Religion is a canopy under which American culture and
society thrives. Its extension reaches the boundaries of
such cultural mainstreams as movies, television, and
music. Oliver Stone's 1986 war film Platoon is an example
of the religious subtleties and overtones that appear in
various American genres. Stone not only uses religious
themes to portray the Vietnam War, but manipulates the war
to show the decadence of American society.
Throughout history, man has traveled the world, and
conquered nations, in order to force one religion on
another. America was founded by Spain's attempt to spread
Christianity to the new world. Although Spain was the
most powerful nation at the time, their attempt to spread
Christianity on less civilized people came to a fatal end
due to the explorers' detrimental actions. The movie
Platoon reenacts this theme in a modern true life event.
After World War II, America demonstrated itself to be
arguably the most powerful nation.
English: Cain and Abel
Cain leads Abel to death
15th century depiction of Cain and Abel, Speculum ...When communism
threatened Vietnam, America acted to defend its democratic
belief by sending troops over to thwart the communist
attempts. Stone uses the war to portray the failed
attempt due to the exploits of the American soldiers. In
one scene, Barnes (Tom Berenger) and Bunny (Kevin Dillon),
mercilessly kill several innocent villagers. Later in the
same scene, some soldiers are caught raping a village
woman. The actions taken by the soldiers are Stone's
comparison to the Spanish explorers' actions, which
finally led to both nation's failed expeditions.
To add depth to his religious allegories, Stone not
only uses historical references, but opens it to Biblical
contexts as well. According to the Bible, the garden of
Eden is a paradise, often pictured in a jungle-like
atmosphere. In Platoon, Stone uses the jungles of Vietnam
to represent the mystic garden of Eden. Stone's
underlying intent...