Hearts and Minds (1974)

Hearts and Minds (1974)
Directed By: Peter Davis

An essential insight into the Vietnam war told by military leaders, politicians and civilians on both American and Vietnamese sides. Hearts and Minds is a moving history lesson that brings to light the aspects of war and conflict that desperately need to be taken in to consideration today.

From the perspective of a filmmaker, it is easy to see how the pro-war argument has been somewhat manipulated. Davis assigns this responsibility to racist ranks in the US army and (understandably) bitter judgements by a POW after his return to America. One of the most memorable scenes from the film depicts the former POW visiting a school as he fields questions about his experience in Vietnam. The young children are informed that the Vietnamese live shambolic lives and 'make a mess of everything'.

However biased the filmmakers attitude may have been towards the subject, it is almost impossible to describe the horrific images of Vietnamese funerals, burning houses and napalmed children as 'out of context'. These images combined with an altogether ambiguous explanation as to why America was at war with Vietnam, make the documentary that much more difficult to swallow.

But no matter how hard (and extremely relevant) the subject of the film may be, Hearts and Minds is fantastically assembled. Davis juxtaposes contradicting arguments with alarming footage that highlights the realities of war in a frightening fashion; so much so that documentary works as a reminder of how little military and political leaders around the world have learned from their mistakes.