I was not tuned to this movie a much a I could have been. I recognize the potential for moralizing about choices, about whether the Anmerican psyche can be generalized from this one individual. Frankly the movie, didn’t grab me enough so I would care. On one hand I was too busy whether Michael Caine would wink during the movie. (He didn’t not once, as usual.) On the other hand the American played by Brenda Fraser was just not realistic enough for me. He seemed to be honorable and wanting to do the right thing in regards personal and love matters.
But he didn’t. You could say that love overcame his other intentions. And he did save his rival’s life in the war situation. Which brings me to the point that the (Vietnam) war was just a backdrop in this move. Yes, there were a few threads here, but overall it could have been taken out and the love story would have remained the same. The two aspects were not integrated. My girlfriend I very conscious about correcting herself not to say “Maerican” when she means a person from the US. This is the way she remind herself that the Americas is much more, containing more countries and cultures. She knows that in common usage American refers to a US person, but doesn’t want to perpetuate this mis-usage. This movie does. (Story: British reporter in his 60s living in Vietname keeps a local mistress. Young US spy/diplomat enters and falls for her too. Spy saves reporter’s live on the front. Spy wins over her heart, reporter gets over jealous and gets spy assassinated.)