Casualties of War Poster

Casualties of War (1989)

R 08/18/1989 Drama, History, War 1h 53m
72%
User
Score
7.1/10
82%
75/100

Even in war… murder is murder.

Overview

During the Vietnam War, a soldier finds himself the outsider of his own squad when they unnecessarily kidnap a female villager.

David Rabe

Screenplay

Brian De Palma

Director

Top Billed Cast

Michael J. Fox

Michael J. Fox

Private Eriksson

Sean Penn

Sean Penn

Sgt. Tony Meserve

Don Harvey

Don Harvey

Cpl. Thomas E. Clark

John C. Reilly

John C. Reilly

Private Herbert Hatcher

John Leguizamo

John Leguizamo

Private Antonio Diaz

Thuy Thu Le

Thuy Thu Le

Oanh

Erik King

Erik King

Brown

Jack Gwaltney

Jack Gwaltney

Rowan

Ving Rhames

Ving Rhames

Lt. Reilly

Full Cast & Crew →

Media

Casualties of War (1989) Original Trailer [FHD]

Casualties of War (1989) Original Trailer [FHD]

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Poster Poster
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Reviews

A review by Wuchak

Written on September 18, 2020

_**Beautiful and brutal, artistic and ugly**_

Based on a true story, the arrogant sergeant (Sean Penn) of a 5-man squad on a reconnaissance mission in Vietnam in November, 1966, decides to kidnap a Vietnamese farm girl for some “portable R&R” because it would be "good for the morale of the squad." But PFC Eriksson (Michael J. Fox) refuses to participate and fears being “killed In Action” for dissenting.

“Casualties of War” (1989) separates itself from other Vietnam War movies by focusing on the incident at hand, including the build-up and aftermath. Its uniqueness is augmented by Brian De Palma’s slightly off-kilter style. The picture balances the beauty of the location and the artistry of Brian De Palma's filmmaking with the horror and ugliness of war & rape.

It's a...

Read the full review on TMDb →

A review by kevin2019

Written on January 17, 2025

"Casualties of War" is a deeply disturbing and emotionally overpowering film which remains strictly impartial throughout and it just recounts the acutely distressing and repugnant details in a dramatically harrowing yet still compelling way. The rape itself is dealt with in an incredibly matter-of-fact fashion as indeed is the victim's very life when she is indiscriminately murdered after she becomes an inconvenience. It is also shocking but to be expected that when Private Eriksson brings squad leader Sergeant Meserve's criminal act to the attention of his superiors he is met with a lack of concern and even a measure of anger. The real area of upset for them lies not with a lack of justice for the victim, but with the lives of the young men in the platoon Eriksson is about to destroy....

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