Apocalypse Now (1979) and Heart of Darkness (1899) are both works of fiction that follow the same pattern, Apocalypse Now is set during the Vietnam War whereas Heart of Darkness follows events in Congo. Apocalypse Now has been listed as one of the greatest films ever made. Apocalypse Now is based on Heart of Darkness, Apocalypse Now had more commercial success than the original book. Apocalypse Now was also nominated for eight Oscars winning one for Best Cinematography.
Heart of Darkness was written by Joseph Conrad did not have the same level of critical or commercial success as Apocalypse Now did, though it did receive some recognition in 2011 when BBC named it one of the greatest films of all time. Apocalypse Now has been viewed by many critics to be a masterpiece but Heart Of Darkness has attracted criticism over time with one critic calling it “ponderous” suggesting that Apocalypse Now is superior to Heart Of Darkness.
Apocalypse Now may be better received because Apocalypse Now’s plot doesn’t focus on colonialism whereas of Darkness does mention imperialism which might have caused some people to be critical of Heart Of Darkness. Apocalypse Now is about a journey up river whereas Heart of Darkness is set entirely on the boat and the jungle, as well as Apocalypse Now being shorter than Heart of Darkness, may also cause Apocalypse now to be better received.
The biggest difference between the two works is Apocalypse Now’s theme which focuses on the psychological effects that war has on soldiers, Apocalypse Now uses various methods such as hallucinatory imagery and surreal dialogue meaning that Apocalypse Now is more nuanced than the heart of darkness.
Though Apocalypse Now and Heart of Darkness both follow a similar pattern they are different in many ways for example: Apocalypse Now was commercially successful where as Heart Of Darkness wasn’t; Apocalypse Now uses surreal images and dialogue whereas Heart Of Darkness isn’t as surreal Apocalypse Now’s theme is more nuanced than Heart of Darkness Apocalypse Now is shorter than Heart of Darkness Apocalypse Now focuses on the psychological effects that war has on soldiers whereas Heart Of Darkness focuses on imperialism.
Although Apocalypse Now is not a direct adaptation of Heart of Darkness, there are several similarities between the two. Apocalypse Now follows an Army Captain sent on a mission through Cambodia during the Vietnam War to assassinate Colonel Kurtz, who has gone rogue and set up his own society deep in the jungle based upon his philosophies of freedom and power. Heart of Darkness follows an ivory trafficker named Marlowe that journeys through the Congo to find Mr. Kurtz, an ivory trader that lives far into the wilderness beyond any civilization.
Apocalypse Now was written by John Milius, Francis Ford Coppola, and Michael Herr; Heart of Darkness was written by Joseph Conrad. Apocalypse Now came out in 1979 as a motion picture directed by Francis Ford Coppola; Heart of Darkness came out in 1902 as a novella by Joseph Conrad. Apocalypse Now is about the Vietnam War; Heart of Darkness is about colonialism. Apocalypse Now follows Captain Willard; Heart of Darkness follows Marlowe.
Apocalypse Now will be used for this paper’s main comparison while Heart of Darkness will act as a companion to Apocalypse Now more than anything else. Apocalypse Now begins with Capt. Willard receiving his mission orders from his commanding officer, Lt. Col. Kilgore, who sends him on a special ops mission up the Nung River into Cambodia to assassinate Colonel Kurtz, an Army Special Forces colonel gone rogue and set himself up in the wilderness beyond any signs of civilization after he went insane and can be seen worshipping at a pagan altar.
Apocalypse Now is an iconic film, and it is widely considered to be one of the best films ever made, but it does have its problems. Apocalypse Now has been criticized for being very long winded with several scenes that are meant to build tension or character depth, but are just simply too long in many cases. Apocalypse Now also employs several movie techniques that were commonplace in the late 1970s when this movie was released, which can come across as somewhat cheesy by today’s standards.
How Willard feels about being sent on this mission to kill Kurtz varies depending upon what version of Apocalypse Now you are watching because there have been multiple versions released over the years. In the original 1979 release, he understands why he was chosen and accepts it because he knows that if they don’t kill Kurtz, then they will all be killed. Apocalypse Now: Redux is a re-release of Apocalypse Now in 2001 by Coppola with 49 extra minutes added to the movie; here, Willard explains that he received this mission because he was the only one old enough to handle such a task with any sanity left intact.
Apocalypse Now Final Cut is arguably the best edition of Apocalypse Now because it combines both Apocalypse Now: Redux and an earlier version called Apocalypse Now Without Ceasefire into one 124 minute long cut; here, Willard says very little and instead lets his facial expressions and actions show how he feels about being sent on this mission. Heart of Darkness takes place over a period of several days and follows Marlowe as he journeys up the Nellzelle River to find Mr. Kurtz, an ivory trader that lives far into the wilderness beyond any signs of civilization.
Heart of Darkness does not have much in terms of plot or character growth because it was never meant to be a traditional story with a well-defined beginning, middle, and end; rather it is more like a journal entry from someone who has been through hell and back again. Apocalypse Now is not structured this way because Apocalypse Now is supposed to resemble something like a mythic journey where Willard goes on this epic odyssey and returns home completely different than when he left.
Apocalypse Now takes many liberties with Joseph Conrad’s novella, but Apocalypse Now does pay homage to Heart of Darkness with the character Kurtz, who has some parallels with Mr. Kurtz in Heart of Darkness. Apocalypse Now is an epic war movie that takes place during the Vietnam War that contrasts Apocalypse Now and Heart of Darkness through several themes such as dehumanization, isolation, colonization, and madness.
Dehumanization is first seen when Willard receives his mission orders from Lt. Col Kilgore, who sends him on this special operations mission up the Nung River into Cambodia to assassinate Colonel Kurtz; here we see how Willard knows he will eventually have to kill Kurtz because he understands why he was sent on this mission. Apocalypse Now the idea of how during war there is a thin line between killing and murder is blurred because Apocalypse Now almost glorifies the idea of violence and combat.
Apocalypse Now one of the most famous lines in Apocalypse Now “I love the smell of napalm in the morning” where Apocalypse Now Kilgore says this when he flies his fleet of helicopters into battle against a village that is suspected to be harboring Viet Cong soldiers; here we see how Kilgore loves war and everything about it including all its ravages, but also shows how there are terrible things about war too.
