Okay, "Born on the Fourth of July" BROKE me a little...

So, I finally watched "Born on the Fourth of July" last night... wow. Just... wow. I knew it was going to be heavy, but I seriously underestimated it. I mean, I knew the basic story, right? Young, patriotic kid goes to Vietnam, gets paralyzed, comes back a changed man. But seeing it all play out, especially Tom Cruise's raw performance... it was just gut-wrenching. The scene where he's screaming at his mom in the hospital, blaming her and everyone else for pushing him into that war... I had to pause it and just breathe for a minute. I totally get that anger and confusion. Like, you think you're doing the right thing, believing in something, and then it all falls apart. And the scene in the veterans hospital? The one with Willem Dafoe? SO intense. All those guys, broken and forgotten, the realization dawning that they were used... I can't even imagine. It really makes you think about the cost of war, not just in lives lost, but in the damage it does to people's souls. I know some people think Ron Kovic was maybe too extreme in his anti-war stance later on, but after everything he went through, I kinda get it. He was searching for something, ANYTHING to give his suffering meaning. I have to admit that the Mexico scenes felt a bit long and maybe dragged a bit, but it was still important to see the depths that Ron sunk to. Anyway, this movie seriously messed with my head in the best way possible. It's not an easy watch, and it's definitely not something you'll forget anytime soon. It left me feeling so much, I am definitely gonna be thinking about it for a while. Anyone else watch this recently? What did you think? Did Tom Cruise deserve that Oscar nom?? I honestly think so!