Casualties of War

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Casualties of War

R

1989

1h 53m

War

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

82%

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50 Reviews

75%

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10,000+ Ratings

Pvt. Max Eriksson (Michael J. Fox) is stationed in Vietnam under Sgt. Tony Meserve (Sean Penn). Though Meserve saves Eriksson's life during battle, the two men clash when the callous senior officer orders the abduction of Than Thi Oanh (Thuy Thu Le), a young Vietnamese woman, to be used as a sex slave. When Eriksson refuses to take part in the abuse of Oanh, tensions between him, Meserve and the rest of the unit heat up and finally explode during a firefight with Viet Cong troops.

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Critics Consensus

Casualties of War takes a harrowing plunge into the Vietnam War with a well-acted ensemble piece that ranks among director Brian De Palma's more mature efforts.

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Pauline Kael

The New Yorker

Sep 11, 2023

Some movies... can leave us feeling simultaneously elated and wiped out. Overwhelmed, we may experience a helpless anger if we hear people mock them or poke holes in them in order to dismiss them. The new Casualties of War has this kind of purity.

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Terrence Rafferty

Sight & Sound

Jan 11, 2020

Casualties of War is the strongest, the simplest and the most painful of all the Vietnam movies because it isn't about how terrible it is not to understand what's going on around us -- it's about the agony of seeing terrible things too clearly.

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Ian Nathan

Empire Magazine

Mar 16, 2015

4/5

Michael J. Fox is a revelation as the mouse that roared, whilst the score, the direction, and the rest of the cast turn a risky film into a solid addition to the Nam canon.

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Noah Berlatsky

Splice Today

Apr 14, 2025

De Palma is a clever filmmaker. But as Casualties of War shows, cleverness filtered through Hollywood self-righteousness and the wrong script can turn into the worst kind of glib horseshit.

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Terry Francis

Southern Voice (Atlanta)

May 9, 2023

This is a great movie.

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

May 30, 2021

3/4

A grim and sobering work.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 11, 2026

This movie is a *4* star Movie

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Anon Y

@Anonymous911 Jul 4, 2026

Absolutely astounding linear tale of the psychological horror of war. It's one of a small handful of Vietnam War films that can truly be considered must-see for anyone interested in the culture of post Vietnam America. It's a dark tale with stand out performances that paints a realistic picture of its subject matter that is lacking in most action oriented War films. This movie doesn't entertain. It informs. This movie is art.

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thiago S

@Thiagostone Mar 30, 2026

Filme legal pra caralho, o roteiro é legal pra caramba, as cenas são legais pra caralho, a história é legal pra caramba, o elenco é legal, e a maioria ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são legais, e o filme tem cenas de guerra muito boas e com um drama legal, com tudo isso, eu recomendo muito esse filme vale a pena assistir.

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David K

@RT27849044 Nov 5, 2025

Not worth watching. It tries to emulate one of the greatest cinematic works of art of all time” The Deerhunter” but it fails miserably……Hollywood has some ignorant people in positions of power to give the go on this film…..Sean Penn is no where in the same league of Robert De Niro, but Penn tries to be…..

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kevenquinlan T

@RT75276071 Jun 25, 2025

Watching again in 2025. It's a hard movie to get through as it's searing in content. It's actually not a 'war' movie, it's a story about awful humans doing awful things in the environment of a war. I loved it when I saw it= still thought it was fantastic. There are some squeamish idealized tropes which are somewhat nauseating but I can overlook that for the totality of the effort. Sure do like De Palma, one of my fav's for sure. A must have for any collector. Oh, and someone said best war movie ever= go watch Uncommon Valor with Hackman and say that. (F Apocalypse now, a cool movie but WAY over rated)

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Lobo T

@Lobotd Jun 17, 2025

Fox is a revelation as the mouse that roared, whilst the score, the direction, and the rest of the cast turn a risky film into a solid addition to the Nam canon.

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Brian De Palma

Director

Michael J. Fox

Eriksson

Sean Penn

Meserve

Don Harvey

Cpl. Thomas E. Clark

John C. Reilly

Hatcher

John Leguizamo

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Synopsis

Pvt. Max Eriksson (Michael J. Fox) is stationed in Vietnam under Sgt. Tony Meserve (Sean Penn). Though Meserve saves Eriksson's life during battle, the two men clash when the callous senior officer orders the abduction of Than Thi Oanh (Thuy Thu Le), a young Vietnamese woman, to be used as a sex slave. When Eriksson refuses to take part in the abuse of Oanh, tensions between him, Meserve and the rest of the unit heat up and finally explode during a firefight with Viet Cong troops.

Director: Brian De Palma
Producer: Fred C. Caruso, Art Linson
Screenwriter: David Rabe
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Columbia Pictures Corporation
Rating: R
Genre: War, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 18, 1989, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $17.0M
Runtime: 1h 53m
Sound Mix: Surround
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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