The end of the Vietnam War brought with it the baggage that
those involved brought home with them to the shores of the US. Soldiers who had
gone off as innocent young men returned hardened by their experiences having
seen and gone through more than one should expect of a person. Those
experiences were rife with stories that could be used in novels and films and
both became a staple at the time. A book called DOG SOLDIERS by Robert Stone
found its way to the screen in 1978 as WHO’LL STOP THE RAIN.
John Converse (Michael Moriarty) is a war correspondent in
Vietnam battle shocked and scarred inside by his experiences. His moral compass
tilted from his time there he talks old friend Ray Hicks (Nick Nolte) into
smuggling a brick of heroin back home. When he gets there Converse’ wife Marge
(Tuesday Weld) will pay him and the deal will be completed.
But as with most stories things don’t always go as planned.
To begin with both Converse and Hicks had no idea that Marge has become
addicted to Dilaudid making her judgements not the best. She also has no idea
that Hicks is bringing this package and thus no money to give him in return. In
addition to that the men Converse set the deal up with are not nearly as
reputable as he would have thought.
His naïve decision to band with these men results in their
attempt to take the drugs from Marge and leave her dead in their wake. They had
never counted on Hicks being there and he stops them, leaving them tied up in
her house as he and Marge hit the road, drugs in hand. The thugs eventually get
free and contact the man behind it all, a corrupt DEA agents named Antheil
(Anthony Zerbe). The trio set out to recover the drugs and kill both Hicks and
Marge.
The pursued couple hole up in a location Hicks has to decide
what to do when Marge begins to go through withdrawal. Hicks uses a portion of
the heroin to wean her off her dependence and as the days pass the couple get
to know one another and the potential for romance blossoms.
With few options and knowing the men will stop at nothing to
get the drugs, Hicks forms a plan. It’s risky and there’s no clue who will come
out of this alive. It is the last hope for both him and Marge and he’s willing
to take it.
The movie could play out as a simple melodrama but instead
with the background of the war combined with the drug smuggling we end up with
a movie all on its own, not quite easily pegged as one genre or another. More
than anything it’s a story about people, who they are, how they act, how they
change and where they can go if given the option.
So many movies based on Vietnam vets revolved around their
return to home and various forms of PTSD. Some had them broken physically and
mentally (COMING HOME) while others showed them as too violent to contain
(RAMBO). This movie opts for a more realistic approach and in so doing forms
the story into both an anti-war film and a human drama. The war may have
destroyed the moral compass of some such as Converse who is willing to sell
drugs but it also shows an anti-hero in Hicks who may be complicit in the
transaction but still retains enough morality to try and save an innocent
woman.
The two main actors in the film, Nolte and Weld, do an
amazing job here. Nolte had already proven himself dynamic actor in his earlier
films but here shows a mixture of a tough guy who knows how to handle a
situation he is thrown in and at the same time sensitive enough to handle the
needs of someone in pain. Weld, who had started her career as a girl next door
type, shows here that she has more acting chops than many would have thought
she possessed. When the two are onscreen together they bring the story to life
and that’s a satisfying accomplishment making this a movie worth seeking out.
Twilight Time has done their usual job of releasing the film
with the best picture quality possible. Extras are limited as with most of
their titles and include an isolated music track, a short with supervising
editor John Bloom talking about the film and the original theatrical trailer.
As with all of their titles this is limited to just 3,000 copies so if
interested you’ll want to pick one up right away.
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