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The Boys in Company C

  • 1978
  • R
  • 2h 5m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
3.8K
YOUR RATING
The Boys in Company C (1978)
In 1967, five young men undergo boot camp training before being shipped out to Vietnam. Once they get there, the experience proves worse than they could have imagined.
Play trailer2:21
1 Video
33 Photos
DramaWar

In 1967, five young men undergo boot camp training before being shipped out to Vietnam. Once they get there, the experience proves worse than they could have imagined.In 1967, five young men undergo boot camp training before being shipped out to Vietnam. Once they get there, the experience proves worse than they could have imagined.In 1967, five young men undergo boot camp training before being shipped out to Vietnam. Once they get there, the experience proves worse than they could have imagined.

  • Director
    • Sidney J. Furie
  • Writers
    • Rick Natkin
    • Sidney J. Furie
  • Stars
    • Stan Shaw
    • Andrew Stevens
    • James Canning
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • IMDb RATING
    6.9/10
    3.8K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Sidney J. Furie
    • Writers
      • Rick Natkin
      • Sidney J. Furie
    • Stars
      • Stan Shaw
      • Andrew Stevens
      • James Canning
    • 64User reviews
    • 22Critic reviews
    • 62Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    Official Trailer
    Trailer 2:21
    Official Trailer

    Photos33

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    Top Cast36

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    Stan Shaw
    Stan Shaw
    • Tyrone Washington
    Andrew Stevens
    Andrew Stevens
    • Billy Ray Pike
    James Canning
    James Canning
    • Alvin Foster
    Michael Lembeck
    Michael Lembeck
    • Vinnie Fazio
    Craig Wasson
    Craig Wasson
    • Dave Bisbee
    Scott Hylands
    Scott Hylands
    • Capt. Collins
    James Whitmore Jr.
    • Lt. Archer
    Noble Willingham
    Noble Willingham
    • Sgt. Curry
    R. Lee Ermey
    R. Lee Ermey
    • Sgt. Loyce
    • (as Lee Ermey)
    Santos Morales
    • Sgt. Aquilla
    Drew Michaels
    • Col. Metcalfe
    Karen Hilger
    • Betsy
    Peggy Neal
    • Nancy Bisbee
    • (as Peggy O'Neal)
    Claude Wilson
    • Roy Foster
    Chuck Doherty
    • George Pike
    Israel Cisco Oliver
    • Spoon
    • (as Cisco Oliver)
    Stan Johns
    • Receiving Sergeant
    Don Gordon Bell
    Don Gordon Bell
    • Junior D.I
    • (as Don Bell)
    • Director
      • Sidney J. Furie
    • Writers
      • Rick Natkin
      • Sidney J. Furie
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews64

    6.93.8K
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    Featured reviews

    starjohn7

    Actors comment

    As one of the actors in Boys in Company C , I can say the reality of war was not completely there. However, It did touch on some realistic moments.. Truly Full Metal Jacket was more the real thing, especially Boot camp..I went through Parris Island in 1966 and it was even more brutal I think..Example... When Pyle was eating the jelly donut and all the others were paying for it. In the boot camp I went through, every time anyone screwed up , we all paid for it. R Lee Ermey a long ago friend was the real thing.. Bye the way , Pyle would never have had that full metal jacket because all the brass was collected after the firing line to make sure no one would shoot the DI.. LOL Stan Johns ,Boys in Company C.....
    9Captain_Couth

    Golden Harvest presents...

    The Boys in Company C (1978) was a movie that follows the recruits from Company C. Golden Harvest known for their Bruce Lee films and Jackie Chan productions made several films that were targeted for a world wide audience. One of them was this film. A very good film about the war in Viet-Nam that's is sadly over looked by other films such as Apocalypse Now, Platoon and Full Metal Jacket. Shot in the Phillipines and filled with many minor stars (with the exception of the great R. Lee Ermey) this one has an aura of realism (i.e the real Drill Instructors and boot camp scenes).

    I liked this movie very much. Too bad it has never been restored to it's original wide screen aspect for maximum entertainment. If this were available on D.V.D. I would call this one a keeper.

    Highly recommended.
    jef1107

    Wow, you obviously missed the point of this film

    I guess if you took this movie literally then you would feel that it is a stupid war movie. However, if you saw that the Generals represented a bureaucracy focused more on statistical body counts than what was actually happening on the ground you would see that this film had a good message to it. This was by no means a great film, but it was a very good film. Basically, the film shows how the men on the ground genuinely wanted to help the people in country and also wanted to get out alive. This film, like Apocalypse Now and Catch 22, show the double edged sword of war in the name of peace.

    And as to the "civilians might like this film" comment above, well, I'm a United States Army Veteran and I liked it.

    Josiah
    8tjnzski

    The original Full Metal Jacket

    This is one of my favorite movies. The film has a good storyline. Actor, Stan Shaw did an excellent job in his role as Tyrone Washington. He went on to perform another great acting job in "The Great Santini". The boot camp scenes where spot on authentic with the Drill Instructors. Reminded me of my bootcamp when I entered the Air Force. R Lee Emery does a great job in his first movie but my favorite drill instructor in the film is the Puerto Rican Gunney that rips the new recruits a new one. Amazingly, a lot of people don't know about this film. In my view, it's one of the most entertaining military/Viet Nam movies that have ever been made. Great movie!
    9sol-

    My brief review of the film

    Even though the low budget of this film shows through at times, it still manages to be a compelling and intense portrayal of the whole experience of being sent to Vietnam, right from boot camp up to fighting. It really feels like one is there is at times, and it is fascinating to watch the changes that characters undergo in the course of the film. The symbolic soccer themes and ideas do not always work, but they still retain some power. The camera-work and editing suits the project fine, and the film also has an excellent, haunting song, "Here I Am", to go with the material. It is quite similar in many ways to 'Full Metal Jacket', and even though the technical side and acting might be inferior here, this is still one hell of a fine movie depicting the experiences of being involved in war from a recruit's point of view.

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    Related interests

    Naomie Harris, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, André Holland, Herman Caheej McGloun, Edson Jean, Alex R. Hibbert, and Tanisha Cidel in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Band of Brothers (2001)
    War

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      R. Lee Ermey was completely unaware that Stan Shaw had a butterfly knife in his shirt pocket in the recruit receiving area. When Shaw pulls the knife out what you see is Ermey's actual reaction.
    • Goofs
      When the Marines are in-country, Sergeant Curry(Noble Willingham) begins his leering speech to the men "Today is the day of the start of a new body count....the man who scores the biggest body count gets two days of R and R at China Beach", the soundtrack has him saying this speech but his mouth isn't moving. A few seconds later he continues his speech, his mouth is now seen moving but it's not matching the words he is saying.
    • Quotes

      SSgt. Aquilla: [the Boys have just arrived for Boot Camp] Hey goddamnit! You with the fuckin pretty face! What the hell are you spitting on the ground for, what is that shit in your mouth?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: Chewing tobacco sir.

      SSgt. Aquilla: Its what?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: Chewing tobacco sir!

      SSgt. Aquilla: What the hell are you doing with chewing tobacco in your mouth?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: I don't know sir, I chew when I play baseball.

      SSgt. Aquilla: Do you think this looks like a baseball stadium?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: No Sir it doesn't.

      SSgt. Aquilla: Then what the hell are you chewing tobacco for? Did you get on the wrong fucking train, or did they draft you!

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: No sir, I enlisted Sir!

      SSgt. Aquilla: You did what?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: I enlisted in the Marines Sir!

      SSgt. Aquilla: What the hell would you do a crazy thing like that for?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: [pause]

      SSgt. Aquilla: Answer me goddamn it!

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: I wanna be a Marine sir!

      SSgt. Aquilla: What the hell for?

      Pvt. Billy Ray Pike: So I can fight for my country sir.

      SSgt. Aquilla: Fuckin turd! Right now I can't stand to look at you! Sergeant get this shit out of my fucking face!

    • Alternate versions
      German version was edited in a couple of areas to get a "not under 16" rating. Only in 2013 was the uncut version released on DVD and Blu-ray in Germany with the same "not under 16" rating.
    • Connections
      Featured in Hollywood Vietnam (2005)
    • Soundtracks
      Here I Am
      Words & Music by Craig Wasson
      Performed by Craig Wasson (uncredited)

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    FAQ16

    • How long is The Boys in Company C?Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 2, 1978 (United Kingdom)
    • Countries of origin
      • Hong Kong
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Die Boys von Kompanie C.
    • Filming locations
      • Philippines
    • Production companies
      • Golden Harvest Company
      • Good Times Films S.A.
      • Paragon Films Ltd.
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 2h 5m(125 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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