Casualties of War

Inspired by true events and set during the Vietnam War, Casualties of War follows a squad of American soldiers as they kidnap and rape a young villager – with the narrative detailing the fallout from this event and, especially, the impact it has on one horrified officer (Michael J. Fox’s Eriksson). It’s a decidedly intense subject matter that’s employed to strong (if erratic) effect by Brian De Palma, as the filmmaker kicks off the proceedings with a fairly riveting opening stretch that’s heightened by a series of above-average performances – with Fox’s impressive turn as the movie’s moral center matched by a strong supporting cast that includes Don Harvey, John C. Reilly, and Sean Penn. (The latter is typically intense here, of course.) The engrossing atmosphere benefits substantially from the ongoing inclusion of striking images and sequences, with, in terms of the latter, the initial confrontation between Penn and Fox’s respective characters certainly as electrifying as one might’ve hoped. There’s little doubt, however, that Casualties of War‘s overlong running time ensures that it does drag in parts, with the revelation that the film is based on (an admittedly in-depth) magazine article not terribly surprising as a result (ie it occasionally feels as though scripter David Rabe is struggling to justify the movie’s feature length). The strong conclusion ensures that the film ends on a somewhat powerful note, to be sure, and it’s ultimately clear that Casualties of War stands as a solid true-life drama from director De Palma.

*** out of ****