Roush Review: A Deeply Personal History of the Vietnam War

Matt Roush
7 Comments
'Vietnam: The War That Changed America'
Review
Apple TV+

Vietnam: The War That Changed America

Matt's Rating: rating: 5.0 stars

Nearly 50 years have passed since the fall of Saigon marked the end of the Vietnam War, a tragic conflict that divided the nation as unprecedented TV news footage brought combat and its cost (some 58,000 U.S. lives) into our living rooms like never before, and in many ways, never since.

With you-are-there immediacy and first-person emotional intimacy, the stirring six-part docuseries Vietnam: The War That Changed America (narrated by Ethan Hawke) relives the turbulent era by blending raw archival footage with dramatic personal accounts from a wide array of those whose lives were never the same. “Sometime this year, you will go crazy, maybe more than once,” a veteran remembers being told upon arriving in the distant land few had even heard of. That prediction came true, and then some.

There have been more comprehensive documentaries about the war (Ken Burns‘ definitive The Vietnam War as an excellent example), but few as sharply focused on the personal. We hear from U.S. soldiers, including best-friend tunnel rats, the overwhelmed leader of a swift boat patrolling dangerous waters, and a popular disc jockey trapped behind enemy lines during 1968’s surprise Tet Offensive game-changer, which occupies much of the second episode.

A member of the U.S. Military Police watches a TV report of him rescuing a diplomat from the American Embassy in Saigon when it was swarmed by North Vietnamese infiltrators. “That’s me right there,” he says, narrating his own visual story while downplaying his heroism. “I just did my job.”

Inside Apple TV+'s Powerful Vietnam War Docuseries That Made Narrator Ethan Hawke Cry, Plus Sneak Peak Video
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Inside Apple TV+'s Powerful Vietnam War Docuseries That Made Narrator Ethan Hawke Cry, Plus Sneak Peak Video

The series also interviews Viet Cong and South Vietnamese, with such diverse American subjects as a disillusioned Army nurse and the wife of a downed Navy pilot. In the most affecting scenes, wartime buddies are reunited after decades, few more wrenching than that of former Marine platoon commander William Broyles, Jr. and Jeff Hiers, a disgruntled enlisted man who resented the Oxford grad on sight and refused to salute, reflecting the atmosphere of futility and resentment that consumed the troops on the ground. Broyles, who would later co-create the groundbreaking ABC drama series China Beach about the war, remembers his fear that he would be “fragged” (killed by his own men) until he realized his true purpose was “to be responsible for these kids … Our purpose is to stay alive.”

“Believe it or not, that’s me!” says another former Marine, watching coverage of him guarding the American Embassy in its shattering final days of desperate evacuation. We believe him, and we feel it anew.

Vietnam: The War That Changed America, Series Premiere, Friday, January 31, Apple TV+

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Ethan Hawke

Ethan Hawke

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2025–

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  1. G

    GreenWrench

    Thought it was a very good series. Turned 18 in 1971 so I had a interest in the draft, although I was never called to serve.

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    CyanPopcorn

    I was station in Quan Loi 1/21 FA in 1970. We were close to Cambodia.

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    1. P

      PurpleLeaf

      I served at Quan loi also,1/9 TH Cav scouts 1969.

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    OrangePumpkin

    Lottery #349, reclassified 1H, never to go. Yet, Vietnam changed me. Tet woke us up and the true believers still kept the war going. 74 yrs old and I see another war coming so the "warfighters" and Uber Patriots can get their "glory". While the nation suffers again.

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    CyanPopcorn

    I was one of thousands between the ages 14 to 17 who volunteered. Just read the report from Argunner magazine vietnam boys to men meet two brave soldiers. I was 14 years old and it was a crazy times.

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      PurpleLeaf

      You did mention the year you were in the Nam. Are you one of them the wanna be?

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  5. U

    USN veteran

    Have not watched it yet but hope to soon. I was a member of the Nam generation. Had a draft card but got a letter saying they were stopping the draft & I didn’t have to report. Went in a few years later. Worked with many Nam veterans one guy was Korea & Nam. They were all a great group of people, and I wish them all a very, very, very long overdue WELCOME HOME! Thanks to all now serving those who have and those who will in the future. FLY NAVY!!!