Rating: 
Summary: My least favorite Kubrick film.
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" is a two-part film -- the first part hard realism, the second ineffective drivel sprinkled within some brilliantly stylized battle scenes. Combined, they reflect a rather unsatisfying viewing experience, at least, for me.The first half of the film is a jarring, realistic look at basic training, and reveals Kubrick's obsession with perfection. Although I wasn't in the Marines (I was drafted into the Army during that period), these scenes sparkle with realism (we had a couple very sadistic D.I's running our company). Too bad Kubrick chose to end the basic training section with a ridiculous (almost comic) performance of a soldier gone mad (shades of "The Shining" -- but way, way over done). The second part of the film shows both Kubrick's wonderful camera work along side some of the lamest excuses for Vietnam-era lingo that I've ever seen/heard (boring, sing-song dialogue that should have bristled with realism). The part where the general chastises Private Joker, then salutes him, was agonizing to watch. Another scene where we see one soldier after another play to a newsreel camera, each speaking a little verse, is strictly out of the 40's. There is also a scene onboard a helicopter where the gunner is shooting villagers and telling Joker that he doesn't have to lead as much when killing the women and children. Sorry, this doesn't work either as comedy or as satire. But true to Kubrick, while this ridiculous and unbelievable scene unfolds, Private Joker's friend is listening and trying not to throw-up (whether it's the helicopter ride or listening and watching the gunner -- I'm not really sure). It is this scene that is done to perfection (honest, I think the kid was actually losing his cookies!). There is much to really love in this often brilliant, sometimes shocking film, but alas, there is almost as much to hate. Between 1 and 10, "Full Metal Jacket" gets a 6. I just wish Kubrick would have deleted those cheesy scenes that I listed, because they really brought this movie crashing down from Kubrick's normal brilliance to uncharacteristic mediocrity.
Rating: 
Summary: Inconsistent
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" is really two movies in one. The first half's theme is how raw recruits are molded into lean, mean, fightin' machines while the second half's theme shows how war is hell. If there's a REAL plot to this movie, it escapes me. If Kubrick had made this movie along the lines of "Tribes," he might've gotten somewhere. Instead, he made a boring, uneven film that wastes your time and takes you nowhere. Although the boot camp portion of this film was very funny, the transition from boot camp to the jungles of Nam is too abrupt. An established director like Kubrick should've recognized that this was poor cinema syntax. The second half of this film is a real bore! There's more talk than action and there's no closure. Kubrick apparently couldn't decide whether to make this a pseudo-documentary film or a mocking political commentary. Either way, he failed miserably. After watching this film, my reaction was SO WHAT?! FMJ has some good moments but it's not worth the price of admission. If you want to see a really good film about the Viet Nam War, check out "Casualties of War." Unlike, FMJ, it's got a good plot and the acting is solid.
Rating: 
Summary: The Duality of Man
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" is two movies in one. Okay, some would argue that that the Tet Offensive and sniper scenes should each be given full billing. But I'm more concerned with the violent change in tone and agenda that takes place between the training scenes and the in country carnage. Part one begins with a montage of the film's actors getting their heads shaved at the beginning of basic training. It's a ridiculous moment, funny and sweet and visceral, culminating in a pile of hair on the ground, and a batch of brand new men ready to be molded. What follows is forty-five minutes of R. Lee Ermey showing the world that he's the hardest damn drill sergeant ever captured on celluloid. Sergeants Toomey ("Biloxi Blues"), Foley ("An Officer and a Gentleman") and Hulka ("Stripes"), some of my personal favourites, ain't got nothing on his Sergeant Hartman (Hard man?). He's locked into fourth gear, loud as the heavens crashing down, and funny as hell. The racism, profanity, and insults that hurl forth from his mouth are sculpted and precise, almost passing for poetry. I suspect Ermey himself came up with a lot of it himself, having served 11 years in the Marine Corps in real life. Kubrick uses Ermey to mold and shape his actors/soldiers, before sending them off to the second part of the movie. But before he does, there's the little matter of Private Gomer Pyle. Vincent D'Onofrio, a normally brawny actor, pulled a DeNiro adding 70 pounds for his role as the pudgy, dim-witted Pyle. D'Onofrio pulls off a dual role here. At times he's an object of ridicule (one scene has him lagging behind the rest of his platoon, as punishment, with his pants down around his ankles and his thumb stuck in his mouth), wearing an ignorant goofy grin even during the most perilous moments. But as the act wears on, D'Onofrio does a wicked slow burn. A menacing leer finds its way to his face. The denouement bursts with psychotic energy, but it doesn't stretch out the drama, as other similar scenes have been wont to do. It's probably the only moment in my experience watching Kubrick where he goes for the economic approach. Bravo, because it's a killer moment that defines what follows in its wake. And what follows is harrowing. Gone are the clean and pristine shots of the army barracks, and the perfect symmetry of the men lined up in front of their footlockers. These scenes, filmed lovingly by cinematographer Douglas Milsome, make way for a more rugged and dirty movie, one less concerned with the rigid order of training, and more aware of the disorder that is warfare. The images become grainy, washed-out, and a little wild. Just like the men. The main link between the two sections is Matthew Modine's Private Joker. So named for a wisecrack on the first day of training, Joker could have become your standard wise guy character, seen in countless war films. But instead, he's the conduit through which the audience experiences the movie. He's a one man Greek chorus, utilizing his position as "combat correspondent" for 'Stars and Stripes' to offer patriotic coverage and liberal commentary on the war effort. Joker is best exemplified by the inherent contradiction between the slogan he's written on his helmet ("Born to Kill") and the peace symbol he wears on his fatigues. When confronted by a Colonel about the apparent hypocrisy of such a semiotic statement, Joker blithely replies that he's trying to show the "duality of man... the Jungian thing." Modine, whose later career became marked by the flippancy but not the weight of Joker, here, in his first major role, gets the complexities of the man just right. We follow Joker, and the men he encounters, through the surprise Tet Offensive, and then into a scene where they must find a sniper in the ghost town that was once Hue City. These sequences show just how far the men from basic training have come. What started out as raw recruits, soft and civil, become nihilistic and rugged he-men. They truly have turned into the killing machines that Sgt. Hartman promised they'd be. Kubrick never lets them be anything else, as he bombards his men from all sides with bombing and gunfire. The Tet scenes find Joker hooking up with a ramshackle group of Marines hell bent on hellfire, and they're wondrous and frightening. The sniper scenes, which carry a quieter mood, pit the platoon against one person instead of the entire NVA. But the danger of being picked off at any moment is tangible. The fear, which underlies the gung-ho nature of the marines, is palpable in every one of these moments. The movie, written by Kubrick along with Michael Herr and Gustav Hasford, doesn't feel like other war movies, even though it too is concerned with the machismo inherent in every fighting man. The story here comes across like a literate piece of stage drama. The dialogue spoken by the marines, taking their cue from Ermey's drill sergeant no doubt, is harsh, vibrant, and colourful. Much of it can't be reprinted here (what can is bleakly hilarious: "I wanted to see exotic Vietnam, the jewel of Southeast Asia. I wanted to meet interesting and stimulating people of an ancient culture... and kill them," deadpans Joker when asked why he serves), but it became one of my greatest joys in discovering how original and profound and credible the screenplay for this movie was. "Full Metal Jacket" is one of Kubrick's more taut movies. There are no moments of slow contemplation or long scenes of dramatic tightening. Things move at a quick pace, are often tempered with the deepest black humour, and are never anything less than visceral. It's a stunning emotional achievement from a director whom I've always accused of being too detached.
Rating:
Summary: fair . . . and definately not Kubrick's best
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" . . . it was good, but where did Stanley Kubrick mess up on this number?
i am a HUGE Stanley Kubrick fan, and i own many of his films, but not this one. i rented it, and was suprised to say that i was not what i expected. it's not a bad DVD, but it just wasn't good.
"Full Metal Jacket" is about a group of Marines in Vietnam. the first half consists of their brutal basic training, under the iron fist of the merciless Sgt. Hartman, brilliantly portrayed by Lee Ermey.
the second half takes place in good ole 'Nam, where our friends are battling an unseen enemy. i loved the first half, but the 'Nam part was poorly-made and rather bland. if you want the greatest war film, check out "Platoon".
if you want to see a good movie, check out "Full Metal Jacket". it's not good, but worth seeing. the action scenes are horribly photographed, and the screenplay of banal and dark. better luck next time, Stanley
Rating: 
Summary: "Full Metal Jacket:" Objectionably over rated!
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" is a very marginal film, if anything. It has been hailed by many as a masterpiece, but I beg to differ. Other than Vincent D'Onofrio's performance as "Gomer Pyle," the film is average, not half as good as other Vietnam classics such as "Deer Hunter," "Coming Home," or "Platoon." It has no solid or stable form, it's nothing more than a series of events related to the Vietnam War. It's eposidic and over repeditive at times. Director Stanley Kubrick is capable of creating a masterpiece, "Full Metal Jacket," however, is no masterpiece.
Rating: 
Summary: Kubrick does it again!!
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" is basically two films in one. The best one of course being what the soldiers had to go through in boot camp. Joker ( Matthew Modine), Animal Mother ( Adam Baldiwn), Gomer ( Vincent D'Onofrio), and others are all plunged into a boot-camp hell run by the ruthless and sadistic Sergeant Hartman ( Lee Ermey). He pushes the boys to their physical and emotional limits, and views them as grunts, maggots, or something even lower. Once bootcamp is over, the second story starts, and the boys are thrust into the Vietnam war. This part of the film features tons of realistic battle scenes, how each soldier reacts to the war itself, and the brotherhood that develops between the fellow soldiers. "Full Metal Jacket" is a beautiful combination of comedy, violence, and the horror of war. As great as this film is however, I could only give it a rating of 4 stars. In order for a film to give a 5 star rating from me, it cannot seem boring or drawn out. Once the soldiers go to war, the film can be extremely slow moving at times. But for the most part, watching the film is a rewarding experience. The cast is sensational. Lee Ermey's portrayal of Drill Instructor Sergeant Hartman is one of the best I have ever seen. I have never felt sorrier for a character than I did with Vincent D'Onofrio's Private "Gomer Pyle". Watching what he had to go through will shock and disgust you. Especially the scene where he gets beat repeatedly with bars of soap. The conclusion to boot camp between Gomer and Sgt. Hartman is one of the most shocking and dramatic scenes that I have ever witnessed. Matthew Modine, Adam Baldwin, Dorian Harewood, and Arliss Howard are all great in their roles as well, and really help to bring the story to life. Although "Full Metal Jacket" can be quite slow at some points in the film, it is one of the greatest war films ever made. The boot camp session will have you laughing harder than you ever have before, the battle scenes are realistic, the music is wonderful, and the performanes are outstanding. Be warned though, the DVD is extremely mediocre. For some reason, all DVD's for Kubrick's films offer average quality and no extras.
Rating:
Summary: BEST MOVIE OF ALL TIME
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" is not only well-directed, well-acted and riveting, it challenges the definition of cinema. Kubrick is not afraid to alienate people with his interpretation of the Vietnam war and the military. As the camera pans through a ravaged, burning battleground, we hear the raucus "Surfin' Bird." As Marines walk across a devestated landscape, they sing "Mickey Mouse." Bombs and fires are raging in Hue City and the soldiers are negotiating with a prostitute. On Parris Island, when the drill instructor is not lambasting the recruits with highly original obscenity, he is trying to inspire them with a discussion of Lee Harvey Oswald's marksmanship. This film is the perfect antidote for the rampant superficial politics that have definited cinema. There is nothing noble, pretty or glamorous about this film, and because of that, "Full Metal Jacket" is timeless.
Rating:
Summary: An awesome and realistic war movie
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" isn't only a great war movie, it's a realistic one. Joker and the rest of the trainees have to go through boot camp in order to get them ready for the Vietnam. The movie really shows what it's like and how hard it is to go through boot camp. Then it shows them doing battle in the Vietnam later on. While you watch "Full Metal Jacket," you'll see that it's more realistic than a lot of other war movies because the team struggles to get along and then later refuses to work as a team, which leads to a lot of men getting killed when they shouldn't be. The movie has some scenes that you won't forget such as when Private Gomer Pyle kills the sergeant and himself, and while the team is doing battle in the Vietnam. "Full Metal Jacket" has one of the best storylines of any war movie and some good special effects. If you like great war movies, I recommend getting "Full Metal Jacket."
Rating:
Summary: Divided and schozophrentic
Review: "Full Metal Jacket" starts out so magnificently, with scenes set on Parris Island, that when first watching it I thought that there really was a possibility that it was "the greatest war film of all time", as a few critics so grandiosely proclaimed. The first hour is harrowing and powerful, with volcanic performances from the actors playing Pvt. Gomer Pyle and the Drill Sergeant, and a quiet but nuanced one from Matthew Modine. After one of the great death scenes in any movie, the action shifts to Viet Nam--where the film begins its slow slide into cliche and irrelevance. The action scenes give little impression of the exhileration and terror of war, and the scenes of GI's out and about in Saigon and thereabouts have been done--and done better--in a dozen other movies ranging from "Apocalypse Now" to "Good Morning, Vietnam." Kubrick has little new to say about the war in Viet Nam. What makes this film worth watching is its first half. Its sudden collapse in the last hour is startling and unfortunate, and as a result, in the great pantheon of Viet Nam films, it is a much lesser film than "Apocalypse Now", "The Deer Hunter", "Platoon" or even "Good Morning, Vietnam."
Rating:
Summary: Tough, disciplined, hard-thinking cinema.
Review: 'Full Metal Jacket' is far and away the greatest of all Vietnam films, the only one free from cant, humbug, melodrama, hysteria, mythologising or racist self-pity. Kubrick's film is more clear-eyed than those of Coppola, Cimino, Stone et al because he is under no delusion about America - he doesn't see Vietnam as some Fall from a mythic Eden, but a logical consequence of the American way. Because Kubrick's film isn't a narrative of inevitable defeat, but the moulding of the perfect American man, one whose duality (ambiguity, humanity) is ruthlessly expunged. Joker may say he feels glad to be alive, but the enduring image, a somnambulistic army of black figures marching in a dark, burning, never-ending landscape, is one of Hell, not the ersatz inferno of your average Vietnam movie, but the banal hell of Reagan's America, joylessly, unstoppably globalising. This is a Vietnam America won. A lot of people, even so-called Kubrick fans, don't like 'Jacket'. This is because Kubrick resolutely refuses to give his audience a get-out clause, sugar to sweeten the pill, some manly sentiment or lachrymose hysteria. There is no critical distance, no attempt to suggest there is a better possibility, no appeal to our better instincts. One might argue that there is a kind of relief in laughter, that Nietzschean guffaw against the void. Laughter is human, to share it is to be connected with other people. But if you look at the way Kubrick sets up the comedy in 'Jacket' (and this is one of the funniest movies ever made), you will find there is little real relief. As in all his films, Kubrick uses the identificatory techniques of conventional cinema (point-of-view shots, etc.) to make us identify not with the 'good' guys, the victims, the cannon fodder, the cynics who see through the war, but the fascists in authority. The funniest comic set-pieces involve the ritual humiiation of Private Pyle - if we laugh, we join in his humiliation, siding with the values of murderous authority; if we don't (and it's almost impossible not to), we are left helplessly numb. 'Jacket' is a very numbing film, brilliantly replicating the brutalisation of feeling systematically undertaken by the military system (and beyond).
|
