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Entertainment
Stone film commends disabled vet
"Born on the Fourth of July" celebrates veteran Ron Kovic
by Robb Frederick
Entertainment Editor
Ron Kovic has spent much of
his last twenty years in hell, and
he wants to talk about it. In his
1976 autobiography Kovic, a
veteran disabled in Vietnam,
recorded the pain and frustration
which accompanied his efforts to
return his life to a state of
physical, emotional and social
normalcy. With the help of
director and fellow veteran Oliver
Stone, Kovic's plight has finally
gained national attention through
the film Born on the Fourth of
July.
The film documents Kovic's
transformation from an
obsessively patriotic youth to a
militant anti-war protester, and
the change carries with it few
pleasant moments.
Kovic is just a young boy
enjoying small-time life in
Massapequa, New York, when
Born on the Fourth begins.
While attending a parade
celebrating the birthday he shares
with a nation, he stands in awe as
the decorated soldiers pass before
him. This nationalism continues
to build throughout his
adolescence, spurred by his
mother's expectations of grandeur
and the spirit of McCarthyism
sweeping the country. By
graduation, Kovic's only
aspiration is enlistment in the
Marine Corps.
Once in the military, Kovic
volunteers for duty on the front
lines, where he experiences one
firefight too many.
As a shell rips through his
chest, severing his spinal cord,
Kovic loses the final threads of
his innocence. This scene is
particularly gruesome, as Stone
attempts to recreate the feelings
Kovic recalled for his
autobiography.
"I heard a huge crack next to
my ear. It was like getting hit
with an express train...l closed
my eye for a second, then I
started to breathe. My lung was
collapsed so I just took little
breaths. All I could think of was
that I didn't want to die. I waited
to die," he wrote.
Kovic doesn't die, but his
journey into hell is nowhere near
Contemporary Hits
taken from Radio ana Records
1. Michael Bolton -
"How Am 1..."
2. Rod Stewart -
"Downtown Train"
3. Seduction
" 2 to Make it Right"
4. Paula Abdul-
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5. Jody Watley
"Everything"
completion. Upon his return to
the States, he begins a residency
that confines him to veterans'
hospitals where he is confronted
by the brutal realization of his
unjust fate.
While in the hospitals,
Kovic's living conditions
deteriorate even further. He is
subjected to humiliating,
agonizing treatment by
unsympathetic orderlies working
with inadequate equipment. Rats
roam freely throughout the
institution, and patients are
frequently left unattended for
lengthy periods of time.
As a shell rips through
his chesty severing his
spinal cord, Kovic loses
the final threads of his
innocence.
Kovic is eventually released
from the hospital, and he returns
to his home and his family,
where he encounters an entirely
different series' of problems. He
quarrels bitterly with his brother,
who opposes the war, and he
turns to alcohol to combat his
disillusionment with life. His
bouts with intoxication lead to
barroom fights and volatile
arguments with his religious
mother.
At the peak of his frustration,
Kovic attends a violent anti-war
protest, where a policeman
upends him from his chair. This
experience eradicates all
remaining faith Kovic has in his
country, and incites him to join
the movement.
Through protest, Kovic once
again finds purpose in his life.
He becomes a universal
spokesman for handicapped
veterans, and his efforts lead to a
militant uprising during a
Republican National Convention.
PUZZLE SOLUTION
Although he is beaten and
arrested, Kovic finally exposes
the suffering he shares with so
many other veterans.
Although the running lime of
Born on the Fourth of July
exceeds two hours, director Oliver
Stone has difficulty compacting
the full struggle of Ron Kovic.
Supporting characters merely
disappear, and significant events
are overshadowed by unimportant
details.
The true accomplishment of
Stone lies in his unyielding style
of directing. Stone, who renewed
the market for Vietnam films
with his smash success Platoon,
uses Born on the Fourth to
personalize the trauma and agony
of war. He pulls no punches, and
the result is a work which
repulses viewers with gruesome
details and bitter truths. Stone
rarely lets the pressure subside,
and the film leaves viewers
drained.
The film's financial success,
however, rides solely on the
remarkable performance by Tom
Cruise. To get a feel for Kovic's
pain, Cruise spent months
working in a wheelchair; the
experience resulted in a
thoroughly believing performance
of the caliber reserved for
Academy Award winners.
In Born on the Fourth, Cruise
shatters any doubts about his
acting ability. His honest,
emotional performance carries the
film through its rough moments
with ease, and he does so without
any of the boyhood charm which
he has based his career on thus
far.
The directness of Born on the
Fourth of July makes the film
difficult to view, but the subject
matter itself is unpleasant
As Ron Kovic approaches a
podium at the film's end, he
explains his motives to a
reporter. "I feel like I'm home,"
he states. "I just feel like we're
home."
This film is more than a
reminder of an issue that divided a
country. It is a homecoming for
Kovic and other veterans like
him, and it is long overdue.
REMINDER:
All Student Organization registration
packets are due Friday Jan. 26, 1990,
by 5:00 pm in the Student Organization
Council office.
898-6452
The Collegian Wednesday, January 24,1990
Liner
by Robb Frederick
Entertainment Editor
Hundreds of prospective
actors swamped the
Philadelphia offices of several
casting directors earlier this
week after local papers ran an
ad announcing small roles in
the upcoming Sylvester
Stallone film Rocky V.
Available roles included fight
referees, pedestrians and cab
drivers. Is a role that small
worth the hassle? Before you
answer, remember this- with a
single line just about anyone
could overshadow Sly's pitiful
range.
•Rumors have it that Bruce
Springsteen and his girlfriend/
backup singer Patti Scialfa are
expecting a child, but no
statements have yet been issued
by the Boss' management
•The sequel-of-the-month
award goes to Leatherface: The
Texas Massacre 111, which
opened last week to (surprise!)
not-so-great reviews.
•Chuck Berry is suing High
Society magazine for printing
photos of him posing nude
with an unidentified woman.
Do the magazine's publishers
really expect this to increase
sales? After all, Berry is 63.
•As an abundance of cover
songs seeps onto the airwaves,
congratulations to the
Scorpions, who almost do
justice to The Who’s "I Can't
Explain." Even if the song
makes die-hard Who fans feel
like a hotel room after a stay
by Keith Moon, it's still much
less of a sin than Joan Jett's
version of AC/DC's "Dirty
Deeds Done Dirt Cheap." Just
a quick warning: If New Kids
on the Block try to cover "Bom
in the USA,” I can't be held
responsible.
•Virgin British Airways has
begun running an ad featuring
everybody's favorite
Panamanian, Manuel Noriega.
Accompanying the picture is a
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Bam CASH and/or FREE Spring
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For more information
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notes
boast that "Only one person
can fly into the U.S.A. for
less."
•Tom Cruise has just filed
for a divorce from Mimi
Rogers, his wife of 32 months.
Cruise must be feeling
creative, since he told Rolling
Stone earlier this month that
he "...can't imagine being
without her."
•Polygram Jazz has signed
Bill Cosby for a scries of
albums, but the records will
contain music, not comedy.
Cosby plans to use the series
to showcase several of his
original compositions.
•Just in case anyone else
out there is waiting patiently
for another release by Edie
Brickell and New Bohemians,
take note- for now Edie can be
seen in the film Born on the
Fourth of July (see review on
this page). She sings "A Hard
Rain's a Gonna Fall" in what
may be the film's only upbeat
moment.
•Novelist Stephen King has
begun work on the movie
adaptation of his book Misery.
The Trim's lead will be played
by James Caan.
•Several recent recordings
have just reached the platinum
sales level. The certified
releases include Acrosmilh's
"Pump," Tears for Fears' "The
Seeds of Love," and (Ack!)
"New Kids on the Block."
•The Coca-Cola
Corporation, which aired a
sloppy 3-D commercial during
last year's Superbowl, will run
another "breakthrough" pilch
during this year's big game.
Executives shelled out vast
amounts of cash to create the
new spot, which gives the
classic "I'd Like to Teach the
World to Sing" impressive
stereo sound. That's money
well spent considering that
only 19% of America's VCRs
have stereo capability.