All language subtitles for Tour of Duty S03E19 Three Cheers for the Orange, White & Blue

[♪♪♪]

[JIMMY DEAN'S "I WON'T GO
HUNTIN' WITH YOU JAKE" PLAYING]

[LIP-SYNCHING]
♪ Oh, it's springtime
in the mountains ♪

♪ And I'm full of
Mountain dew ♪

♪ Can't even read my catalog ♪

♪ Like I used to do ♪

♪ I'm a-settin'
In that little shed ♪

♪ That's right back
Of the house ♪

♪ Here comes old Jake
With all the hounds ♪

♪ But he's gonna
Hear me shout ♪

♪ Oh, I won't go huntin'
With you, Jake ♪

♪ But I'll go chasin' women ♪

♪ So put them hounds
Back in the pens ♪

♪ And quit
Your silly grinnin' ♪

♪ Well, the moon is bright
And I half-tight ♪

♪ My life is just beginnin' ♪

♪ I won't go huntin'
With you, Jake ♪

♪ But I'll go chasin' women ♪

[PEOPLE CHATTER]

♪ Let's go
Down to the meetin' house ♪

♪ And wait
Till they start home... ♪

How can you stand
to eat that stuff?

Well, I can't.

Believe me,
I'll pay for it later.

Spirit's willing,

but the gut can't take
spicy food anymore.

Or combat duty.

Well, it's like they say:

the older you get,

the harder it is
to stomach the choices you make.

Well, I've paid my dues
in the mistakes department.

Good Lord
got his two cents in, too.

Crippled my knees,
can't read without my glasses,

and the rest is personal.

Which is why
I've been thinking...

now that Ru and Taylor
are back in the saddle,

maybe I can get
a rear echelon job.

Are you crazy, Pop?

Hell, two days
in the rear,

you'd be
begging me

to go back out
in the field.

Not this time.

Not this war.

First the Army sends a crapper
full of conchies over here,

and now they're emptying out
senior citizens' homes.

Son...you will find

that a little respect
for your elders

will go a long ways

towards making you
have a nice day.

Respect?

Hell, the man's got gray hair,
and he's still a PFC.

Hell, I'll bet you're
the only guy over here

that has to pay
their women double.

Boy, don't make me
get up off my comfortable chair,

and I'll whip your butt.

You best just be
moving along.

Hey, I'm cool.

I just got one more question
for grandpa here.

How come he can't
talk for himself?

Get down and give me 20.

Yes, sir.

Fifteen seconds.
Not bad.

But your mother nailed it in 13,
and your grandmother in 12.

Ho-ho-ho...

Sergeant Anderson,
I'd like you to meet my son,

Specialist
Robby Scarlet.

You sure are a sight
for sore eyes, boy.

MAN:
This is a board of inquiry.

Its purpose is to examine
evidence and testimony

as to whether or not

an alleged massacre
of Vietnamese civilians

did in fact occur
at the village of Phu An

on or about 20 September, 1968.

This is not
a court martial.

However,
if the board determines

there is
substantial proof

that the alleged charges
did in fact take place,

it can and may recommend
to the convening authority

that courts martial
are appropriate.

Please be advised

that what you say
during your testimony

can and may be
used against you

in a court martial.

Do you understand
what I've just said?

If so, please sign

the statement form
before you.

I am Major General
Edward Higgins,

MACV's Deputy Commander
for Operations.

On the morning
of 18 September, 1968,

an SR-71 Black Bird
spotted several large groups

moving across
the Cambodian-Vietnamese border,

just east of Tay Ninh.

An attack on Tay Ninh
seemed imminent.

Well, I ordered
Colonel Carl Brewster,

commander of Project Alpha,

to deploy one of his SOG teams
to the area...

and recover several
known weapons caches at, uh...

Thoa Ha, Ku Chau, and Phu An.

Was it
Colonel Brewster

who selected
Lieutenant Myron
Goldman's team

for this mission?

That is
correct.

By whose authority

was Lieutenant Joseph Beller's
infantry platoon

made op-con
to Lieutenant Goldman's team?

By my order.

General, were you aware
that Lieutenant Beller's platoon

had just come off
a 20-day operation

in which they suffered
heavy casualties

from enemy mines and booby-traps

without encountering

identifiable
enemy forces?

Yes, sir.

Lieutenant Beller felt his men

had been nickeled and dimed
to death,

and needed a break.

And still you ordered them out?

The mission required
more firepower

than SOG teams have.

Lieutenant Beller and his men

were the only infantry unit
available.

It was a judgment call.

[MEN TALKING]

[BREWSTER SIGHS]

General Higgins
has been in there

for four hours.

Lieutenant,

it's taken five months
in my command

to get the Army
to investigate Phu An.

You should know

speed isn't
its strong suit.

Hey, Myron.

BREWSTER:
Have you spoken
to Lieutenant Beller

since he was
transferred out?

GOLDMAN:
No, sir.

Not since this morning,
anyway.

He wrote me
a couple of letters.

He still wanted
to be friends,

water under the bridge,
that sort of thing.

I didn't respond.

What do you suppose
justice is

for a man like that?

[SIGHS]

Loss of command,
loss of freedom,

maybe jail.

GOLDMAN:
Well, it doesn't
seem like enough,

after all the women
and children he killed...

all the people's
lives altered.

[SIGHS]

There may be
some justice done here,

but if there isn't...

at least we know
we did the right thing.

MAN:
Come on!
Come on!

That's it!

Ha-ha!

TAYLOR:
Man, Ru. Ru, throw
it here! Ru! Ru!

MAN 2:
Back it up.
Take it out.

Hey, come on.

MAN:
Pass the ball!
Pass it.

Incoming!

MAN 3:
Incoming!

[LAUGHS]

Yeah!

Say, is he
always like this?

Yeah, some things
never change.

All right, y'all, listen up.

We got us a mission.

Young Scarlet's
special SOG team's

half-strength,

so we're gonna take three men

to fill it out
the complement.

Today's gonna be different.

The ranch hands
are spraying out there.

Oh, come on.
I hate that spray.

It smells like
rotten petroleum.

Well, Pop, wear your poncho
if you want to.

But it's only
weed killer, now,

so nobody should be
in any danger.

What's everybody looking at?
Go. Saddle up.

General Elliot...
isn't it true

that during
the past 12 months,

the ratio of weapons
captured

to enemy killed

has been seven
weapons captured

for every 10
of the enemy killed?

That is correct.

But in Phu An,

Lieutenant Goldman
found 42 bodies

and no weapons.

Colonel Brewster's
complaint alleged

an unprovoked attack
on innocent civilians.

The facts
were suspect.

Why didn't you
investigate the incident?

I referred
Colonel Brewster's complaint

to the Deputy Commander
of Operations,

General Higgins.

Did you also submit a report
of suspected war crimes

and/or a serious incident report
to General Higgins?

No, colonel, I did not.

Did you take steps

to ensure that
a proper investigation

was conducted?

No, I did not.

Why not?

My sole duty
was to inform General Higgins

of Colonel Brewster's complaint.

What did you think
of Colonel Brewster

as a project commander?

I think Colonel Brewster
is one of the best commanders

I've ever known
in my 22 years in the Army.

How did Colonel
Brewster get along
with his men?

Like Lieutenant Goldman.

They were all fiercely loyal.

How did Colonel Brewster
get along with those above him?

Colonel Brewster had a...
unique style of command.

He was very aggressive,

but rarely, if ever, misguided.

There was some friction.

Was there friction
between him and General Higgins?

I don't know.

You'll have to ask
General Higgins.

[HELICOPTER APPROACHING]

[SPRAY NOZZLES HISSING]

MAN:
Oh, man.

[MEN MURMURING]

Lieutenant Goldman
had just located

a weapons cache

on the outskirts
of Da Hau

when his team came under
small-arms fire.

Goldman radioed
Lieutenant Beller

to move in.

When the enemy pulled back
to the north,

Goldman again radioed Beller

that the enemy was headed
in his direction.

Goldman next reported
hearing M-16 fire.

When he reached Beller,
he found one KIA.

Several of Beller's men
then drew their weapons

on Lieutenant Goldman's
interpreter.

Why?

Well, according
to Lieutenant Goldman,

the men believed
the interpreter...

to be a double agent.

Did Lieutenant Beller
take control of his men?

No, sir.

Lieutenant Beller
remained silent.

Lieutenant Goldman
then ordered the men

to back off,

which eventually they did.

Did you inform MACV
of your reservations

regarding Lieutenant
Beller's platoon?

Yes, sir, I did.

When Lieutenants
Goldman and Beller

returned that night
and made their reports,

I informed General Elliot
that Beller and his men

were on edge
and stretched to the hilt.

I told him

I wanted Beller
away from my men.

What was his response?

General Elliot
ordered the mission to continue

at first light.

He said,
"Command wants it that way."

When I asked him

if Command was going to
take responsibility

for what might happen,

he said, and I quote,
"No, colonel. You are."

[♪♪♪]

[QUIETLY]
Go, go.

Eyes open.

GRINER:
Sarge, over here.

Over here.

[SOFT MOANING]

[BABY CRYING]

These people don't look
too healthy,

do they, Sarge?

Do you think
it's some kind of epidemic?

I don't know.

They might be suffering

from malnutrition
or cholera,

something
we don't know about...

Percell, check the rest
of the village.

See if there are
any more like this.

[BABY WAILING]

[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]

Chieu, get up here.

[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]

What's she saying?

The spray planes
came over last month.

They destroyed
the crops.

She say you're
starving her people

with the white rain.

They're
not V.C.

[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]

What'd she say?

She wants you to take her son
someplace he would be safe.

[BABY CRYING]

[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]

[EXHALES]

Uh, I'm a--
I'm a soldier, ma'am.

I-- I can't take your baby.

What I can do,
though,

is I can get
a medevac team

and doctors.

Tell her.

Doctors will come in here.

And they've got medicine
that'll make her baby better.

Tell her that.

[SPEAKING VIETNAMESE]

All right, Percell,
you got point.

Let's move out, y'all.
Come on.

Saddle up.

All right.

Come on, Taylor.
Move 'em out.

[BABY CRYING]

What the hell was
that all about?

Mass
vacation.

Move the people
out

and bomb
and shell

the hell
out of their land,

and defoliate it.

And the ones
that refuse to go

get sprayed.

Our way of winning
their hearts and minds.

My way makes
more sense.

Grease them dinks

till there ain't
no more left.

You got a feeling
the war's changed, Ru,

since we've been gone?

Either that,
or we've changed.

You got 27 days
and wake-up, baby.

[BABY SCREAMING]

All right,
all right.

INVESTIGATOR:
Where was your unit,
lieutenant,

when this happened?

Well, sir, we were
on the march to Phu An

when we first heard the gunfire.

My sergeant, uh...

Well, he commented
that it was some of ours.

How many units
were in the area?

Lieutenant Beller's

was the only other unit
in our area of operations.

I tried to raise him
on the radio.

There was no response.

It was about this time
that the gunfire stopped.

A short time later,
my point man pulled up,

there was some movement
up ahead,

and, uh...

that's when
Lieutenant Beller appeared.

Was Lieutenant Beller
out of position?

Yes, sir,
he was.

He was supposed to be acting
as a blocking force

to our north.

Did you ask him
what he was doing there?

Yes, sir.

Uh...

He said that there were
some unfriendlies in the area

and that his radio was out.

Lieutenant, did you buy that?

No, sir.

It wasn't just--

It wasn't just a few shots

that we had heard

fired indiscriminately
at a sniper.

There was a lot of gunfire.

When I pressed
Lieutenant Beller,

he said that his guys
had just lit up the area.

But then he said something
very strange.

He said, uh...

"What happens in the bush
stays in the bush, right?"

It wasn't so much of a statement
as it was a request.

MAN:
Watch your intervals.

MAN 2:
I'm on it.

All right, y'all,
stay alert, now.

We're nearing
the rendezvous point.

We're expecting company,
so nobody get trigger-happy.

MAN 3:
Okay, Sarge.

[♪♪♪]

I'm Sergeant
Harold Apter.

That's Tyler and
Himmel.
No matter.

Melting in and out
of line like that

must come in real handy
at the movies.

Well, we wouldn't
want Charlie to know

we're out here.

Now if he spots us...

must think we're part
of your patrol.

Robbie told us

a lot of stories
about you, Pop.

One I like best

is the 29 kills
you had in
as many months.

In Korea?

Different war,

different
circumstances.

Hey, Pop, that's a story
you forgot to tell us.

Still not
a bad record.

You get to my age,
sergeant,

it's just a memory.

Like the time

I drank Elvis
under the table.

No!

November 15, 1959.

Freiburg, West Germany.

You got to be kidding.
You get his autograph?

Damn straight.

We moved towards
the outskirts of Phu An.

There were, uh...

no people.

And all the livestock
was running loose.

Uh...

I signaled my men
to move around the perimeter.

And that's when
an old Vietnamese man appeared.

He was yelling at us
in Vietnamese.

He was screaming
that we were murderers.

He was carrying
a single-action rifle,

and he drew down on us,
and he killed my interpreter.

And we killed him.

Uh, I then ordered
a sweep of the ville,

And on the north side
of the ville, uh...

we found a ditch.

And there were dead bodies.

There were, uh...

women, and there were old men,

and there were children,
and there were babies, and...

The area around the ditch
was scattered

with M-16 and M-60
shell casings.

I think Sergeant Anderson...

probably put it better
than I could.

He said that he hadn't
signed up for this.

Neither did I.

Neither did my men.

[♪♪♪]

[GUNFIRE]

[CRIES OUT]

Tyler! Aah!

Taylor!

Get 'em up on line!
Lay down fire!

Percell, right flank!
Go! Go!

[BULLETS RICOCHETING]

[GRUNTS]

[SCREAMING]

Fire!

[YELLING IN VIETNAMESE]

MAN:
Pull it back!

MAN 2:
Move in!

MAN 3:
Hold the line!

He's gone, Sarge.

MAN 4:
Any more?

MAN 5:
Negative.

Looks pretty bad,
Sarge.

He's lost
a lot of blood.

All right, sergeant.
Your mission, your call.

Papa Bear,
this is Biscuit Man 6.

We're at two KIA.
One seriously wounded.

Request dustoff
and extraction. Over.

Hey, come on.
Let us stay out!

We can do it.

It's a scrub, soldier.

We'll get our payback
another day.

Yeah. Roger.

Kid's a little
too gung ho at times.

Volunteers for missions
we haven't even thought of.

But he's got
more kills

than any other guy
in the unit.

ANDERSON:
Yo, Taylor!

Yo!

Adjust the men
on the perimeter.

Stay alert
out there, now.

[♪♪♪]

We were walking
through the ville,

and every--
Everything was fine.

Then, all of a sudden,

one of them starts running.

A girl...

I think...

And then we just--

We just did it.

We shot her...

And, uh...

And then I
shot her again.

Put her out of her misery.

I didn't take any pleasure
in killing any of those people.

How could I?

It's un-American.

But the Army
sent us to Phu An

for a reason,

the same reason
they sent us to Nam:

to stop Communism.

They were just pawns.

Blobs.

Pieces of flesh.

[INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC PLAYS,
MEN CHATTER]

I don't want
no son of mine

swiping ears
off dead men.

Hey, look, some guys
collect AK-47s,

V.C. flags...

I know a guy
out in the Tran

that collected fingers.

Big deal.

Hey! Hands off.

It's private property.

It's perverted.

What about your
29 kills in Korea?

Was that perverted?

It was necessary.

It wasn't something
I went looking for.

I didn't love
doing it, Robby.

Truth is, I couldn't stand
to see their faces.

Well, that's what
makes us different.

'Cause for me,
the thrill of the kill

comes from being
up close and personal.

Catch you later, Pops.

Colonel
Brewster.

My son's heroes

are Stokely Carmichael
and Abby Hoffman.

Find myself shelling out
four grand a year

for college tuition,

so that he can tell me
that, uh...

my career sucks,

and he can march
on Washington.

He cut an ear
off a dead NVA.

It's not
his first trophy.

Are we the problem, colonel,

or is the Army to blame
for making us the way we are?

INVESTIGATOR:
State your name, rank,
grade and organization

for the record.

Michael Kelman.

Specialist Fourth Class
Michael Kelman,

Infantry, Fourth Brigade?

No. Michael Kelman.

I gave the rank back.

All that a man hath
shall he give for his life.

Let the record
show

the witness

is Specialist Fourth Class
Michael Kelman.

[WHISPERS INAUDIBLY]

Specialist Kelman,

did you personally kill
any civilians in Phu An?

Did you witness

Lieutenant Beller
personally kill any civilians?

Specialist Kelman...

are you exercising
your right to remain silent?

No, sir.

[WHISPERS
INAUDIBLY]

Michael...

Michael.

Michael.

As God is your witness,

did you see Lieutenant Beller
personally kill any civilians?

Did you see the men
in your platoon

kill any Vietnamese
civilians?

[♪♪♪]

[SOBS]

Jeez, I can't
get rid of this.

Jungle rot, Griner.

You don't
get rid of it.

Everyone in Nam itches.
Come on.

[MEN CHATTERING]

Hey, dad,

you still run the 100
in under 10 seconds?

Hell, no.

How about you try?

For old times' sake.

Son, the only running
I do these days

is after Charlie.

And believe me,
my heart ain't in it.

Twenty bucks says
I can beat you.

I'll save my money
and my knees.

Ain't nothing
like a little wager

to get the blood
flowing.

I got 20 on junior here.
Sorry about that, Pops.

You guys aren't listening.
I'm not interested.

I'm gonna have to go
with Pop.

What?

You heard me.

I got faith
in the man.

Forget it.

Wait a minute.

Last time we raced,
you gave me your word
that I'd get a rematch.

Guess I'd better learn
to keep my mouth shut.

Guess so.

All right, here we go.

We're gonna run from here
to the barracks' door.

Griner,
you call the start.

Dad, I'll tell
you what.

To be fair
and square,

I'm gonna give you
a little head start,

all right?

All right.

You just keep
your eye on this,

so you'll know
what to follow.

GRINER:
Y'all ready?
On the count of three.

Okay,
let's go, kid.

One, two...

three!

[SHOUTING, CHEERING]

[GASPING]

MAN:
Pop.

Are you all right,
Pop?

Dad!

Dad, are you okay?

[MEN LAUGHING
AND CHEERING]

I thought I taught you
never to be suckered, son.

That was a sucker punch
if I ever saw one.

You never change.

You know,

you've never let me
beat you at anything.

Not cards,
not basketball, not racing.

Nothing.

Lighten up.
It was only a race.

Yeah, but you cheated.

Life ain't
always fair, son.

Sometimes
you gotta cheat to win.

Believe me,
Charlie will.

[LAUGHING]

MAN:
Way to go, Pop!
Whoo!

MAN 2:
Pretty good.

Look, about
this afternoon...

Forget it.

Come on. I know
I treated you crappy.

Look, I'm not very good
at this father business,

but maybe I could improve
with age, you know?

At least I'd like to try.

Let's go! Come on, man.
Let's go.

Dad, this is
gonna have to wait

till I get back.

Well, maybe we can do
a little R & R together,

you know?

We could get looped,

raise hell
with the ladies.

What do you say?

It's time you get yourself
a calendar, Percell.

I'm saving my money.

You go ahead.

You're doing
a good enough job

for both of us.

GRINER:
I must have
walked

through a field
of poison ivy.

There ain't no poison ivy
over here, Griner.

Well, something's
making my skin itch.

And it's driving me crazy.

Uh, do you
mind

if I take
a look at that?

No, it's all right.

It'll be gone
in a day or two, Doc.

Look, I've,
uh...

I've been seeing a lot
of guys in dispensary,

and they all have rashes
just like yours.

And every one
has come in contact
with those defoliants.

Like I said,
it's nothing,
all right?

All I'm saying

is the spraying
that they're doing

is not as harmless
as they're telling us.

I mean, this is
chemical warfare.

Give it
a rest.

Even the NVA
are carrying pamphlets

about what they're supposed
to do if they're sprayed.

They're supposed to get
rid of their water,

their food.

They're supposed
to wash.

This kind of stuff
gets in your system,

you don't know
what'll happen.

It's like we're guinea pigs
for the chemical companies.

Look, Sarge said
it won't hurt us.

I believe him.

That's right.
I believe him, too.

Fine.

What are you doing,
Doc?

Packing it all up
before you throw it out

this time?

No more tantrums, Doc.

We already fixed
the window once.

[SIGHS]

I did that.

I was just, uh...

looking for...
something.

Anyway,
the dispensary's

been keeping me
really busy, you know,

so they got a spare room
in the back.

Just, uh, stay over there,
you know?

Save on my
commuting time.

So, uh,
see you guys later.

What are you looking at me for?

Nothing, Percell.

Lieutenant Beller,

this investigation
is being conducted

under Article 32

of the Uniform Code
of Military Justice.

It is therefore
my duty to advise you

that you are suspected

of murdering
Vietnamese civilians

and disobeying orders
and regulations.

Do you understand

your rights
as a witness?

Yes, sir.

However, I'd like to state
for the record

that the only crime
I'm guilty of committing, sir,

is one of judgment:

That of putting
the lives of my men

above those of the Communists.

Duly noted.

Lieutenant,

on the morning
of 20 September, 1968,

did you lead your platoon
into Phu An?

Yes, sir.

For what purpose?

It was an enemy ville.

You were operating
as a blocking force

for Lieutenant Goldman.

His unit was not
in the area.

Yes, sir, but my point man,
Specialist Michael Kelman,

spotted suspicious activity
on the trail.

I decided to follow
the suspected V.C.,

and they led us
directly into Phu An.

What happened next, lieutenant?

We, uh, checked them out

like we'd done
a hundred times before.

I ordered Sergeant Worthen
to herd the locals

into a semicircle
in the center of the ville.

When several of them
refused,

I determined that
they were likely V.C.

and had booby-trapped
the area.

I had lost three
good men to booby-traps
that week.

My judgment proved correct

when we heard an explosion,
and they open fired on us.

We defended ourselves.

Lieutenant Goldman
has already testified

he found no enemy weapons
in the ville.

How do you explain this,
lieutenant?

I can't explain that, sir.

I can only tell you the facts.

We were fired upon.
We returned fire.

Lieutenant...

did you personally kill
any civilians?

Negative, sir.

I did not personally kill
any Vietnamese.

I represented
the United States of America

and my president.

Lieutenant...

did you witness any of your men
kill innocent civilians?

Negative, sir.

Lieutenant Beller,

Lieutenant Goldman testified

he found 42 civilian bodies
in a ditch.

Sir, you asked me

if I saw any of my men
kill innocent civilians.

No, sir, I did not.

Those civilians
were not innocent.

The next day,

any one of those
so-called civilians

could have ambushed my men,
Lieutenant Goldman's men,

or some other platoon.

I didn't want
to take that chance.

[WHISPERS INAUDIBLY]

There were children

in that village,
lieutenant.

Babies.

Sir, I've seen children
throwing grenades, laying mines.

Young girls carrying AK-47s.

I've lost good men
to children, sir.

How do you sleep at night,
lieutenant?

With due respect, sir,
I sleep very well

with the knowledge
that I'm doing my duty

by serving my country
and my president.

How'd Ruiz
and Taylor do?

Not too bad.

But now Pops' son,
that's another story.

The boy seems to think

the only way to win
this war is to kill
all the Vietnamese.

Do you think
that's his fault?

Yes, sir, I do.

Well, I'm starting
to wonder.

I spent the last two days
sitting outside of a courtroom,

and I watched Beller,

and I watched his men.

I think the system's
as much at fault as they are.

Excuse me, sir,

but maybe you've been
sitting there too long.

As for myself,

I'll never forget looking
into that ditch that day,

or into Lieutenant Beller's face

at the river when he said
nothing has happened.

But they keep on pushing
for body count,

and orders are orders,

and maybe you and I

just put a different spin
on things with our guys.

No one ordered
Lieutenant Beller to
grease that ville, sir.

[KNOCKING]

Come in.

Wrapped my testimony up
this afternoon.

Thought maybe
we could grab a drink.

Catch up.

Catch you later,
L.T.

What do you say, Goldman.

You ready to give a buddy
a...second chance?

Got a lot of paperwork
to do, Skip.

Look, Myron, I know it, uh...

seems like we're on opposite
sides in this inquiry thing,

but, you know,
we both want the same thing.

We do?

Yeah. We do.

The truth.

And my men were just
doing their duty.

The brass was so hot
to blame somebody,

they didn't blame themselves.

We just followed the orders.

I could really use that drink.

[FOLK MUSIC PLAYS ON JUKEBOX,
MEN CHATTERING]

That's the story.

Now
I want
the true story.

That is the true story.

I just embellished it
a little bit.

A little bit?

It was better
last night.

Mind if I sit down?

I don't mind if you don't mind.

Thank you.

You're welcome.

So I hear you moved out
of the barracks.

Uh-huh.

You know, Doc,

I'm the last guy in the world
to give you advice,

but if you want things

to be the way
they used to be with the guys,

moving out of the barracks
isn't the answer.

It's not going to help.

Things are never gonna be
the way they used to be.

Look, we all make mistakes.

God knows,
I've made mistakes.

But you learn from them,

So do your buddies.

Lieutenant,
you and I are different.

You know?

I wear glasses...

I...

have the same chest
I was born with.

Never had to
fight the ladies off
with a stick.

I'm a loner, not a joiner.

And I've never had
so many friends--

I just--
I just couldn't
count 'em on one hand.

And I had a few good
months there, you know.

I was just one of the boys.

And I never thought
it was gonna last.

It didn't.

I'm back to where
I started.

And I'm inclined
to stay there.

You know, that's where
you're wrong, Doc.

We're more alike
than you think.

See, my strong suit is,
uh...

ticking people off.

Hell, Goldman's
my best friend.

He doesn't even like me.

This is a little different.

I let a man die.

Yeah. I know.

Look, Doc,
all I'm trying to say is

that it's tough enough
going through life

on the outside looking in.

In the Nam,

you need your buddies
just to survive, man.

You can't do it
on your own.

I gotta try.

What you got to do is,

you got to let your buddies
like you again.

If they knock you down,
you got to get back up.

It hurts.

Yeah.

Well, I'll loan you my chest.

[LAUGHS]

Then one night,
I was on guard duty.

And I saw this GI
with the motor pool

fill up his canteen with gas
and start to drink it.

And I walked over

and asked him
what he was doing.

He said he was gonna
blow himself up.

Asked me if I had a match.

Before I could say no,
up walked Elvis in his uniform.

I never saw a GI
so excited as that boy.

He got Elvis's autograph,
and that's what saved his life.

Elvis thought that
called for a heck
of a celebration.

And that's how
you drank the King
under the table?

Hey, Sarge!

Hey.

Hey, buy you a beer?

Uh, no, thanks.

Listen, Pop,
I got some bad news.

You would have been
proud of him, man.

Bobby had hair.

He cut off that gook's ear
but good before they got him.

It's my son.

I'll take him.

INVESTIGATOR:
The findings of this inquiry
are as follows:

On 20 September,
1968,

U.S. Army troops
of the First Brigade

massacred 42 noncombatants
in the hamlet of Phu An village,

Phúc Long province,
Republic of Vietnam.

The massacre
resulted primarily

from the false and misleading
picture of Phu An

that Lieutenant Beller
presented to his men

when characterizing it
as a V.C. stronghold.

Prior to the massacre,

there had developed within
Lieutenant Beller's unit

a permissive attitude
toward the treatment

and safeguarding
of noncombatants,

which attitude
contributed

to the treatment of
such persons at Phu An.

This board finds
sufficient evidence

to charge
Lieutenant Joseph Beller

with the murder
of 42 Vietnamese persons

and recommends that general
court-martial proceedings

be instituted.

Evidence also indicates
that numerous serious offenses

in violation of the uniform code
of military justice

and the law of war

have been committed...

by military personnel
who were present in Phu An.

This evidence will be furnished
to representatives

of the provost marshall general
of the Army

for further investigation.

He's changed a lot
since OCS...

but he's not a monster.

Horrors of war

are seldom committed
by monsters, Lieutenant.

They're committed
by normal men

Under abnormal
situations.

That's the tragedy.

I got to talk
to him.

Oh, God.

[GUNSHOT]

[♪♪♪]