Vietnam War Movies, Vol. 1 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Hamburger Hill

"Hamburger Hill" stars Dylan McDermott, Steven Weber, Courtney B. Vance, Don Cheadle, and Michael Boatman. It tells the story of the men who fought to take Hill 937 from May 10 to May 20, 1969. The movie not only dealt with the issues that the soldiers face in combat, but also all of the turmoil going on back in the states and how it affects them.

Answer: Bruce Willis

Bruce Willis plays the uncle, Emmett Smith, to Samantha Hughes, played by Emily Lloyd, whose father died in Vietnam. Samantha remains with Uncle Emmett because she wants to know more about her father. Smith himself is haunted by the traumas he faced in Vietnam. The film climaxes with a visit to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.

Answer: The Green Berets

"The Green Berets" is still as controversial today as it was when in premiered in 1968. Because of its pro-military, pro-war stance it has been derided by critics. The movie follows the story of a Green Beret colonel, John Wayne, and a newspaper reporter, played by David Janssen, as they join the war in South Vietnam. "Navy SEALs" is not a Vietnam era movie and stars Charlie Sheen, not John Wayne.

Answer: Charlie Sheen

"Platoon" won four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. It was also nominated for four others, including two for Best Supporting Actor for Tom Berenger and Willem Dafoe. The movie follows the story of Chris Taylor, played by Charlie Sheen, who leaves college to join the war. Stone wrote the movie as a direct answer to John Wayne's portrayal of the war in "The Green Berets".

Answer: Tigerland

"Tigerland" is set in 1971 America, where the soldiers being trained know the war is lost. Farrell's character is a draftee who does not want to be there. The climax of the movie takes place in Tigerland, a forested area designed to appear like Vietnam. Tigerland was the name of the real US Army Advanced Infantry Training Center in Fort Polk, Louisiana and would appear to be the basis of the movie's location.

Answer: Ben Stiller

Ben Stiller plays a fading action hero looking to make a come back with a war movie. Robert Downey, Jr. plays a multiple Oscar winning actor who goes so far as to take drugs to turn his skin black for the role. Jack Black plays a drug addicted comedian just looking for his next score.

After they are dropped off in the jungle, the fake war becomes real as they run into drug runners. Owen Wilson does not appear in the film but did play opposite Stiller in "Zoolander".

Answer: 84 Charlie Mopic

LRRP stands for Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol and was a staple job of special forces in Vietnam. "84 Charlie Mopic" is filmed from the point of view of a cameraman, MoPic (short for motion picture specialist), sent to document the unit's actions behind enemy lines.

As such much of the filming is done using a handheld 16 mm camera. Because of this style you feel as though you are right there with the men as they go on patrol. The film won the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize and two Independent Spirit Awards.

Answer: Mel Gibson

Lieutenant General (Ret.) Hal Moore, then Lt. Col., wrote the book upon which the movie is based, "We Were Soldiers Once... And Young". The movie was generally well received even though some critics challenged it for portraying the war in a positive light.

The movie follows US forces as they enter the field and are ambushed by superior North Vietnamese forces. The US forces fight off the enemy and win the victory, setting the stage for how the Vietnam War would be fought and, in the estimation of the North Vietnamese commander, lost by the Americans.

The NVA commander realizes American forces may win most of the battles but that they would lose the war.

Answer: Forrest Gump

The title role of "Forrest Gump" is played by Tom Hanks, a portrayal for which he won the Academy Award. The movie went on to win a total of six Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. In the movie Gump ends up going to Vietnam where he wins the Congressional Medal of Honor but also loses his best friend when he is killed in action.

Besides serving in Vietnam, he also meets presidents JFK, LBJ, and Nixon, plays football for 'Bear' Bryant, plays ping-pong against the Chinese, and accidentally attends an anti-war rally in Washington, D.C. while looking for Jenny.

Answer: James Caan

Francis Ford Coppola directs "Gardens of Stone", his second movie about the Vietnam War. His first is of course considered by many to be the best Vietnam War movie ever, "Apocalypse Now". James Caan had worked previously with Coppola in "The Godfather" where he plays Sonny Corleone.

In "Gardens of Stone" Caan plays Sgt. Clell Hazard, a man who is against the war, not for political reasons but because he sees it as unwinnable. James Earl Jones plays his best friend Sgt. Maj. "Goody" Nelson and Angelica Huston plays his anti-war journalist girlfriend.