Purple Hearts (1984)

I am sure the principal actors did their best, but ultimately they both really lack something...something hard to define.Ladd at least makes me believe she could have been a nurse in Viet Nam. On the other hand, I have trouble believing Ken Wahl made it out of high school, much less made it through medical school, life as an intern, and then independent doctor.Still...their romantic moments are sketchy. They both don't convince me of the "irresistible" attraction. Ladd seems a little too un-emotive and bland...again, probably an accurate portrayal of a war time nurse, forced to distance herself from what she is seeing everyday...thus kind of turning us away from sympathizing with her. By the time she is shaking from her brush with death with the black marketeers her acting seems believable, but just still manages to be cold. Accurate but not endearing. As a side note she looks excellent in a white bra.Ken Wahl. The less said the better. I am sure he is a likable. I can believe that someone saw him and thought "he's going to be a big star!". They were wrong. This movie proved it. This was his vehicle and, maybe it was that huge unibrow, but every time there was a close up of him...the audience probably focused more on that than on his attempts at "emotions". Cheryl Ladd also got her big chance with this...and I suspect she can thank her relationship to the man the production company is named after, Alan Ladd Jr. president/founder of the Ladd Co....her relative by marriage. But in the end there was a reason she was relegated to TV beyond this and it shows up here.The movie was an interesting, but rambling romp. It might have been a sleeper hit or even a regular one...but Wahl and Ladd were not the two actors to put it over the top.

This movie is a fond memory for me, yes i know that sounds weird as it is a movie about a horrible war that i am too young to know about. The reason is, The man Ken Wahl portrays in this film is my grandfather. The names have been changed and no one ever officially stated that it is his story. But it is. This is what happened to my grandfather in the 60s. He was sent home to Lakewood WA where his family lived (my grandmother uncle aunts and father were) he never related the intricate details to any of us. he worked as a doctor for the rest of his life. He passed away in September 2002 on the first anniversary of 9/11. but as i watch this movie, i am reminded of him. and what he did for his country.

This thoroughly entertaining movie has two intertwined story lines: a talented Navy doctor (Ken Wahl) trying to save lives while coping with the challenges of working in a war zone, and his involvement with a talented nurse (Cheryl Ladd).Other reviewers have already commented on the superb photographic artistry, so I'll just say that, more than 20 years after first seeing it, what still stands out in my mind is its ending.It's astonishing that (as of June, 2006), Purple Hearts still has not been released on DVD. Until then, you still may be able to rent or buy it on VHS.

A surprisingly good warmovie.It has realistic battle scenes, competent acting plus it shows the Vietnam war from the medics' and doctors' point of view. The romance was believable and Cheryl Ladd was always a decent actress (and good-looking).Battle scene highlights: the NVA assault on a USMC firebase. Those Marines' bloodlust was on a par with the NVA's!I don't like chicks' movies, or *romantic* movies. I do agree however, that nearly all warmovies need a healthy dose of realistic romance. 'Purple Hearts' provides us with just that.