Unfortunately, the message of many war films goes over the heads of a handful of viewers. Films like “Apocalypse Now” and “Full Metal Jacket,” while to many are obvious scathing critiques of war, are often instead used to glorify military culture. 

In “Da 5 Bloods,” director Spike Lee dismantles the glorification of war while simultaneously paying homage and critiquing its often misinterpreted predecessors.

The ensemble cast of characters find themselves glorifying war as they return to Vietnam to recover the remains of their fallen squad leader and search for lost treasure. The trip leads each of the four Vietnam veterans down a unique personal journey in which they realize none of them ever truly left Vietnam and uncover the honest impact the war had on each of them. 

While containing many of Lee’s filmmaking trademarks, the film is also a chance for Lee to make the classic war film he never did. While being a filmmaker through the era in which many classic Vietnam movies were released, back then Lee was focused on telling stories of Black history with “Malcom X” and social commentary on issues facing the Black community with “Do The Right Thing.” In “Da 5 Bloods,” Lee puts to film the undertold role of Black people in the time of the Vietnam War. 

Characters in “Da 5 Bloods” even poke fun at the lack of realism and representation in films relating to the Vietnam War, calling out “Rambo: First Blood” for being a story about an imaginary prisoner of war while not focusing on real-life heroes. 

What “Da 5 Bloods” does masterfully is wrap style, history, action, adventure and social commentary into an unforgettable epic rivaling any other war film made to date.

The film begins with historical footage of the Black community’s role in the Vietnam War, from historical Black figure’s opposition to the war as well as harrowing footage of the war’s events. Some may find the footage and photography unnecessary due to its shocking nature. The truth is viewing these moments in history is necessary not only for the context of the film, but to understand the world today. 

As the characters flash back to their time in the Vietnam War, the picture lowers its aspect ratio and changes to beautiful 16mm film as opposed to digital while also using classic set design. In these flashbacks the characters are not digitally de-aged or replaced by younger actors other than the fallen squad leader played by Chadwick Boseman, making for jarring symbolism showing these characters are still trapped in Vietnam inside their heads. 

The action of the film, both in flashbacks and in current day, is done in a way that evokes the adventure of classic war movies without going as far to glorify war itself. The character’s own return to Vietnam seems to be their own personal living out of the glory days, but quickly gets out of hand to show the consequences of these actions. 

Like many of Lee’s other films, the ideological message isn’t shown in a straightforward manner, nor is it straightforward in nature. Instead the themes are presented by competing ideologies through various characters. The feelings the viewer gets are extremely raw when presented with history, but each character’s reactions and interpretations of history is what makes for the most intriguing conflict of the film. By the time each character reaches their own finale, their essence and importance to the film has been made abundantly clear. 

Even with all of Lee’s filmmaking talents operating at their peak, actor Delroy Lindo manages to make the most lasting impact with his Oscar-worthy performance as one of the best written characters in film. An entire article could be dedicated to analyzing the character arc of Paul. The most powerful moment of “Da 5 Bloods” is when Paul’s story reaches its climax toward the end of the film’s two-and-a-half hour runtime.

“Da 5 Bloods” fits the vibe of classic war-related films before it; a long runtime perfect for a midday watch with classic characters, great action and a sense of adventure. However, “Da 5 Bloods” is also a completely unique war film exploring largely untouched topics in film with unseen modern perspective. Lee may be hitting a late-career peak, as “Da 5 Bloods” stands with his best work and makes a strong case to be one of the best war-related movies of all time.

Final Verdict: 9/10