Tigerland Page #7

Yeah, Paxton's good.

Johnson, he's good and he's good.

lf you're gonna make up a story,

make up a happy one.

l ain't making anything up, son.

And in Vietnam there are no

happy f***ing stories.

l had a best buddy, l{elly Morgan...

...that l went to AIT with.

ln '67, when the call came,

we got sent off to Nam.

We had only been in country

a few days. We was green as grass.

We were in a two-man listening post,

talking just like we are here.

l{elly lit up a cigarette.

One minute we're naming

his unborn child...

...and the next second

his brains were in my lap.

The sniper zeroed in

on the cherry of his cigarette, Bozz.

Gentlemen, it's all about respect.

Respect for your superiors

and what they're trying to teach you.

Respect for yourselves and your unit.

And most important...

...respect the enemy.

You have 42 minutes...

...then the squad's on patrol.

Gentlemen, this is the best Vietnamese

village we could create for you...

...here on the base!

Now, listen. You're all gooks,

so nobody speaks English.

Anybody asks you a question

in English, you answer, ''No bic.''

lt means, ''l don't speak'' in gook-ese.

Let's hear it.

Good. Private Bozz, you are

the only man that speaks English.

Speak only to the man who identifies

himself as interpreter. Understood?

-Yes, sir.

-Good. Private Paxton.

You are the Vietcong.

They come through, their objective

is to find the VC sympathizer.

ln other words, you, Private Paxton.

They have five minutes.

You tell them nothing.

l warn you, they're beat up.

They've been awake three nights.

Forced marched all day.

They f*** this up,

they'll march another siR miles.

One other thing:

They find out

which one of you is VC...

...an you'll be the ones

out in the boonies...

...on no sleep, forced marching

for the neRt two nights.

Unerstoo?

-Yes, sergeant.

-Let's get to work.

Private Bozz, Paxton. Over here.

Lets see....

Lukins, Barnes, in this hooch.

Make it as realistic as possible.

This is not a f***ing joke.

l like this.

It's like a war theme park.

l'm so tired. l'm gonna pass out.

Hey, here they come.

Sh*t.

lt's Wilson.

What?

-l thought we got him out.

-There's a war going on.

Plenty of room

for psychopathic killers.

Let's move it.

We don't got much time.

We gotta find the VC.

F*** me.

VC?

Get your ass on the ground!

Get on the f***ing ground!

You VC?

You VC?

How'd that feel?

Need an interpreter?

l'm the only one that speaks English.

How does that feel, Paxton?

What are you gonna write about now?

What are you writing in your journal?

Don't f***ing move!

Let go of him, goddamn it!

-You're in charge! On your feet!

-Yes, sergeant.

Where is your weapon, soldier?

There it is.

Why didn't you secure the area,

Private Wilson?

l'll tell you why.

Because you lost control!

Yes, sergeant.

Did you find any VC?

No, you didn't.

That's the f***ing answer.

Come here.

l promise you tears before breakfast.

Get your men and get out of here.

Get out of here! Let's go. Move!

-l'm gonna kill you.

-ls that right?

-You gonna kill me again?

-l'll kill you.

Get your hands off him!

You want to go?

Get the f*** out of here!

-Get the f*** out!

-l'll break your neck!

-Let's move!

-Get the f*** out of here!

Somebody grab my steel pot.

Get out of here.

-How you doing?

-Sh*t.

ls he all right?

No, he's not all right.

Take your time.

-You going?

-l can't take you with me.

Not me. Paxton. He's hurting.

He signed up.

And you judged him for it.

You even made me feel guilty

and l was drafted.

You saw what Wilson did to him today.

He's broken down.

And the Army didn't do

all the breaking. Take him.

lt's not my fault if he

just realized what he did.

l only got time for my sad story.

-Take him with you.

-F*** off!

Wilson's gonna take

his hate out on somebody.

You run, he'll kill Paxton.

If not here, for sure over in Nam.

Johnson, l like you, but f*** off.

Yeah, well

l ain't standing in y'our way.

Rise and shine, gentlemen!

Let's go, gentlemen! Roll 'em!

Let's go! Move! Get on your feet!

l know you're tired, but you'll be

doing a lot of this in the next year!

lf you're not...

-...then you're in a body bag.

-Where's Bozz?

Waiting for a dust-off.

Where is your squad leader?

ls this his weapon?

Does anybody know

where your squad leader is?

Where is he, Johnson?

-Where is your weapon, Private Bozz?

-Right here, sarge.

l know that.

The next time you decide

to take a piss or a f***ing sh*t...

...you make sure you have your weapon.

Your weapon is your lifeline.

Why didn't you have it?

l was gonna make a break for Mexico.

l didn't think l'd need it.

Very funny.

You take point.

Paxton, take slack. Johnson, drag.

The rest of you fall in behind.

Listen up.

You'll square off

against the boys from yesterday.

They may have booby traps.

They may have forward observers

watching.

They may do all manner of sh*t

that you don't know.

That's why you will keep

your eyes open and your mouths shut.

-ls that f***ing understood?

-Yes, sarge.

Let's move out.

-Welcome back.

-You owe me 1 50 bucks.

Hurry up, Paxton. Let's go.

Dixie, dixie, my 1 2.

Dixie, my 1 2.

Move it! Come on!

You okay?

F***, Bozz. Joke's over.

Can't you see we're f***ed?

Relax. You'll be fine.

You'll be fine.

Wilson, what the hell are you doing?

That's live ammo.

Ambush! 12:
OO!

Live ammo!

Cease fire! Cease fire!

Private Wilson!

Private-f***ing-Wilson!

Private Wilson, look at me, goddamn it!

Oh, Jesus Christ!

Look at me.

You will place your weapon on safe!

You will raise your weapon

above your f***ing head...

...or l'll blow

your f***ing brains out!

Oh, Jesus!

Do it!

On your f***ing knees, now!

Get on your f***ing knees!

You will be court-martialed!

Do you f***ing hear me?

-What happened?

-An accident. My fault.

Let me look.

Get him up.

Let me see the eye.

Sing it, boy.

You know what now?

Let's go, move it!

This war is not gonna last forever!

Bozz, bus number three!

You don't want to miss this war!

Let's go!

-Want to come along?

-l did, but you wouldn't let me.

How's your eye?

Got an injury bad enough to get out,

no permanent damage. Imagine that.

More corny wisdom for your book.

''ln the country of the blind,

the one-eyed man is king.''

Pretty fancy shooting, Tex.

Thank you.

lt was just luck, Jim.

l could have killed you.

No, it wasn't.

Somebody had to take your place.

Last chance.

Don't make me bring the war to you.

Write me when you get there.

This is it, man.

No more phony Army buddy crap.

Go home.

Live a long time.

Try not to be too much of an a**hole.

l'm gonna write

a whole book about this.

Tell everyone about you.

Sergeant Thomas...

...sorry for my misbehavior earlier.

Real sorry.

See you back here. Take care.

-Watch your back.

-See you.

-l'll write a book about you, Bozz!

-No, you won't.

Come on, quit playing.

That's my journal.

Jesus! Bozz!

Come on, quit f***ing around.

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