"Apocalypse Now" opens with hypnotic images of helicopters soaring over the jungle, blinding napalm explosions, rapid gunfire, and all the makings of a soldier's worst post-traumatic nightmare. The mirage-esque portrayals of active battle are intercut with depictions of Capt. Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) — who is having the flashbacks — holed up in a dingy hotel room, naked and deranged in a state of perpetual drunkenness. At one point, Willard smashes his fist into a mirror and cuts his hand open on the glass shards. As blood cascades from his knuckles down his arm, the haunted soldier of misfortune starts to thrash and tumble about the room, screaming in agony all the while. 

If you can believe it, Sheen's performance was more or less real. The actor was indeed inebriated, and he actually cut his hand on the mirror when he planted his fist in it (this was unscripted). "I was so drunk, I couldn't stand up, frankly. I was so intoxicated, I didn't realize how close to the mirror I was," the actor later shared (per Movie Fone). Coppola and the crew, in a state of total dismay, tried to stop him from further hurting himself, but he refused to abide. Despite being caught off guard by his own actions and practically losing total control over himself, Sheen insisted that they keep going. He later explained that the moment was something of a personal catharsis for him. 

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