A Bright Shining Lie (1998)

A Bright Shining Lie

OUTSTANDING!!!!!!! (BEEN THERE,DID THAT FOR MY COUNTRY,SANS THE SEX)... it only left out our return home and being LABELED BABY-KILLERS! September 8, 2008

what went wrong?

Bill Paxton is the anchor column of this lean HBO film, but the best acting comes courtesy of Donal Logue as the reporter whom Paxon's Lt. Colonel John Paul Vann befriends early on and Ed Lauter as General Weyand. There is some very stiff work from other members of the cast, but the film succeeds on the strength of the drama it portrays.

The story of what went wrong for the US operation in Vietnam is still amenable to two or three widely differing explanations, each of which has deep plausibility. LIE portrays Paxton's character understanding the nationalist nature of the communist insurrection early on when he was posted to Viet Nam as one of the United States' first military advisors there. Gradually, however, he becomes lulled into the failed ambition to solve 'Vietnam's problem' by military means as he rises to the opportunity to become 'America's warrior' over against North Vietnam's brilliant General Giap.

In spite of some contrived work, the realism of the film's subject matter is underscored by the use of some remarkable footage from the era, including tape from the astonishing Tet Offensive in 1968. Although this Viet Cong vie for the cities during the lull of the Vietnam New Year celebration was for them a military failure, it shook whatever American confidence in the enterprise remained at that date and brought high American casualty counts and images of brutal urban warfare into American living rooms.

BRIGHT SHINING LIE is a vital film for those of us who still want to understand the American failure in Vietnam, the origins of the conflict, and how best to assure that future military interventions begin with and are sustained by a comprehension of the facts on the ground and just how malleable they may or may not be. July 28, 2007

John Paul Vann Understood the Big Picture

I am probably interpreting A Bright Shining Lie in a manner not intended by the film makers. One senses that they thought John Paul Van was a well meaning but delusional individual. Our involvement in Vietnam was supposedly wrong and caused more grief than good. Nothing could be further from the truth. This war hero clearly saw the corruption within the Vietnamese government and military. He also realized our top officials were often incompetent. Nonetheless, General Van rightfully despised Communist aggression. Demanding perfection, is more often than not, the enemy of the good. These totalitarian monsters had to be stopped. Would the war have turned out differently had he lived a few more years? Sadly, we will never know. Bill Paxton is superb as our highly flawed but steadfast warrior. The immature journalist is admirably played by Donal Logue. This particular character will likely turn your stomach every time he is in a scene. The Communists were victorious because of our "antiwar" media. May God forgive them---because I won't. A Bright Shining Light is not quite a five star production, but it's worthy of four and a half stars. Make sure you see it.

David Thomson
Flares into Darkness December 24, 2006

A Bright Shining Lie

This was a wonderful movie that told all about Vietnam and the horrors of war. Recommend for PG13 March 10, 2006

Sorry to say - boring, with 2-dimensional acting

I agree with the negative comments - I eventually stopped watching it - unconvincing acting - (and a small point that I found irritating - in TV movies about war, some of them have a "too-clean look" that make a film seem unrealistic. There is no dirt anywhere, as far as I could see - everybody looks too clean, the settings look too clean, and not realistic. The acting level was what finally turned me off. Glad it was on TV. November 28, 2005

More reviews at Amazon.com ...