Born on the Fourth of July Movie Review 1989

A riveting meditation on American life affected by the Vietnam War, based on the real-life, bestselling experiences of Ron Kovic, though some facts are subtly changed. The film follows him as he develops from a naive recruit to an angry, wheelchair-bound paraplegic to an active antiwar protestor. Well-acted and generally lauded; Kovic co-wrote the screenplay and appears as a war veteran in the opening parade sequence.

Distribution

Baker & Taylor Inc., 2709 Water Ridge Pkwy., Ste. 500, Charlotte, NC 28217, Phone: (704)357-3500, Toll-free: 800-775-1800, Email: btinfo@btol.com, URL: http://www.btol.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 145 minutes.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Vietnam War, Physical Problems, This Is Your Life, Anti-War War Movies, Period Piece: 1960s, Postwar, Patriotism & Paranoia, Protests

Screenplay

Oliver Stone

Cast

Bill Allen, Tom Cruise, Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J. Barry, Jerry Levine, Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Frank Whaley, John Getz, Caroline Kava, Bryan Larkin, Abbie Hoffman, Stephen Baldwin, Josh Evans, Dale Dye, William Baldwin, Don "The Dragon" Wilson, Vivica A. Fox, Holly Marie Combs, Tom Sizemore, Daniel Baldwin, Ron Kovic

Cinematography

Robert Richardson

Director

Oliver Stone

Music

John Williams

Other

Oliver Stone

Producer

Mark Huffam, Oliver Stone

Awards

Oscars 1989: Director (Stone), Film Editing; Directors Guild 1989: Director (Stone); Golden Globes 1990: Actor--Drama (Cruise), Director (Stone), Film--Drama, Screenplay.