{"id":1514,"date":"2021-09-26T13:58:38","date_gmt":"2021-09-26T13:58:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/?p=1514"},"modified":"2021-09-26T17:06:31","modified_gmt":"2021-09-26T17:06:31","slug":"from-the-article-only-in-hollywood-oliver-stone-talks-about-his-memoir-platoon-shoot-in-philippines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/from-the-article-only-in-hollywood-oliver-stone-talks-about-his-memoir-platoon-shoot-in-philippines\/","title":{"rendered":"From the article: “[Only IN Hollywood] Oliver Stone talks about his memoir, \u2018Platoon\u2019 shoot in Philippines”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cJohnny Depp was an unknown, basically. I thought he had the face of the star. He was one of the soldiers,\u201d recalled Oliver Stone about the actor, one of many he brought to the Philippines to shoot Platoon<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his newly released memoir, Chasing the Light<\/em>, the Oscar and Golden Globe winning director pens an intimate account of his life and career so far, from his childhood, fighting in the Vietnam War, to making Platoon<\/em>, including the tense preparations impacted by the People Power Revolution, and ending with the film winning the Academy best picture prize.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

I talked via video call with the filmmaker, who has grown fond of the Philippines since he shot Platoon<\/em> and Born on the Fourth of July<\/em>, about his engrossing biography which is subtitled, Writing, Directing, and Surviving Platoon, Midnight Express, Scarface, Salvador, and the Movie Game<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Oliver Stone devotes several pages, including photos, to the making of “Platoon” in the Philippines. Photo by Ruben V. Nepales<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI tried to get young people to play the roles from all over the country (US),\u201d continued Oliver, who was awarded the Bronze Star for valor in Vietnam, about casting Johnny and other actors in his first of four Vietnam War-themed films.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI tried to look for people from the South because there were a lot of infantry soldiers from the South, a lot of black soldiers and from inner Chicago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut most of the troops came from small towns. So they were assembled from everywhere \u2013 white, black, Asian. The training was amazing because we broke all the rules of the Screen Actors Guild. They said you need a 12-hour turnaround. We couldn\u2019t do that because I really wanted as much reality as the actors could go through. As I remember when I was in the infantry, I was tired and nervous and I didn\u2019t sleep very well for almost 15 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo, I wanted to get that feeling of irritation and hardness and as realistic as I remembered it. I got Dale Dye to help me. Dale had been an ex-Marine, not infantry.  He ran the actors\u2019 military training school with the Philippine Army. He helped us in the rainforest there. I forgot the name of it (Laguna), not far from Manila.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe kept the actors up as much as we could. We assigned them sentry duties. They would be on two to three hours and then rotate. So they were pretty tired, irritated and angry with me and Dale. But Dale whipped them into shape. He was on them night and day.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the book, the controversial filmmaker revealed that some of the actors\u2019 parents were worried about their \u201cbaby boys\u201d going to Manila as the People Power Revolution intensified.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA lot of the actors\u2019 parents did have problems but not once we started,\u201d Oliver admitted in our chat. \u201cThey had the problems before because the (People Power) Revolution scared them. Their baby boys had not been out of the country, much less in a revolution. I wasn\u2019t worried about it because I\u2019d been to a lot. But we lost a few actors because their parents didn\u2019t want them to go. They were scared.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe replaced them because I\u2019ve already cast the film more than once so we had a long list of young people from different cities in mind. So we replaced them, thank God. But the key guys stayed in and they grew \u2013 Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe and Charlie Sheen. They were the moral leaders.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOver the course of the two weeks of training, they really buttoned up. They loved it. In fact, they had a reunion not too long ago in Florida. Most of them came together again to celebrate that experience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The cast included Forest Whitaker (who once told me he stayed with students in Sampaloc as the Revolution raged) and Kevin Dillon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The uprising to throw out Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos as Oliver prepped to film Platoon<\/em> came at a tough time. He wrote in his memoir, \u201cSalvador<\/em>, which I was promoting in New York to open in March 7 (1986), was not going at all the way I\u2019d hoped, and now Platoon<\/em> seemed to be falling apart again \u2013 two films so dear to me dying at the same time. It was as if the Fates were mocking my hopes with this crashing catastrophe.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBy February 22, with mass media in the US calling for Marcos to leave, President Regan was quietly shifting US support away from him. And on February 24, Marcos finally abandoned ship with some $15 in jewels, gold, and cash to a secure base in Hawaii, never to return. It was later learned that after years of corruption, billions of dollars were missing from the Philippine treasury.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The outspoken director said in our interview, \u201cHe (Ferdinand Marcos) stole a lot of money, we know that\u2026 apparently anywhere north of $10 billion was missing\u2026. He was a pretty good thief.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jun Juban, the Philippine coordinator of Platoon<\/em> who is mentioned several times by Oliver in his book, told me by email: \u201cIt was a very tough shoot, made even more complicated when it was being done right in the middle of the EDSA Revolution. We had to delay the start of filming for about a week. Luckily, after Marcos left, I was able to talk to General Fidel Ramos. He allowed us to proceed with the filming in spite of the fact that my DND (Department of National Defense) contract and approval was with the past regime.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"\/
Oliver Stone signed a “Platoon” poster for Jun Juban, the film’s Philippine coordinator, and wrote, “To Jun, who made the impossible happen.” Photo courtesy of Jun Juban<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI can only say that if Ramos did not say yes, Platoon<\/em> would have never been made and Oliver would not have been Oliver,\u201d added Jun, the go-to man for foreign productions in the Philippines, with credits that include The Bourne Legacy<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMuch of my time during Platoon<\/em> was making sure we had the military support for equipment since it was extra difficult because of the change in government. In spite of all the obstacles, we finished on time and on budget.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oliver, now 73, ends his book on Platoon<\/em>\u2019s triumphant Oscars night, with his memory of kissing his \u201cdream girl\u201d Elizabeth Taylor, who was the best director presenter, and Dustin Hoffman announcing the best picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEven members of our team in the Philippines were calling in,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With more chapters added to Oliver\u2019s life since that evening, I predict a sequel to his memoir.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

As I wrote in my first column for Rappler<\/a>, Jon Jon Briones is stunning in his major role as Dr. Richard Hanover, the head of a psychiatric hospital, in Ryan Murphy\u2019s Ratched<\/em>. The actors\u2019 co-stars agree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sarah Paulson, who plays Nurse Ratched in Netflix\u2019s origin story of the nurse from hell in the classic film, One Flew Over the Cuckoo\u2019s Nest<\/em>: \u201cThe character that Jon Jon plays is very complicated. He\u2019s a wonderful dancer and singer so he has this energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSome of the stuff we were doing is very dark. Jon Jon had to do a lot of intense stuff. All that stuff he does with Sharon\u2019s (character\u2019s) son\u2026that whole scene is just so crazy. I didn\u2019t get to be a part of that, which was unfortunate.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sarah\u2019s cherished scene with Jon Jon: \u201cMaybe the scene in the first episode when I go see him, Doctor Hanover, for the first time. I\u2019m trying to slither my way into a position there (in the psychiatric hospital). He\u2019s not receiving me well, but there\u2019s something there that he is sparking to, and vice versa for me.  It was really an opportunity for us to go toe-to-toe.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI just find him to be incredibly inspiring. He has the most infectious energy of joy.  We would finish every day of shooting and I would be getting my wig off. And he\u2019d be sitting there, drinking a martini. I would be like, \u2018Where did you get that?\u2019 He would be like, \u2018I made it because I had a hard day and I am going to reward myself with this cocktail.\u2019”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI am like, \u2018I am not doing it right. I am not doing anything like that at the end of the day!  I have to start having a martini in the trailer while the wig is coming off. Wow, you just changed my whole life. Not only are you a genius but you are teaching me how to live my life right.\u2019  So I can\u2019t say enough about him. I love him so much.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Judy Davis, who plays Betsy Bucket, also a nurse in the asylum: \u201cI decided with my backstory that Betsy really came to California because she wanted to be in movies, in musicals, but she ended up being a psychiatric nurse.  So there\u2019s this frustration in her and also, she\u2019s madly in love with Jon Jon\u2019s character. So the scene where they danced was like every dream she ever had come true.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnd there was only one problem with her. She\u2019s not a good dancer. She\u2019s about as good a dancer as I am, which is not good.  Whereas Jon Jon is an amazing dancer.  He\u2019s got the most incredible body and he\u2019s fit, something also I am not (laughs).”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo the dance scene became one of Betsy Bucket getting exhausted and increasingly hysterical (laughs).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sharon Stone, whose wealthy widow character\u2019s son is a patient of Jon Jon\u2019s Dr. Hanover: \u201cIt\u2019s always great to encounter someone (Jon Jon) that you haven\u2019t worked with who\u2019s such an exceptional talent. Ryan is such a master of bringing a diverse kind of talent together. It\u2019s just wonderful, so exciting.\u201d \u2013 Rappler.com<\/strong>

From article:
https:\/\/www.rappler.com\/life-and-style\/literature\/oliver-stone-memoir-chasing-the-light?fbclid=IwAR3Uyf2vfzw5rGh5owd4SAZXva58SHvIfrKoj7WzKf5RVLW09F8qDmDJSoo<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cJohnny Depp was an unknown, basically. I thought he had the face of the star. He was one of the soldiers,\u201d recalled Oliver Stone about the actor, one of many he brought to the Philippines to shoot Platoon. In his newly released memoir, Chasing the Light, the Oscar and Golden Globe winning director pens an intimate account […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"two_page_speed":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-articles"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1514","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1514"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1517,"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1514\/revisions\/1517"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/philippinefilms.com\/pfsi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}