ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book considers at length Oliver Stone's history as a screenwriter and filmmaker working inside mainstream Hollywood. It focuses on Stone's critically acclaimed and widely criticized film JFK. The book provides partial readings of Oliver Stone's "Vietnam trilogy": Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, and Heaven and Earth. It discusses Stone's vision of the 1980s and 1990s in his 1987 release Wall Street and his 1994 film, Natural Born Killers. The book focuses on three of Stone's most reflexive films to date, The Doors, Salvador, and Talk Radio. Stone is one of the most successful directors working in Hollywood. He is also a polemicist with a liberal perspective who is making films about recent US history and culture.
