Hey, Guys, ‘Apocalypse Now’ Was Only a Movie, Not a War

I am tired of Hollywood players, such as Messrs Coppola, Milius and Spielberg and a host of others, who claim that making a war film is the same as being in a war (“‘Apocalypse,’ Now and Then,� by Patrick Goldstein, July 31). I have served two tours of combat duty in Vietnam and have also, for my sins, worked on my share of movie sets, and I assure you that the only way to become a war veteran is to fight in a real war.

Work out your obvious feelings of inadequacy on each other and stop this macho posturing. You are insulting the memory of all my brothers who died in the boonies while you were safe at home taking lunches.

P.S.: “Grand Illusion� is a great war movie. “Apocalypse� Now, Then, When, or Redux, is just another piece of Hollywood plush.

JOEL HOMER

Echo Park

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Hey, John Milius, regarding your statement, “Everyone who worked on the movie is like a Vietnam vet�: You may have felt like you were a vet, but I’ve got friends who haven’t felt anything at all for the last 30 years because of that nasty little war.

You just made a movie, John. Just a movie.

MIKE DAVISON Toluca Lake

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In her companion article to Goldstein’s piece, Scarlet Cheng refers to “Apocalypse� actor Sam Bottoms’ character Billy in “The Last Picture Show� as “sweeping the dusty streets of Archer City, Texas.�

Although the film was shot in Archer City, the character was, in fact, sweeping the streets of Anarene, Texas, in the film (and Thalia, Texas, in the original Larry McMurtry novel).

JOHN ENSEY

Los Angeles