I’ve read Bloods by Wallace Terry about four times.
It might not be historically accurate, but it’s cynically plausible. I don’t mind the portrayal of Russian Roulette as a form of war-time sadism and, later in the movie, post-war trauma. Besides not looking the part, their constant barking of “Faster!” and “Quiet!” in Vietnamese-though appropriately irritating-is almost certainly done because of the actors’ limited Vietnamese. Worse, the men who portray the guards in the riverside camp are obviously not Vietnamese. I understand why these scenes are groundbreaking for their time, but the visual and sound effects are dated. The infamous Russian Roulette scenes don’t impact me, however. This performance is the best that I’ve seen by De Niro, though I haven’t watched Taxi Driver. The most unforgettable moments are Mike deciding to triple the ante of the Russian Roulette in the riverside camp and Mike later hugging a reclusive Steven in the hospital. He is the classic alpha-male among his pack of friends, who include Christopher Walken’s Nick and John Savage’s Steven. Today is better than any other day-except the 11th of November-to write about this movie, especially following the recent presidential visit to Vietnam, where the middle act and the climactic scenes place. I finally saw The Deer Hunter last summer, and for the most part, I was impressed. Michael Cimino is the quintessential one-hit wonder, but his one hit is some wonder.
He doesn’t actually wear a red bandana in the movie the red is for visual effect. Robert De Niro points a revolver to his temple.