LOS ANGELES (AFP) - The rest of Hollywood might be training their camera lenses on the war in Iraq, but veteran director Oliver Stone is preparing to re-enlist for Vietnam, it was reported Tuesday. Stone, who won best director Oscars for his Vietnam War-related dramas "Platoon" and "Born on the Fourth of July," is planning a new film about the investigation into the 1968 My Lai massacre, Daily Variety reported.
The 60-year-old director is close to sealing a deal with United Artists to finance the film, titled "Pinkville," while actor Bruce Willis has been confirmed to play the army chief who led the investigation into the killings.
Up to 500 Vietnamese civilians, including many unarmed women, children and elderly, were killed by US troops in the My Lai massacre, one of the most notorious episodes of war crimes ever committed by American forces. Revelations surrounding the massacre are often said to have played a key role in turning American public opinion against the war in Vietnam.
Stone's next project following his 9/11 drama "World Trade Center" was expected to be a film about the CIA's attempts to capture Al-Qaeda kingpin Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan.
Instead "Pinkville" will focus on the probe into My Lai with Willis playing Army General William R. Peers, who supervised the inquiry. Actor Channing Tatum will play Hugh Thompson, a military helicopter pilot who curtailed the killing by placing his craft between villagers and soldiers and warning troops he would open fire if any more civilians were killed. |