"Apocalypse Now" is based on which book by Joseph Conrad?
The Vietnam War film "Apocalypse Now" is considered one of the great epics in cinema history. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola and released in 1979, the movie follows a dangerous journey through war-torn Cambodia to assassinate a renegade Colonel. Though set during the 20th century conflict in Southeast Asia, the film's narrative was inspired by a classic work of literature from the prior century - Joseph Conrad's novella "Heart of Darkness."
A Journey into Darkness - Conrad's "Heart of Darkness"
Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" was first published as a serial in 1899. The story follows a voyage up the Congo River in Africa to retrieve an ivory trader named Kurtz who has apparently gone insane. As the narrator Marlow journeys deeper into the jungle, he encounters the brutal realities of European colonialism. Kurtz's descent into madness echoes a larger descent of civilized man into savagery when unrestrained by society. The novella explores profound and disturbing themes around human nature and evil.
Adapting Darkness - Coppola's Transformation of Conrad's Themes in "Apocalypse Now"
Coppola explicitly modeled the plot and themes of "Apocalypse Now" on Conrad's symbolic tale. The journey upriver into the jungle to find Kurtz becomes a journey up the Nung River in wartime Cambodia to assassinate Colonel Kurtz, a decorated Green Beret who has gone rogue. The film adapts Conrad's meditation on human darkness to the madness of the Vietnam War. Kurtz's violent atrocities in Cambodia also critique the failures of American power and morality in Southeast Asia.
From Congo to Cambodia - Shifting the Focus of Imperial Critique
While Conrad's criticism focused on colonialism in Africa, Coppola uses the structure of "Heart of Darkness" to spotlight the horrors of another imperial misadventure - Vietnam. The literary device of marooning Kurtz in the jungle allows both authors to explore the boundary between so-called civilized and uncivilized behavior. Coppola's adoption of Conrad's plot and motifs cemented the connections between two tales of man's capacity for evil when freed from social constraints.
An Epic Transformation - "Apocalypse Now" and the Continued Relevance of "Heart of Darkness"
Through its Vietnam War setting and added cinematic spectacle, "Apocalypse Now" reinterpreted Conrad's novella for a new era. But the fundamental DNA - the nightmarish river voyage, inscrutable Kurtz, commentary on savagery - that Coppola drew from "Heart of Darkness" is clear. The film's masterful adaptation pays tribute to one of literature's most profound works on human nature.
