Platoon (1986)

Platoon is a 1986 American epic war film written and directed by Oliver Stone, starring Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen, with supporting roles by Forest Whitaker, Francesco Quinn, John C. McGinley, Richard Edson, Kevin Dillon, Keith David, Reggie Johnson, Johnny Depp, Mark Moses, Chris Pedersen and Tony Todd. It is the first film of a trilogy of Vietnam War films directed by Stone, followed by Born on the Fourth of July (1989) and Heaven & Earth (1993). The film, based on Stone's experience from the war, follows a new U.S. Army volunteer (Sheen) serving in South Vietnam while his Platoon Sergeant and his Squad Leader (Berenger and Dafoe) argue over the morality in the platoon and of the war itself.

Stone wrote the screenplay based upon his experiences as a U.S. infantryman in South Vietnam, to counter the vision of the war portrayed in John Wayne's The Green Berets. Although he wrote scripts for films such as Midnight Express and Scarface, Stone struggled to get the film developed until Hemdale Film Corporation acquired the project along with Salvador. Filming took place in the Philippines in February 1986 and lasted 54 days. Platoon was the first Hollywood film to be written and directed by a veteran of the Vietnam War.

Platoon was released by Orion Pictures on December 19, 1986. Upon its release, Platoon received critical acclaim for Stone's directing and screenplay, cinematography, the battle sequences' realism, and the performances of Sheen, Dafoe, and Berenger. The film was a box office success upon its release, grossing over $138 million domestically against its $6 million budget, becoming the third highest-grossing domestic film of 1986. The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards at the 59th Academy Awards, and won four: Best Picture, Best Director for Stone, Best Sound, and Best Film Editing.

Platoon is considered by many critics to be one of the greatest films ever made, particularly within the war genre. In 1998, the American Film Institute placed Platoon at #83 in their "AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies" poll. In 2019, the film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".