One of the most harrowing war movies ever made that features a performance for the ages is about to leave streaming. Though actors such as Tom Hanks, Marlon Brando, R. Lee Ermey, and George C. Scott certainly delivered memorable moments in movies like Saving Private Ryan, Apocalypse Now, Full Metal Jacket, and Patton, no one has really ever come close to matching the work done by Tom Cruise in Born on the Fourth of July. Oliver Stone’s epic Vietnam War movie was the star at his best, with many saying he’s yet to top his portrayal of a disenfranchised veteran who transforms from a red-blooded patriot into an anti-war activist.
While Born on the Fourth of July is currently streaming on Netflix, subscribers only have a short time left to view what is inarguably one of the greatest war epics ever made. What’s on Netflix notes that the film is set to leave the platform on October 1, meaning you have less than two weeks to check out this classic movie. If you’ve never seen it, now would be a good time to add it to your watch list for the weekend so you can find out for yourself what makes Stone’s picture such a revered fan-favorite.
Also starring Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J. Barry, Jerry Levine, Frank Whaley, and Willem Dafoe, Born on the Fourth of July isn’t just your run-of-the-mill war movie – it’s a phenomenal character study about how the conflict in Vietnam affected those who were not only on the front lines, but those who waited back at home for their safe return. Stone based the film on real-life veteran Ron Kovic, whose autobiography of the same name was published in 1976. Check out the synopsis for Born on the Fourth of July below:
“In the mid 1960s, suburban New York teenager Ron Kovic (Cruise) enlists in the Marines, fulfilling what he sees as his patriotic duty. During his second tour in Vietnam, he accidentally kills a fellow soldier during a retreat and later becomes permanently paralyzed in battle. Returning home to an uncaring Veterans Administration bureaucracy and to people on both sides of the political divide who don’t understand what he went through, Kovic becomes an impassioned critic of the war.”
‘Born on the Fourth of July’ Was Tom Cruise’s Finest Work
Though Cruise had been around Hollywood for a minute before Born on the Fourth of July hit movie screens on December 20, 1989, he’d yet to really find his footing as an actor. While films like The Outsiders, Risky Business, and All the Right Moves certainly showed the budding talents of the up-and-coming star, it felt like he was still holding back as he worked to find his confidence as a leading man.
When it came to Born on the Fourth of July, however, there was hesitation. Cruise immersed himself in the role of Kovic so much so that it was almost impossible for the viewing audience to remember they were watching a movie. The film could have been a documentary, that’s how good he was in it. As one user on IMDb put it: “Tom Cruise should have gotten his first Oscar with this movie.” Indeed, he should have, but he was up against stiff competition that year and ultimately ended up losing out to Daniel Day-Lewis for his performance in My Left Foot.
To this day, Cruise has never given a performance quite like the one in Born on the Fourth of July. It’s a testament to Stone’s direction that he was able to get something so special out of the star to create what is undoubtedly a cinematic masterpiece that certainly deserves its Certified Fresh rating of 86% on Rotten Tomatoes.
- Release Date
-
December 20, 1989
- Runtime
-
145 Minutes
