Apocalypse Now Quotes
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Source: Apocalypse Now
Speaker: Bill Kilgore
I love the smell of napalm in the morning.
Context
This line is spoken by Bill Kilgore, played by Robert Duvall, in the film Apocalypse Now, directed by Francis Coppola (1979).
Most people like the smell of coffee or bacon in the morning. But not Lt. Col. Bill Kilgore. He likes his breakfast spiced with a little more death. In Apocalypse Now, the film that takes Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness from the heart of Africa and into the darkness of the Vietnam War, Kilgore greets his men with this speech about the beauty of napalm.
To him, it smells not like death, but "victory." He caps off his speech with "Someday this war's gonna end," but he almost sounds sad about it.
Where you've heard it
Whether the speaker loves the smell of napalm, bananas, Europe, or their warthog best friend, this quote makes its way into all things pop culture.
We love the smell of parody in the morning.
Pretentious Factor
If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.
While this isn't exactly pretentious, it sure is creepy. A person should be hungry for breakfast in the morning, not war.