Anybody see Jarhead?

[gammawolf]

I just saw it last night in Hollywood. Not a bad movie, but I think Sam Mendes did a good job of NOT establishing a point. Meaning, is war good vs is war bad. No liberal bias, just trying to tell a story of an enlistee.

Kinda reminded me of Full Metal Jacket.

Curious what others think, particularly those who have served or who are currently serving?

[msb3079]

havent seen it but will... my buddy liked it and said it seemed like a lot of the war movies combined, but focused less on fighting but more on the experience of being in a war.

[GZire]

It's on my to see list. So I guess it's a just see, not a must see gamma?

[G35Princess]

heard it SUCKED like HELL... no plot...no nothing..not even one shot .

was gonna go see it... NOT ANYMORE.

[msb3079]

Originally Posted by G35Princess

heard it SUCKED like HELL... no plot...no nothing..not even one shot .

was gonna go see it... NOT ANYMORE.

but i've also learned not to listen too much to others...
not even one shot.. bc thats not the point of the movie.
i'll still see it... my buddy has very good taste and he thought it was good.

[G35Princess]

well I have a lot of friends in the military.. many who went to Iraq & Afraghanistan... some even from the first gulf war....

and they were very disappointed. They said it was not what they expected and it's Hollywood's idea of what war is like...not really "experience"

They're saying if you want a good 'war experience' movie... go back and watch Black Hawk Down, Saving Private Ryan, We Were Soilders....

[Phelan]

Story seems interesting enough, its got 2 great actors in it and its being panned by critics; definate must see for me. Not sure why, but I tend to love the movies the 'cultured' national critics hate.

[msb3079]

Originally Posted by G35Princess

They're saying if you want a good 'war experience' movie... go back and watch Black Hawk Down, Saving Private Ryan, We Were Soilders....

funny... my buddy compared it to those movies. i think he described it as a combination of them... i'm gonna have to see it.
maybe your friends were hoping to see more action... but it's not that type of movie.
just like when people hated 'The Village' expecting to see a horror movie, when in fact, i think it was fantastic.

[G35Princess]

ok MSB... you got watch it..if you like it...then I'll watch it. I'll trust your taste....

[msb3079]

Originally Posted by G35Princess

I'll trust your taste....

i don't know that i would recommend that... i like DMB and NIN

[gammawolf]

I knew going into the movie, that it was not going to be your typical war movie. In this respect, it succeeded. Those other flicks GP mentioned are good, very good, but they are different beasts entirely. Those movies focus on the glory of battle, the ultimate sacrifice, the price of freedom, + many other themes.

This movie was not about any of that. This movie was more like what the fuck are we doing here, how come we don't get to shoot anybody, what are people doing back home, stuff that I imagine would go through GI's heads all the time.

FYI, if any of you read Esquire Magazine, you may have stumbled across this 2-piece article from Colby Buzzel. If not, you should read it anyway.
http://cbftw.blogspot.com/
I read this and it was really insightful. A completely different perspective on war, life in Iraq, and life in the US army. He got in trouble for writing about his daily life as a foot soldier in Iraq, but I'm glad that people can still read it.

[Navy ECMO]

I saw it and liked it. It does a really good job of depicting the boredom and monotony. I've never been to the desert, but I have been on a 7 month boat deployment and that is probably the worst part of it.

They did, however, go a little overboard with the "Goddammit, I can't wait to go out and kill me a million fuckin' ragheads!" I've known a lot of Marines, some of whom have killed quite a few people in Iraq and have seen people (American and insurgent) killed. It's not really like what you saw in the movie. I'm not saying there aren't people who are so indoctrinated that they think like that, but I would say that they are more of the minority whereas in the movie, everyone was like that. The true "warrior ethos" is that of a dedicated professional whose profession is to kill people and break stuff in the name of the US Military. They know that killing is a reality of what they have been called to do. Is it the bloodlust they depicted in the movie? No. I doubt any of them would say "Yes, I feel good about the fact that I have taken other mens lives. I am better person and am happy I did it because I enjoy killing." More than likely you would get a stoic "I had a job to do and I did it. I know that by killing them I saved manyh of my buddies lives and if put in the position again, I would not hesitate because it is my duty to do so."

[lovechild1970]

I said I saw it opening weekend, I said I loved it but I forgot to review it in an earlier thread somewhere. It is not American Beauty...but I agreed with the directing choices Sam made and continue to put him up there in the top three directors of American Film. I thought the acting was flawless. I really enjoyed the story as well, very much a first person narrative...that makes it a rather simple and beautiful thing. Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket is one of my all time favorites and there is a reminicence of it with the humor but clearly this film is a generation later and had this kid's vision of relationships, not Kubrick's though perhaps a little of Sam's. I could tell that this kid was really a writer/reader, a great shot, young but not alienated. Jamie Foxx mispronoucing Camus when he grabs the book...just a lot of great touches...and damn it, I still need to see Deerhunter!

[Lardoggy]

mmm....Deerhunter......gooooood movie.

[gammawolf]

Deerhunter is one of the best movies. Actually I am surprised it was featured in Jarhead. I sure wouldn't want to see that movie if I was going to war, but perhaps that was the point.