Review: Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness is a literary classic that reaches out and challenges readers to question humanity during the great expansions of European Empires. Francis Ford Coppola’s Apocalypse Now readdresses the same issue during an era of war and fear. The two approach the same issue from different points in history but still force audiences to think about life and death, fear and pain. It comes as a surprise then that the documentary Hearts of Darkness (which was released 12 years after the film) could manage to take the questions of these two masterpieces and elevate them to a different level. Here’s what I love about Hearts of Darkness: it plays out just like the novel. Here are two filmmakers (Fax Bahr and George Hickenlooper) who retell the story captured by another filmmaker (Eleanor Coppola) who was following a filmmaker trying to make a masterpiece (Francis Ford Coppola). Yes, it’s a confusing thread of logic to follow, but it forces audiences to think about their subject through several different lenses. The result is a story of a Kurtz like character attempting to go to the brink of artistic insanity in order to truly answer the questions of our existence in a way that avoids cheesy clichés. If I go any further, this review will go on for about 100 pages (but I did just give you film students a thesis idea). The point I’m trying to make is that Hearts of Darkness doesn’t just capture the themes found in Conrad’s novel or Coppola’s film, it adds to them. It shines light on details that might have previously gone unnoticed or provides further depth to themes already explored. For this reason, I truly believe Bahr and Hickenlooper’s film deserves just as much praise as the other two works. Of course, it helps that this documentary moves at a beautiful pace, seamlessly transitioning between interviews from the late 70s and early 90s and footage from the film and its production. What easily could have been a mix and match piece full of contradictions from actors and staff turned out to be an honest reflection. From an artist’s stand point, you truly begin to understand how fine the line is between utter failure and success. Coppola is a director who truly understands how close he is to failure at any given moment and watching that knowledge unfold into more and more desperate acts to save his film will certainly redefine the process of storytelling. Yes, most people will want to see Hearts of Darkness because they will want to hear the details of how Marlon Brando demanded a million dollars a week to be in the movie, or how the crew was all hopped up on various drugs during the filming process. These are all great stories and worth every second of screen time they are given. But these are just the shallow portions of life this documentary covers. What makes Hearts of Darkness great is that it challenges audiences to rethink just how difficult it is for artists to capture the meaning or questions of life. But, however you approach it, this is a movie meant to be remembered for generations to come. Review by Matthew Abshire Informative: 5 – not only do you learn about the facts of making the film, but you pick up on the psychology of filmmaking Entertainment: 5 – if you get bored at any point during this movie, please turn in your ‘humanity’ card because I don’t want you representing my species Technical: 5 – you’ll laugh, but it begs the question, who’s a better filmmaker: Mr. Coppola or Mrs. Coppola? Overall: 5 – just as Apocalypse Now captured the essence of Heart of Darkness and added something to it, so too does this documentary
 
Format: DVD Year: 1991 Running Time: 96 Min Distributor: Triton Pictures, Paramount Home Entertainment Producer: George Zaloom and Les Mayfield Director: Eleanor Coppola, Fax Bahr and George Hickenlooper Date Reviewed: 8-16-2009 Story: It's Francis Ford Coppola vs. natural catastrophe, crazy actors, the Philippine government and crushing self-doubt in this unbelievable account of the making of the 1979 classic Apocalypse Now. Behind-the-scenes location footage is combined with candid 1990 interviews of cast and crew members; the result is a fascinating portrait of a director plunged into the very obsession he sought to portray on film (NetFlix).