The Hanoi Hilton

This war drama is set in the 'Hanoi Hilton' prisoner-of-war camp. It focuses on a selection of American soldiers who are incarcerated there by the North Vietnamese over the course of the Vietnam War.

The potential for something quite powerful is certainly there in the serious subject matter that this film is based on. But sadly this is a movie that never really gets out of second gear and is ultimately a mediocre take on a serious subject. The movie's politics are fairly unambiguous and it depicts the communists as being fairly one-dimensionally evil. The portrayal of life in the camp seemed a bit overly idealistic too, with the American POWs more or less at liberty to disrespect their captors with very little consequence. I'm sure it was never quite as carefree in reality as it was depicted here. The cast has no stars and is serviceable at best but none of them really brings much dimension to their characters and consequently they are essentially rather lifeless. Ultimately, the film as a whole comes across as being somewhat underwhelming and is mainly redeemed by the fact that it's based on a real historical situation which at least makes it educational at least to some extent.

Hanoi Hilton is an excellent movie that captures the horror and the pain that American POWs had to face during the Vietnam War. It is NOT a political movie as some naive liberals would write in the comments section--nor is it right-wing grandstanding. The fact is that the Vietnamese people were downright horrible and tortured our men on a regular basis is historical fact. The fact that Jane Fonda, and other Hollywood idiot who would NEVER ever serve this great country (yet expect all the benefits American soldiers have given them)went to Nam and insulted the prisoners is an absolute fact. Those who write that this is a political movie are part of the problems with America--those who have never served, those who are too cowardice to serve, and those who spit on and insult the American soldier. Not one of them would have had the courage to withstand the torture and mayhem these brave men had to face each and every day. You should be saluting these men and not insulting them. These men are part of the reason you have MTV, HBO, NFL, freedom, the right to vote, etc--why America is free.

I felt it important to respond to the statement of the person from Minnesota re: The Hanoi Hilton. The torture tactics by the NVA were questioned in the motion picture. The idea that these horrid experiments were not employed is sheer liberal naiveté. I spent several days designing the sequence of the shots and making storyboards for (Lionel Chetwynd) the director based upon lengthy research and a grueling interview with a former (Congressional Medal of Honor recipient)American P.O.W. The distinguished officer described in great detail the many barbaric torture methods employed by his captors. It turned my stomach and revealed the dark evil side of humanity.

It is always refreshing to see Col Jim Thompson receiving the recognition he so rightly deserves. I was honored to have known Col Thompson following his return from the hells of 9 years of imprisonment. My father was an officer stationed at Valley Forge General Hospital after his own stint in Viet Nam. He was chosen to be Col Thompson's personal escort upon his return.

When finally determined to be "healthy" enough to travel, he spent many evenings with us. Even though I was a very young man at the time, 3rd grade, I will never forget the scenes that played out around our dining room table and in our living room.

As far as I am concerned, Col Thompson was then and is now in death a true American hero. I wish others would hear of his story to understand what he and the other POWs went through.

It is because of their determination, and all those who serve, that have guaranteed our freedoms for over 200 years.

I really do love the smell of conspiracy theories in the morning. Sadly the post of jw_55767 proves once again that most people prefer their ideological myths to reality.

So lets look more closely at some of JW's myths about this film. First, the theory that Hanoi Hilton disappeared because of a cabal of the rights favourite demon, "Hanoi Jane" and her media mogul husband Ted Turner. Turner. Wrong. Hanoi Hilton was released theatrically. It made, as IMDb notes less than a million dollars. All things being equal this means, if the market is always right as right wing apologists and polemicists usually maintain, Hanoi Hilton was voted down by American consumers and was not systematically hidden away by Ms. Fonda or her media mogul husband so no one could see it.

Second, another favourite strategy of right wingers is to play up the atrocities of the enemy, which did occur, war after all is hell, and play down those of their own country. In reality, however, Americans committed atrocities in Vietnam just like the enemy did. One of many examples: My Lai. Atrocities, of course, have occurred in each and every modern war and they were committed by all sides.