History Literature / TheQuietAmerican

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bfi_00m_fog.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The 1958 adaptation]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/f2312_6a01310f4a6c79970c01761647dc9e970c_800wi.gif]]
[[caption-width-right:350:The 2002 adaptation]]

''The Quiet American'' is a 1955 novel written by Creator/{{Graham Greene|Author}}. It has twice been adapted to film: in 1958 by Creator/JosephLMankiewicz, starring Creator/MichaelRedgrave and Creator/AudieMurphy, and in 2002 by Philip Noyce, starring Creator/MichaelCaine and Creator/BrendanFraser.

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: The car bombing, orchestrated by General Thé.

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: The village of massacred civilians and the car bombing scene.

''The Quiet American'' is a novel written in 1955 by Creator/{{Graham Greene|Author}}. It was made into a movie on two occasions, in 1958 by Creator/JosephLMankiewicz starring Creator/MichaelRedgrave and Creator/AudieMurphy, and in 2002 by Philip Noyce starring Creator/MichaelCaine and Creator/BrendanFraser.

* TheFilmOfTheBook: This adaptation completely changed the message of the story, assuming that [[spoiler:Pyle]] couldn't possibly be a villain since a) he was American and b) he had good intentions. It may actually have been a deliberate TakeThat to Graham Greene: Edward Lansdale, who might have been the inspiration for Pyle, was involved in the script.

----

* TheFilmOfTheBook: This adaptation completely changed the message of the story, assuming that [[spoiler:Pyle]] couldn't possibly be a {{Villain}} since a) he was American and b) he had good intentions. It may actually have been a deliberate TakeThat to Graham Greene: Edward Lansdale, who might have been the inspiration for Pyle, was involved in the script.

''The Quiet American'' is a novel written in 1955 by Creator/GrahamGreene. It was made into a movie on two occasions, in 1958 by Creator/JosephLMankiewicz starring Creator/MichaelRedgrave and Creator/AudieMurphy, and in 2002 by Philip Noyce starring Creator/MichaelCaine and Creator/BrendanFraser.

* AdaptationalBadass: Unlike the novel and the 1958 film, in the 2002 version [[spoiler:Alden Pyle]] isn't way out of his league, but rather his [[spoiler:humanitarian mission is actually an elaborate front and Pyle's really an American intelligence agent]] deliberately placed there by his employers to fight and hinder the communists.

* AdaptationalBadass: Unlike the novel and the 1958 film, in the 2002 version [[spoiler: Pyle]] isn't way out of his league, but rather his [[spoiler:humanitarian mission is actually an elaborate front and Pyle's really an American intelligence agent]] deliberately placed there by his employers to fight and hinder the communists.

* FalseFlagOperation: The bombings Pyle orchestrates are blamed on Communists to justify further American involvement. The same may also be true of the village massacre.

* FalseFlagOperation: The bombings Pyle orchestrates are blamed on the Communists to justify further American involvement. The same may also be true of the village massacre.

* FalseFlagOperation: The bombings Pyle orchestrates are blamed on the Communists to justify further American involvement.

* LastNameBasis: Fowler always calls Pyle on his last name. Pyle repeatedly asks him to call him Alden, but Fowler can't bring himself to it.

* LoveTriangle: Fowler, Pyle and Phung.

* AdaptationalBadass: Unlike the novel and the 1958 film, in the 2002 version [[spoiler:Pyle]] isn't way out of his league, but rather his [[spoiler:humanitarian mission is actually an elaborate front and Pyle's really an American intelligence agent]] deliberately placed there by his employers to fight the communists.

* AdaptationalBadass: Unlike the novel and the 1958 film, in the 2002 version [[spoiler:Pyle]] isn't way out of his league, but rather his [[spoiler:humanitarian mission is just a front and he's really an expert]] deliberately placed there by his employers to fight the communists.

* AdaptationalBadass: Unlike the novel and the 1958 film, in the 2002 version Pyle isn't way out of his league, but rather his humanitarian mission is just a front and he's really an expert deliberately placed there by his employers to fight the communists.

* TheVietnamWar: The story shows how Americans first began to get embroiled in Vietnam.

* CallForward: The bit in the second adaptation where [[spoiler:Pyle's Vietnamese allies massacre a bunch of villagers [[ForTheEvulz for basically no reason at all]] can be seen as foreshadowing the atrocities committed by both the ARVN and American forces--think My Lai--during TheVietnamWar.]]

''The Quiet American'' is a novel written in 1955 by Graham Greene. It was made into a movie on two occasions, in 1958 by Creator/JosephLMankiewicz starring Creator/MichaelRedgrave and Creator/AudieMurphy, and in 2002 by Philip Noyce starring Creator/MichaelCaine and Creator/BrendanFraser.

* TheFilmOfTheBook: This second adaptation was much closer to the original. If anything, it goes the complete other direction to the 1958 film; [[spoiler:amongst other things, it adds a scene where Pyle's Vietnamese allies massacre villagers ForTheEvulz and changes Pyle's character to make him rather less sympathetic.]]