QWhy does Willard so coldly shoot the girl on the sampan?
AThere are several possible interpretations, and certainly many more:1. She was dying and Willard shot her knowing they'd never get her to a medical facility in time.2. If it was possible for her to live, there are likely not enough provisions (food, water) on the boat for anyone else in addition to the crew. Another movie where this theme is addressed is Das Boot. In that film, after firing torpedoes at a British cargo ship, the U-boat captain leaves the survivors of the British ship in the water even after hearing their cries for help. He knows that a U-Boat simply cannot accommodate prisoners.3. (Most probable) Willard's mission had priority over everything else and he'd warned the Chief of that before they inspected the sampan ("You wouldn't even be in this part of the river if it weren't for me"). Through much of the film Willard and the Chief lock horns over Willard's mission vs the duty of the boat crew, which is a minor theme of the story. Willard's mission does indeed have priority, but the Chief still feels his duty is to the duties set forth by his own superiors, which include patrolling the river for any enemy forces or those suspected of assisting them. Phillips does say very quickly when they see the sampan that boats like these have been supplying the enemy. Willard staunchly disagrees but the Chief still goes ahead with the inspection.Additionally, like Willard says in his overprice shortly after the sampan incident, "Those boys were never gonna look at me the same way again." It's likely that Willard wanted just that; to make the crew & the Chief realize that Willard is not simply one of them, but a man charged with a top secret mission. To do the job, he has to be a cold-blooded killer & felt the crew needed to know it.
QHow much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
AFor detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Apocalypse Now can be found here.
QWhy does Willard object to the search of the sampan?
AWillard's mission had priority over any other operations the crew of the PBR might have. The mission was to get Willard close to Kurtz' compound and drop him off -- though, because of the top secret nature of it, Willard didn't tell Chief Phillips what the parameters were. When Phillips spotted the sampan and stopped it for an inspection, it was a routine action. However, Willard, having been on many secret missions before, objected thinking that it would cause him & the crew trouble, which it did.
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