The “Chieu Hoi” initiative, roughly translated as “open arms,” was the Americans’ attempt to dissuade Southern Vietnamese people from aligning with the communist Northern Vietnamese forces and government. By its nature, it recognizes the human dignity and needs of the Vietnamese citizens. And it seems to work, at least for the American soldiers: despite his earlier crass jokes, Peewee responds to the villagers’ humanity, especially An Linh (though deciding to rename her is also inherently dehumanizing, so this isn’t entirely straightforward). Peewee’s life goals and Lobel’s idea of making An Linh into a child star suggest that the still untested young men haven’t yet fully lost their idea of the war as a movie.