This year has had its number of surprises, DVD-releasewise, and here is yet another one of them.
Paramount will release the (in)famous documentary "HEARTS OF DARKNESS" by Eleanor Coppola (yes, the wife of Francis Ford), about the making of her husband's Vietnam war epic "APOCALYPSE NOW".
Everyone and his mother was complaining that this documentary was missing on last year's DVD dossier edition of "Apocalypse Now", and for good reason: it should have been included as it's an amost unmissable document for fans of that movie.
"Hearts of Darkness" is a surprisingly honest view about the madness surrounding the production of "Apocalypse Now". I realise a "Making of..." sounds pretty dull, but this one couldn't be farther removed from dullness if it tried. Nearly everyone involved with "Apocalypse now" had brushes with issues like bankruptcy, illness, drug abuse and even death, and the production slowly degenerated into something more cursed than King Tut's Tomb.
You can see amazing footage of the lead actor being treated for a near-lethal heart attack (and look at his eyes when that happens... OUCH!). Or how about the Phillipine army interrupting the famous helicopter sequence being filmed, because they need the crafts and their pilots to bomb an actual mountain nearby (those pesky rebels bothering Marcos...).
And yes, there is also footage of the whole set being blown up, from the alternate ending.
How fitting it seems, that "Hearts of darkness" itself suffered legal issues to such extent that it couldn't be bundled with the object it documents, although it was available on VHS strangely enough.
But I'm delighted that it surfaces at last. Included are commentary tracks with both Eleanor and Francis Ford Coppola, and as an added extra you get the follow-up documentary "CODA: THIRTY YEARS LATER".
All I needed to know. Can't wait! (but have to...)
Thanks go to DVD-Active, who were (I believe) the first to report this.
I know the footage was shot by Eleanor Coppola, but I believe the listed director is George Hickenlooper. Am I wrong?
Am I the only person in the world who would rather watch this documentary over again than the real Apocalypse Now?
Maybe there is something wrong with me but I'm kinda sick of the real film despite its masterpiece status and yet this documentary reveals so much about film making and psychology that it always enterains and enlightens me without boring me for a moment.
Kenixfan,
You're not alone. I love Apocalypse Now, but so far I'm happy to say I saw the Redux version only once (and like to keep it that way), and I've watched the original version three times in the past, but use the DVD mostly to watch bits of it (or show them to people).
Hearts of Darkness though, whenever I happen to drop into it during zapping, I cannot help but watch it till the end.
What can I say, watching terrified people trying to manage Marlon Brando and Dennis Hopper on the same set is nothing short of enthralling...
I'd doubt CODA getting a theatrical release, as it will be an extra on this Hearts of Darkness DVD already.
Right. Duh. I guess it said that at the end of the post. That makes sense.
"Hearts of Darkness" will be released on DVD in November, 2008.
http://www.dvdactive.com/news/releases/hearts-of-darkness.html
The original video footage was shot by Eleanor Coppola, FFC's wife, to craft a documentary on the making of "Apocalypse Now!", but the problems with the feature film production, running not months, but years, Francis Coppola's erratic behavior including serial infidelities and resistance in authorizing Eleanor's documentary caused her to archive the film for over a decade.
Several young film makers learned of the archived footage and obtained Ms Coppolla's and Paramount's permission to edit the loads of film into a coherent documentary. The documentary was finished in 1991, aired on Showtime and later offered for sale in VHS. Eleanor Coppola wrote a book titled "Notes" (now released as "Notes on the Making of Apocalypse Now") that chronicled the long hard road of "Apocalypse Now, the Coppola marriage and the long delayed documentary. I taped the original Showtime presentation and now have it on a DVD transfer. I recommend "Hearts of Darkness" very highly, and I hope that the new version is complete. Francis Coppola reportedly disliked his portrayal in the original and parts are missing according to insider information.