1987 Good Morning, Vietnam

The success of Platoon in 1986 opened the doors for Hollywood execs to pursue Vietnam war based material. The story of Adrian Cronauer, a disc jockey who used his irreverent humour to try and keep the morale of the troops high, was one which seemed perfectly suited to the master of improvisation, Robin Williams.

For years Robin Williams had tried and failed to make it in the movies; it seemed the only media that could tap into his talents was television or stand-up; this was the movie that changed all of that. Suddenly he was bankable, and studios wanted his name above the title to get audiences in. In later years we discovered that he didn't even have to wild and wacky, he could just be. A talent who is missed.

The movie was directed by Barry Levinson and is perfect for Williams to showcase his comic and dramatic skills. Here he rebels against superiors, and Levinson allowed him free reign to improvise while performing the radio segments. It made for a very funny and poignant movie, for which Williams was nominated for an Oscar, as well as winning a Golden Globe.

This is a movie that also came with the soundtrack, only this one is different. While it is packed with songs from the era, it is introduced, like a radio show, by Williams playing Cronauer. It is a unique and wonderful listen, with some very funny moments which you could imagine would upset army superiors.

It is probably fair to say that while based on truth, and Adrian Cronauer was a real person who did this, the story is given artistic licence for dramatic and comic purposes. Yet the message is still the same, that sometimes in order to make sense of a chaotic world we need to step back and laugh at our predicaments. It may be morbid, but humour, along with love, is a most powerful tool.

The movie was a hit around the world and gave Williams the boost his career needed. He never looked back from here. It grossed $123m in the States alone.