Once Before I Die (1965)

Although I’m sure he’ll claim he’s never seen it, this was actually Francis Ford Coppola’s inspiration for Apocalypse Now. To John Derek’s credit this was a story about the P.I filmed in P.I. Having seen Apocalypse Now first even though Once Before I Die preceeds by decades chronologically puts movie viewers at a distinct disadvantage in being able to identify this as an "homage". When you watch both consecutively you’ll see incredible similarities. The panoramic views and camera angles could have been shot on the same island, right down to the psychedelic ending in Once before I Die’s rogue G.I looking very reminiscent of Marlon Brando in Apocalypse Now. Up until now Coppala has been able to fool some of the people, however I feel time will bring out that Apocalypse Now owes infinitely more to Once Before I Die than to Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness if it owes anything to the former at all. Yes Francis, a few of us have read it. You don’t have to be a huge fan of Naval history to see what a disservice Coppola has done for the portrayal of Nam Vets. John Derek flirts with the boundaries as well but manages to keep well within bounds. In time film critics will make this connection as well and ultimately agree that given it’s budget and chronology Once Before I Die is the better film. By the way when you’re at the video store make sure you get the copy of Apocalypse Now (Redux) it even has the awkward love scene just like Once Before I Die complete with corny retro romance sound track that was cut from the original release. I guess Francis thought, "After all these years, who would remember"?

1965, colour, 95 minutes