What is the meaning behind these three Apocalypse Now quotes?
I just watched Apocalypse Now for the first time, and didn't understand some of the quotes narrated by Capt. Willard they are as follows:
It was no accident that I got to be the caretaker of Colonel Walter E. Kurtz's memory, any more that being back in Saigon was an accident
and,
Never get out of the boat. Absolutely goddamn right. Unless you were going all the way
and,
They were gonna make me a major for this, and I wasn't even in their fucking army anymore.
What is the real meaning/reference of those quotes?
Best Answer
(from 'Gradesaver')
'It was no accident...'
This statement and the fact that most of the voiceover is in the past tense indicates that the events of Apocalypse Now are illustrative of Willard's recollections. This sets the tone for the film, because Coppola gives his audience the expectation of a transformative journey, but also, we know that Willard is going to survive and Kurtz is going to die. By calling himself the 'caretaker of Kurtz's memory,' Willard foreshadows the decision he makes at the end of the film. When Willard first arrives at Kurtz's compound, it seems as though Kurtz only keeps Willard alive because he wants to give him all the knowledge and guilt so he can take Kurtz's place. Once Kurtz has accepted that his time has come, he entrusts Willard with a mission that will take him back out of the jungle. Kurtz wants Willard to share his story, all of it, with his own son. Therefore, even though Kurtz deserves to perish for all his moral violations, Willard understands why he snapped, and can hopefully, use Kurtz's story to prevent another Vietnam.
'Never get off the boat...'
Willard wonders what Kurtz saw during his first tour that sent him in such a radical direction (which resulted in his splitting 'from the whole fucking programme'.)
and finally, from an 'A level film Studies - Focus Film Factsheet...
He is a man who has fought so much he has forgotten why he is fighting; all he knows is that he fights. As a representation of a dehumanised soldier the performance is electrifying. His last voice-over monologue (02:57:48) suggests that despite having killed Kurtz, Willard will remain as conflicted and alienated as ever: ‘They were going to make me a Major for this and I wasn’t even in their fucking army anymore’.
2.A level Film Studies - Focus Film Factsheet
I have some of my own thoughts as well but cannot verify them using any other source. It's a complex film and much of this content is still subjective analysis so do not take it as the be all and end all.
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What is the famous line from Apocalypse Now?
"Trouble is, I'd been back there, and I knew that it just didn't exist anymore." - Capt. Benjamin Willard, 'Apocalypse Now'.What does Apocalypse Now teach us?
Apocalypse Now illustrates the horror, the absurdity, and the futility of war, but most important it portrays war's damaging psychological effects. As it charts the characters' descents into literal and metaphorical darkness and fog, the film suggests that war indulges the darkest, foggiest parts of human nature.What is the significance of the scene in which Willard kills the Vietnamese girl?
Willard kills the woman because of expediency, because he is in a hurry to get to Kurtz. He also does it for the sake of consistency. As Willard explains: "It was a way we had over here of living with ourselves.Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Markus Spiske, Yaroslav Shuraev, Aline Viana Prado, Anna Shvets