our beloved soldiers forget their horror,at least for a while. Highly recommended.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Blake French

Robin Williams is about as good as they come at doing stand up comedy, and in "Good Morning, Vietnam" director Berry Levinson gives him everything he needs to make the film go above and beyond the average satire. From his outgoing sense of humor, to his aggressive personality, and dozens of vocal effects, he portrays his character with interactive zest. Who can resist the awakening voice of Williams on the radio yelling "Good Morning Vietnam." This is a film that conquers the test of time.

"Good Morning, Vietnam" tells the story of a lively disc jockey who gets a job on Armed Forced Radio during the Vietnam War. Robin Williams is the fast-talking Adrian Cronauer, and who better to play the part than he. Although this character is one-dimensional (we are never informed on his background, marital status, where he comes from, what he did before we meet), as the movie continues he gradually begins to change into a deeper, more meaningful person.

The story moves along smoothly; the narrative through-line is consistent as each scene relates to the next. Although little momentum or suspense can be noticed, the film does have several underlining themes, often viewed upon in a Stanley Kubrick style: sarcastic and uncompromising. We see how much a little humor and jazz can greatly enlighten the hard-core atmosphere of the military during Vietnam, and how it can thoroughly confuse the bleeding heart officials.

The film hangs by the skin of its teeth for active conflict tension. Beyond people objecting to the actions of Williams' character, there is just not a lot of tension within the story, and at some points my interest wandered. [...]

"Good Morning, Vietnam" is definitely not a flawless film, but we do empathize for the main character, the scenes effectively capture the attitude and mood during the war, and the dialogue and writing feel accurate and involving. Barry Levinson has directed a marvelous comedy, one that is not all about making us laugh, but also makes us think.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Lee Eisenberg from Portland, Oregon, USA

"Good Morning, Vietnam" is truly Robin Williams at his best. As anarchic DJ Adrian Cronauer in 1965 Saigon, he makes sure that you never stop laughing. I really liked what he did with the tape of Richard Nixon's speech, and then his comment about the bombing of a restaurant. [...] Maybe Cronauer wasn't that wacky in real life, but every one of Williams' comments makes the movie worthwhile. The soundtrack even includes his monologues (you'll go crazy over the imitation of Lyndon Johnson, and the commentary from "Roosevelt E. Roosevelt"). A comedy classic in every sense.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Neil Ferris from Norwich, England

...

As the wise-cracking disc-jockey, Williams shows his undisputed wild comedic talent, but the bomb scene and scenes of rural Vietnam life, truly allow Williams to such his dramatic acting ability. They look at the conflict, without getting in too deep.

...

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Jackson Booth-Millard from United Kingdom

This comment may contain spoilers

This might be one of Robin Williams best comedy films that I have ever seen. [...] Williams plays a radio host Adrian Cronauer who hosts the local radio station for the troops of the Vietnam war. He starts off becoming a really popular voice to hear and some people recognise him. After a little while however he starts using jokes that the Sergeants do not approve of, e.g. using Presidential voice footage. All the scenes with Robin Williams doing his excellent impressions of famous people are extraordinary. But the funniest scene for me is him talking to voice footage from the President to help with his jokes about his private life.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, robert-turner-1 from United Kingdom

This comment may contain spoilers

It's 1965, and maverick DJ, Adrian Cronauer, is [dispatched] to South Vietnam to breath life into a moribund forces radio station.

Against a backdrop of mounting political violence, Cronauer uses humour, honesty and compassion to win the hearts and minds of soldier and civilian alike. But his unorthodox approach to life lands him in hot water with the authorities, and inevitably leads to his downfall.

"Good Morning Vietnam" was the archetypal feel good movie of the 1980s. Robin Williams is given free rein to express his considerable talents, delivering a master class in comic improvisation. [...]

The screenplay and soundtrack is drenched in period detail, complemented by some crisp photography which brings into sharp focus a city hovering on the brink of civil war.

For my money "Good Morning Vietnam" must surely figure as one of the most intelligent and well-balanced movies to emerge from Hollywood. Nothing comes closer.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Angry_Arguer from Shermer, Illinois

This comment may contain spoilers

In comedies, characters learn nothing because often they are stereotypes with nothing to offer.

In war movies, the characters learn one lesson: war is hell. This follows two hours of fireballs, bullets, blood, and noise.

Here we have a twofold take on war. There is the blunt and obvious as depicted in the Armstrong montage [...] where the hard lessons are taught through suffering. This is the weaker message of the two.

Then there is the message of what wartime and big, bad evil censorship does to creativity. Williams is once again a rebel [...].

Overall, not only is 'Good Morning, Vietnam' funny, but it is worth your time as an alternative take on a subject nearly beaten to death. Perhaps the best war movie of the 80s.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, (aristofanis@hotmail) from Corinth, Greece

This comment may contain spoilers

Robin Williams turns this mediocre story into a one man show. [...] The anti-war messages in this movie aren't enough to deviate from a sublime American propaganda. When Robin Williams demands censorship-free news like back home he gets "this is not America" as an answer. It is implied by both that such things never happen in the States. Not to mention that the information censored was never about doubting the war but facts that would possibly hamper the army's morale. When the Vietnamese boy expresses the agony of his people, the "anti-war" DJ exclaims "we are only here to help"! Any sentimental attachment Williams had with the locals seems to be in the realm of joke. Even his little affair with the young girl doesn't seem to overshadow him a bit. At the same time he is very convincing when saluting the U.S. soldiers. He also feels pity for the pick-up bar ran by a perversive underworld local.... Excessive coarse jokes also spoil some possibilities for humor. Silence is funnier sometimes.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Grann-Bach from Denmark

[...] I mostly got what I expected from this movie... but I found that it also contained some truths about the Vietnam war. The movie has plenty to offer on both fronts. Any fan of Williams' comedy will definitely enjoy it, and I think most war-movie buffs will too... if they can keep an open mind, and accept a slightly different approach to the genre.

The way the seriousness of war is underplayed for most of the film really works to enhance the effect of it when it is shoved right in our faces, when we are forced to acknowledge it. We forget how serious and all-consuming war is, just like Adrian had (not necessarily the real one, I know nothing of him except of what the film told me, and as far as I understand, that's not that accurate of a portrayal of him), only to be confronted with it. More effective than several big war movies. The plot is very good. The pacing is great, the movie keeps moving pretty much all through the film. The characters are well-written and credible. The acting is good pretty much all-round, and Williams proves once again that he can do drama just as well as comedy. The humor is typical Robin Williams. A very good film, and an unusual war movie.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, willy calloway from boulder, co

spoilers:

Two main struggles are woven together throughout this movie: the struggle between censorship and free speech and that regarding our role in Vietnam.

The struggle with censorship ends in compromise. During his visit with the troops, Robin realizes that the happiness and morale of the troops is more important than voicing every bit of controversial news. Humorous satire and sarcasm are one thing, and even lighten the burden of the soldiers, but reading unofficial news of the sort he did was completely unnecessary. There is no point in scaring the soldiers by telling them of bombings in demilitarized when nothing can be done to alleviate the problem and only learned helplessness will result. But, the censored news could have saved Robin a lot of trouble at another point. Basically, in this conflict between oppressor and oppressee, rebellion for the sake of rebellion is pointless and counteractive - as demonstrated by the final address and every post-suspension show.

Concerning the war itself a liberal position is taken. The human side of the Vietcong is shown, though secretly at first, and Robin shows his compassion for the enemy by risking his life in order to tell him of his death warrant. In order to make the liberal ideal come out less preachy, the young rebel himself proclaims it. Also, this leftistness is kept in check with Robin's chastisement over the bombings. Their intentions are well and good, but their actions are not.

Perhaps it seems out of place to speak of these aspects of the movie in a comedy; I think they definitively outshadowed the comedic aspects. [...]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, disdressed12 from Canada

This comment may contain spoilers

This is a highly entertaining movie, which flows very smoothly and moves at a good clip. It is based (although very loosely, but it works in this case) the exploits of unorthodox Radio Dejay, Adrian Cronoar. [...] Cronaur brings his own unique blend of humour to the airwaves. Nothing is off limits and everyone and everything Cronaur can think of is skewered in some way. Cronaur is wacky, manic and raunchy at times. This, of course, upsets the sanitized and safe version of events allowed on the airwaves. Naturally the troops in the field get a big boost of moral and they love Cronaur. The the top brass try everything they can to keep him in line with "the program" (with hilarious results) and to get rid of him.

The movie is not just comedy however.it contains some strong scones of drama, and is even touching at times, yet not maudlin or sappy. Williams was born to play this role and is brilliant as Cronaur. The supporting cast all put in great performances, as well. But credit must also go to director Barry Levinson, who keeps the flow of the movie intact. The dramatic scenes are handled very well, and as I said never drift into maudlin territory. And given the movie's sensitive subject matter, Levinson does very well at keeping the movie from crossing the line into bad taste. I really enjoyed this movie. It is well worth spending the 2 hours.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, pips-lodge from United Kingdom

This film has a superb mix of contrasts, Robin Williams at his insane best but against a backdrop of a very serious story and how Uncle Sam's interference, however well intentioned, just creates a mess. Given that the Vietnam war was 40 years ago and this review is being written some 40 years later (nearly 20 years after the film was made) it is interesting to see parallels with what has followed in American actions since and also in what is going on today.

Some wonderful 60's music adds a real highlight to the film, against some the intense interactions of Williams and the other characters.

The humour is top class, and even if you are not a Williams fan I doubt you could fail to appreciate it. It just frame & highlights some powerful messages.

In my book this is a top notch film that can be enjoyed through countless re-runs.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Trashcan from Munich, Germany

Good Morning Vietnam is not a comedy but you will laugh like nothing before. It is about the Vietnam War but really it is about courage. It is a drama and a love story full of emotions and you will laugh and cry and be amazed by Mr. William's performance all at he same time. This is no doubt his best movie ever, even if I'll admit that the Dead Poets Society comes pretty close. On top of including all of the above features, Good Morning Vietnam is also based on a true story and in my opinion very realistic. And that is what makes it so unique. First, find a movie that features the fun, the emotions, the tragedy, the characters, the setup, the story and the atmosphere of this brilliant peace of film-making. Then find one that is believable. You will only find Good Morning Vietnam. The best film I have ever seen. Go watch it and see for yourself.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Brandon Barron from United States

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. It is a perfect blend of humor and seriousness. Robin Williams is so hilarious in this film and is said to have been hand picked by Adrian Cronauer himself. One of my favorite quotes is, "What is with this 'Police Action'? Sounds like a couple of cops in New York saying, 'Hey, she looks good to me…' ". If you are looking for a war movie, though, this is not for you. The film focuses more on Adrien Cronauer, and less on the war itself. It gives underlying truths concerning cultural differences, rank differences, and censorship. Plus, it's just downright funny! If you have not seen this film, then go immediately to a place of video rental or purchase [...] it, or rent it, and watch it!

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, phogmohone from Ireland

Beautifully shot by director Barry Levinson and cinematographer Peter Sova in Thailand and with amazingly visceral cut scenes set to a backdrop of various sixties and seventies rock and roll songs. The montage set against Louie Armstrong's "What A Wonderful World" is especially moving, perfectly highlighting what it was like in Saigon during the conflict.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, acearms from San Antonio, Texas

One super movie to watch but not to be believed. The original story was written by the real Adrian Cronauer. The movie did not follow the script and made significant changes as to what happened. I had the pleasure of hearing Mr. Cronauer speak and his comment on the movie was, "If I did half of what was portrayed, I'd still be in Leavenworth." He also stayed his full tour of duty, not truncated to six months as the movie indicates. Both are super personalities, Adrian Cronauer and Roger Williams. I salute both.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Old Joe from Hamilton, Australia

‘Goooooooood morning, Vietnam', is the catch cry of irreverent, nonconformist Army Radio DJ Adrian Cronauer, and once you have heard it for the first time you know that you are in for a special performance from one of Hollywood's great comedic actors. Placed in Saigon, in the middle of the Vietnam War, Cronauer has a very unique style of Dee-Jaying, which makes him very popular with the troops, but not so with his officials. This is Robin Williams at his very best, in a role that he was born to do.

Imported by the Army for an early a.m. radio show, Adrian Cronauer blasts the formerly staid, sanitised airwaves with a constant barrage of rapid-fire humour and the hottest hits from back home. The G.I.s love him - but the brass is up in arms! Riddled with side-splitting comic bombshells and studded with hot '60s hits, Good Morning Vietnam depicts Cronauer's raucous Saigon adventures amid a world gone mad.

I really enjoyed the story of GMV. As I am writing this review, the world is at war, so I feel that a movie like this can help to bring into perspective what war might be like. The story is based around the Vietnam War, with Adrian Cronauer brought into strut his stuff on the air. From the first time we hear Adrian do his radio show, the movie is placed into overdrive, as we get one of the great comedic performances. GMV was directed by Barry Levinson in a really clever way. I love how he shows Cronauer to cause a great commotion during the war, while not shying away from other issues concerning the war. Levinson used the very funny screenplay written by Mitch Markowitz. I love the characters Mitch wrote in the story, and the humour that was placed in the lead character of Cronauer.

So with all that in prospective, if Robin Williams did not bring the right comedic feel to the movie, it could have gone wrong. But as the good comedian that he is, Williams pulled the role off. He was so funny in front of the microphone, ad libbing his way through all his radio show. When he is not, he is almost as funny, trying to pick up Vietnamese girls of the street, going as far as to be an English teacher to attract one sweet girl called Trinh (Chintara Sukupatana). These scenes are extremely funny, as Cronauer uses a lot of his humour to allow himself to fit into the class. Adrian's help while on the air is Edward Garlick (Forest Whittaker). He rides through all the highs and lows Cronauer has in Vietnam and is strongly influenced by what sort of character Cronauer is. The other character that is helped by Cronauer is another DJ, Marty Lee Dewitz (Robert Wuhl) who is totally in awe of DJ Cronauer who has swept in from places we actually do not know.

Yet there are characters here that do not like Adrian, which in turn I feel us as the audience, are not meant to like either. Lt Steven Hauk (Bruno Kirby) is infuriated by the style of broadcasting that Cronauer has brought to Armed Forces Radio, so much so that he tries his own hand at Cronauer's show. However, he is a terrible replacement, with the troops causing quite a commotion, asking for the irreverent DJ to be reinstated immediately. The other official that Cronauer rubs up the wrong way is Major Philip ‘Dick' Dickerson (J.T. Walsh). He has no time for Adrian's smartass attitude and has contempt for the man, evening commenting that Cronauer's humour ‘is not funny at all'. Yet, at the end of the film, the comment by Cronauer is exactly what you want Dickerson to hear, as he has a really mean attitude problem, as told by his superior, General Taylor (Noble Willington).

There is one surprising character in GMV, that of Trinh's younger brother Tuan (Tung Thanh Tran). For the majority of the film you believe that he is a good character, but as the film comes to a conclusion, and we learn who and what Tuan really is, and you can understand why Cronauer is a little peeved at person that he called ‘friend'. There confrontation is one of the more dramatic and touching moments in the film.

There are many other memorable moments in ‘GMV'. I love how we are introduced to Cronauer, as we have no idea what sort of DJ he is or he is going to be. I also like the scene where Edward takes Adrian into the field, to see what a difference he has made to the troops who are serving in the war. Once again we get to see how funny-a-man Cronauer is. I must also make mention of the great soundtrack that was assembled for GMV. With Adrian playing such great rock 'n' roll hits as the Beach Boy's ‘I get around' and ‘Don't worry baby', the Searchers ‘sugar and spice', Wilson Pickett's ‘the midnight hour', James Brown's ‘I got you (I feel good) and Louis Armstrong's classic hit ‘ What a wonderful world'. All these songs make the movie unforgettable and essentially what it is.

So I really like this movie, not only for the classic radio scenarios that we are shown, but for how game the movie is in showing the dangers of war. In fact there is one scene in this movie that brings back memories of last October in Bali. I believe this is the good work of Barry Levinson and his team, who must have had a great time on the movie. I just wish I had watched this movie while trying desperately to become a radio DJ, because Adrian Cronauer makes the air waves look a lot of fun.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Catherine Grace Zeh from Vienna, Virginia, USA

GOOD MORNING, VIETNAM, in my opinion, is a gut-busting comedy/drama/war flick. I laughed REALLY hard when Adrian (Robin Williams) did the traffic report ("How's the traffic on the Ho Chi Minh Trail?"), imitated famous people (such as Gomer Pyle), made fun of the weather ("It's hot! D*** hot!"), and all the funny stuff he did. It was REALLY funny! The music was also good -- Especially the rock 'n' roll that Adrian played. In conclusion, to all you Robin Williams fans who have not seen this gut-busting, based-on-a-true-story comedy/drama/war flick, I HIGHLY recommend it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, lib-4 from Florida

Robin Williams is excellent as the disc jockey Adrian Cronauer who dares to defy the powers that be in Vietnam. He knew the average age of the soldier was 19 so he played what they liked. He also treated the nationals like human beings. The most poignant scene was as he played Louis Armstrong singing 'Its a wonderful world" the screen was showing just the opposite- poverty, death and war. This movie makes a strong statement about the power of words on people- Adrian believed in starting the day with a laugh- his supervisors did not. He did more for morale than anyone else. For those who watch Vietnam movies this is a must.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Steve Abbott (steve@norsystems.co.uk) from Colchester, Essex, England

I have watched more than a few movies in my time but this one still stands out as one of the best.

Robin Williams stars in one of his best roles as a Radio DJ amidst the horror of Vietnam. A wise-cracking star of humour and morale to the soldiers of Vietnam while higher officials around him build a dislike toward him through his satirical approach to the politics surrounding the war. Through his sense of loyalty to his work and to the soldiers of Vietnam he bucks authority and tries to make a difference.

As I said, this is one of the most magical and memorable films I have seen. I wouldn't describe this film, however, as a comedy. The film is indeed very funny and I still find it impossible not to laugh through the radio broadcasts. But I also found the tone of the film sets itself apart from the comedy and describes the Vietnam war in a very serious and moving way.

It is very rare that I would rate a film as highly as I do this. Anyone who watches movies should see this - rent it, buy it, borrow it, steal it. This is a piece of art which deserves to be seen.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Pepper Anne from Orlando, Florida

This comment may contain spoilers Good Morning Vietnam is the Hollywood clean version of the Vietnam war. The movie is set in 1965, the first year of the declared war on Vietnam. However, we are looking at the 1980s white-washed version of the war and Vietnam itself during American occupation, which was typical to the decade in seeking to compensate for a war lost (also see Rambo).

1965 may've been the start of the declared war, but Vietnam was a country in military struggle for most of it's existence. Just having fought a war with the French, I doubt that even the South Vietnamese setting was so peaceful and pleasant (though economically ravaged) as this movie shows you. But unfortunately, I suppose it would have to, in order to draw your attention to the story--the battle of the airwaves.

Robin Williams plays Adrian Cronauer, an air force transferee who gets assigned to the local radio broadcasting station in Saigon. He is central to the movie's attempt at being defiant. But defiant against what? The war? Unruly authority? Given the way the story fluctuates and the various importance on several characters (not just Williams's character), it's hard to tell.

Cronauer's unusual broadcasting personality makes him popular against the soldiers in the field, but he is a thorn in the side of his superiors, Steven Hauk (Bruno Kirby) and Phillip Dickerson (JT Walsh) who prefer he stick to format. Cronauer is a hit with his monologues and rock n' roll hour. He's a pretty tough character, not caring much about the threats from Hauk and Dickerson, knowing that he's doing something good for the soldiers at least, who seem to enjoy it. He tests the waters with his commanding officers, however, when he tries to read the censored news bulletins on aired, hoping to remove the illusion of a "happy" war. But, even here, it doesn't seem like Cronauer is much of a character that stands out as a defiant one, and it looks like his actions had absolutely no effect on the soldier or anything like that (at least as far as the movie shows you). So where they were going with this aspect of the plot is pretty unclear (or perhaps, unfinished).

This is typical Robin Williams comedy, let loose for quite a few minutes at a time to splurge on semi-humorous monologues (at least when he doesn't do his impersonations so fast that you can't discern what he's saying). It is funny at moments, but most of the jokes are pretty stupid. It is nothing exciting, nor particularly engaging (though he does have some funny dialogue when it comes from the script). [...]

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, (caspian1978@hotmail) from Attleboro, MA

I have to be hard on this film because of the idea of it. Good Morning Vietnam could have been a great drama, instead it was a "so so" comedy with a Robin Williams audience. Since about only 40% of this movie is fictional it is hard to give this movie any credit for being historically correct. Robin Williams is funny as always, still the movie plays both sides of the fence, most of the time, leaning on the anti-war side. Without Robin Williams, you have a story which is suppose to be a comedy about the Vietnam war. Hard to do, and without taste, if I may add. A nice movie, but far from anything timeless or terrific.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, Guy-More from Grenoble France

Perfect film to demonstrate with humor and kindness the Viet Nam war. A nice film but not simpleton. Nice for the kindness of all the characters. A caricature, but a nice caricature. Whatever, the name I will give to the film I will qualify it by "nice". However, nice in a positive way, not at all simpleton or stupid. To have lived and worked two years in Sai Gon in recent time (1996-98), I was happy to feel the country I loved, although there are only few pictures who really show Viet Nam (numerous stages are shot in studio). I cannot separate this view of "Good Morning Vietnam" to the view of "a quiet American". Although, there were, maybe, less pictures of the countries in Good Morning Vietnam, I feel the atmosphere of Sai Gon better shown in this film. Photos of A quiet American were too clean, too nice. In conclusion, one of the films people need to see about Viet Nam war. Humanity has to be optimistic and such films should be made about all wars : when a Good Morning Baghdad ?

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0093105/usercomments, bob the moo from Birmingham, UK

In the Vietnam demilitarised zone, the US troops are 'entertained' by the forces radio under the command of Sgt Maj Dickerson and 2nd Lt Hauk. Into the rather stale and censored station comes broadcaster Adrian Cronauer, who's impressions and crazy sense of humour immediately gets the support of the troops and becomes an instant hit. However his inability to follow orders causes major problems with his superiors; but things get worse as the Vietnam war starts to kick off with bombings and guerrilla warfare. Cronauer is forced to enter the reality of life in Vietnam and come out from behind his microphone.

...

Quotes:

Adrian Cronauer: Mayday! Mayday! Dragon-Lady with incredible figure at 11 o'clock! Stop the car.

Edward Garlick: I can't do that, sir.

Adrian Cronauer: Aw, Edward, you don't understand. I've been on a small Greek island with a lot of women who look like Zorba, I never thought I'd find women attractive ever again. And now that I do, you won't even turn the car around? Thanks a lot.

Edward Garlick: You have a very important meeting with the top brass...

Adrian Cronauer: -Oh, there she is again! How did she get ahead of us?

Edward Garlick: That's another person, sir.

Adrian Cronauer: She's beautiful and quick. Speed up, check her stamina. Oh my God, they're quick, they're fast, and small. Ha, ha, ha, ha! I feel like a fox in a chicken coop!

Adrian Cronauer: Mr. Nixon, it is rumored that you have smoked marijuana. Are you planning to take some of the marijuana home back to the United States? How would you do that?

Richard Nixon: By plane. By helicopter and also by automobile.

Censor #1: [Adrian sees the story about the bombing that he witnessed and he starts taking it to the control room, going past the two censors] What do you think you're doing? You know you're forbidden to read anything not checked by this office.
Adrian Cronauer: What was there to check? I was there.
Censor #1: You know the rules, airman. If this is a legitimate news story, it must go through proper channels.
Adrian Cronauer: Look, tweedledee, it's an actual event.
[referring to the blood on his shirt]
Adrian Cronauer: What do you think this came from? Shaving? It's the truth. I just want to report the truth. It'll be a nice change of pace.
Sgt. Major Dickerson: What's going on here?
Adrian Cronauer: Sir, will you listen to me?
Sgt. Major Dickerson: [reads the story] This is not official news, airman. As far as I'm concerned, it didn't happen.
Adrian Cronauer: It did happen.
Sgt. Major Dickerson: You shut your mouth!
Adrian Cronauer: What are you afraid of Dickerson? People might find out there's a war going on?
Sgt. Major Dickerson: This news is not official.
Adrian Cronauer: You wanna know the assumption is perfectly safe around here? Well, it's not. The fighting's not in the hills, it's downtown. It's a
[shouts]
Adrian Cronauer: couple of fucking blocks!
Sgt. Major Dickerson: I said it's none of your goddamn business!
Adrian Cronauer: I see your point. I'm sorry. Once I get inside and hit these air conditioners I get a little dizzy. Thanks for setting me straight.

[imitating Walter Cronkite]
Adrian Cronauer: I just want to begin by saying to Roosevelt E. Roosevelt, what it is, what it shall be, what it was. The weather out there today is hot and shitty with continued hot and shitty in the afternoon. Tomorrow a chance of continued crappy with a pissy weather front coming down from the north. Basically, it's hotter than a snake's ass in a wagon rut.

Adrian Cronauer: Goooooooood morning, Vietnam! Hey, this is not a test! This is rock and roll! Time to rock it from the Delta to the D.M.Z.!

Lt. Steven Hauk: Furthermore, you are to stick to playing normal modes of music, not weird stuff. Those who we'd find acceptable here would include Lawrence Welk, Jim Nabors, Mantovani...
Adrian Cronauer: ...Percy Faith...
Lt. Steven Hauk: Percy Faith... good!... Andy Williams, Perry Como, and certain ballads by Mr. Frank Sinatra.
Adrian Cronauer: Would Bob Dylan be outta line?

[Lt. Steven Hauk uses Army jargon to refer to a press conference to be given by former Vice-President Nixon]
Adrian Cronauer: Excuse me, sir. Seeing as how the V.P. is such a V.I.P., shouldn't we keep the P.C. on the Q.T.? 'Cause if it leaks to the V.C. he could end up M.I.A., and then we'd all be put out in K.P.

[Before Hauk goes on the air, the other men gently try to change his mind, then Eddie just leans down to the microphone]

Edward Garlick: Sir, you're not funny. Ask around.

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: Ask me. I mean, I know funny, sir, and I don't think you're it. It's like me, I'm not much with power tools...

[the audience response to Hauk replacing Cronauer on the radio]

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: Sir, these letters are unequivocal! Uh, e.g.

[reads a letter]

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: "Hey, Hauk. Eat a bag of shit. You suck." Now that's pretty much to the point, sir, not much gray area in this one.

Edward Garlick: We got one letter from a man who thought that Hauk's comedy was "visionary and interesting." The other eleven hundred calls say that the man can't do comedy to save his dick!... That's a direct quote, sir.

Edward Garlick: From a Marine in Da Nang: "Captain Hauk sucks the sweat off of a dead man's balls." I have no idea what that means, sir, but it seems very negative to me.

Adrian Cronauer: You are in more dire need of a blowjob than any white man in history.

General Taylor: Woah, Dick, put the brakes on. I wanted to wait until airman left to talk with you. Dick, I'm transferring you.
Sgt. Major Dickerson: Transferring me? Where to, sir?
General Taylor: You're going to Guam.
Sgt. Major Dickerson: Guam sir? There's nothing going on in Guam. Why Guam?
General Taylor: Dick, I've covered for you a lot of times cause I thought you were a little crazy. But you're not crazy, you're mean. And this is just radio.

Lt. Steven Hauk: Where's Crounauer?

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: Still eating, sir.

Lt. Steven Hauk: I want to see him ASAP.

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: What, sir?

Lt. Steven Hauk: As soon as possible.

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: VG sir.

Adrian Cronauer: If I don't get to my English class, they'll be a lot of people speaking in short choppy sentences.

Edward Garlick: Look, we've got to talk and talk now!

Adrian Cronauer: Not now man come on.

Edward Garlick: I can't believe you. What? That's it? You're going to leave the whole fucking thing behind and leave everything :fucking hanging! People are depending on you!

Adrian Cronauer: Edward, please! That's two nasty words in one year. Forgive me.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: [Pointing to his rank insignia] What does three up and three down mean to you, airman?

Adrian Cronauer: End of an inning?

Lieutenant Steven Hauk: "Good morning, Vietnam." What the heck is that supposed to mean?

Private Abersold: I don't know, Lieutenant, I guess it means good morning, Vietnam.

Lieutenant Steven Hauk: And who gave him permission to play modern music?

Adrian Cronauer: You know, you're very beautiful. You're also very quiet. And I'm not used to girls being that quiet unless they're medicated. Normally I go out with girls who talk so much you could hook them up to a wind turbine and they could power a small New Hampshire town.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: You're not gonna last long here, pal.

Adrian Cronauer: You can always send me back to Crete.

Sgt. Major Dickerson: Oh, you think this is a joke. I can come up with alternatives other than Crete and I'm real good at stuff like that. I got people stuck in places they haven't even considered how to get out of yet. You don't think I can come up with something good? Can you envision some fairly unattractive alternatives?

Adrian Cronauer: Not without slides.

Adrian Cronauer: Hey, we're back. That last two seconds of silence was Marcel Marceau's newest hit single, "Walkin In The Wind." And now, here are the headlines. Here they come right now. Pope actually found to be Jewish. Liberace is Anastasia and Ethel Merman jams Russian radar. The East Germans, today, claimed the Berlin Wall was a fraternity prank. Also the Pope decided today to release Vatican-related bath products. An incredible thing, yes, it's the new Pope On A Rope. That's right. Pope On A Rope. Wash with it, go straight to heaven. Thank you.

Adrian Cronauer: What's the demilitarized zone? It sounds like something from the Wizard of Oz "Oh no don't go in there!" "Ohhh wee ohh. Ho Chi Minn." "Oh look you've landed in Saigon. You're amongst the little people now." "We represent the ARVN army, the ARVN army. Oh no! Follow the Ho Chi Minn trail! Follow the Ho Chi Minn trail!"

Adrian Cronauer: [On Lt. Hauk] In the dictionary under "asshole" it says "See him."

Adrian Cronauer: [impersonating an Intelligence Officer] We've realized that we're having a very difficult time finding the enemy. :It isn't easy to find a Vietnamese man named "Charlie." They're all named Nguyen, or Tran, or...

Adrian Cronauer: [as himself] Well, how are you going about it?

Adrian Cronauer: [as Intel Officer] Well, we walk up to someone and say, 'Are you the enemy? And, if they say yes, then we shoot them."

Edward Garlick: What will you do, sir? What will you do? What will you do with your time?

Adrian Cronauer: Oh, I don't know. There are plenty of things I can think of. Maybe go downtown and try to find a Vietnamese man named "Phil."

Lt. Steven Hauk: Sir, the man has got an irreverent tendency. He did a very off-color parody of former VP Nixon.

General: I thought it was hilarious.

Lt. Steven Hauk: Respectfully, sir, the former VP is a good man and a decent man.

General: Bullshit! I know Nixon personally. He lugs a trainload of shit behind him that could fertilize the Sinai. Why, I wouldn't buy an apple from the son of a bitch and I consider him a good, close, personal friend.

Adrian Cronauer: Five months in Vietnam and my best friend is a V.C.! This will not look good on a resume!

Adrian Cronauer: Goooooooood morning Vietnam! It's 0600 hours. What does the "O" stand for? O my God, it's early! Speaking of early, let's hear it for that Marty Lee Drywitz. Silky smooth sounds, making me sound like Peggy Lee...

Adrian Cronauer: What is the difference between the Cub Scouts and the military? Bzzzzzt! Cub Scouts don't have heavy artillery!

Adrian Cronauer: Okay, if someone is not telling the truth, you say that they are full of...

Vietnamese Class: Shit!

Adrian Cronauer: If someone has made you angry or angrier, they have...

Vietnamese Class: Pissed me off!

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz, Dan 'The Man' Levitan, Adrian Cronauer, Edward Garlick: [mocking Lt. Hauk] ... and if you dooooooo... and if you doooooo

Adrian Cronauer: I can't even make fun of Richard Nixon, and there's a man who's screaming out to be made fun of.

Dickerson: You better not even come within range of anything that happens or your ass is grass, and I'm a lawn mower.

Staff Sgt. Dreiwitz: Can I ask you something? What is the appeal of Joey Bishop? I mean the man's not funny. I know funny, and he's not funny. Don't get me wrong, he seems like a nice guy, but my father's a nice guy and he's not funny either.