Customer Reviews

Jarhead (Full Screen)

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(69)
3 star:		(42)
2 star:		(27)
1 star:		(49)

 

 

I'm a little confused that there's so many user reviews complaining that Jarhead is 'a war movie without any war.' Well.. based on my own experiences as a Marine in our most recent trip to the sandbox, I'd say war without war sounds true to life. Jarhead isn't showing you what you'd like for Marines and servicemen to be; it's showing you what we ARE like. Yes, we're crude, vulgar, irreverent, and largely morally ambivelant. Mostly though, we're bored. 99.9% of war is waiting. Waiting for to go on patrol, waiting for patrol to be over, waiting to go on or off of guard duty, waiting to sleep, to wake up, to eat, to piss, to finally go home. That's how it was for my dad in Vietnam, for my cousins in the Gulf War, and for myself in Iraq last year. To some degree, that's how it's been for everyone, in every war. To quote this film, "Every war is different, every war is the same."

If you've been in the military, and especially if you've been deployed, this should all be sounding pretty familiar. If not, fine. I'd just ask that you consider what it is that would make you dislike this movie. Is it that you don't like the characters as they are portrayed? Or is it that you don't like the conflict between your preconceived notion of what a Marine 'should' be and what you're being shown?

Anticipation was high for Jarhead, the cinematic adaptation of Anthony Swifford's book of the same name about his experiences as a U.S. foot soldier in the first Persian Gulf War. The reaction to the movie was underwhelming to say the least as critics savaged it and audiences stayed away. Something was definitely in the air as the film also failed to pick up any nominations or awards at any of the important ceremonies (Golden Globes, Oscars, et al). Was the film really that bad or had it just been marketed wrong? Or, was it simply the victim of our current political climate?

Jarhead is a film filled with striking images captured wonderfully by director of photography Roger Deakins. For example, Swofford and his platoon come across oil wells burning out of control, oil raining down on them. At night, they continue to burn providing the only light, and coupled with downpour of oil, looks like some kind of nightmarish vision of hell.

Critics complained that nothing happened in the movie but wasn't that the point? The first Gulf War was typified by highly trained soldiers ready to kill who, for the most part, did nothing because it was predominantly a conflict fought in the air by extensive bombing that ended the war as quickly as it did. Jarhead encapsulates this notion well in a scene where Swoff and Troy are ordered to sniper two high ranking Iraqi officers and at the penultimate moment when they are given the go-ahead to kill they are ordered to stand down so that an air strike can come in and literally steal their thunder. This scene pretty much sums up the experience for a lot of soldiers over there.

Sure, there are the unavoidable comparisons to the boot camp sequences in Full Metal Jacket to the ones in Jarhead but so what? No film lives in a vacuum and those scenes are only a small part of the movie and it soon settles into its own rhythm. The film that Jarhead most lives under the shadow of is Three Kings with its mixture of biting satire and horrific imagery of the madness of war, except that Jarhead ends where Three Kings begins. This is a film about humanity (or, rather the loss of it) and not an epic battle of good vs. evil that perhaps people were expecting. Jarhead is purposely anti-climatic. We won the war but what did we do to win it and why? And more importantly, what were we doing there? By that extension, we should also be asking the same questions about its sequel - one that we are still fighting and paying for.

"Swoff's Fantasies" feature four deleted scenes with optional commentary by director Sam Mendes and editor Walter Murch. This is footage of Swofford's inner, fantasy life that was shown briefly in the actual movie but more was actually shot (and even more figured in the book).

"News Interviews in Full" features more footage of Swoff and his platoon being interviewed by the media with optional commentary by Mendes and Murch. The director mentions that he let the actors adlib their answers to the pre-arranged questions.

Also included are 11 deleted scenes with optional commentary by Mendes and Murch. Of note is a scene with Sam Rockwell who plays Swoff's uncle and is in the Marines. Mendes and Murch do an excellent job of explaining why this footage was cut and are candid in what stuff just didn't work.

There is an audio commentary by Mendes who didn't want to overthink the camerawork or go for the meticulously staged compositions as he did with his previous movies and instead opted for a looser look with extensive hand-held camerawork. This is a very strong track as he defends his choices and tells all kinds of good anecdotes.

There is another commentary track by screenwriter William Broyles, Jr. and author Anthony Swofford. Broyles served in the Vietnam War and so these two war veterans talk with absolute authority about the authenticity of this movie. It's great to listen to Broyles and Swofford - two men who've been through what we are watching.

On the Collector's Edition version are included three documentaries.

First up, is the "Jarhead Diaries." Mendes provides an introduction where he states his distaste of electronic press kits (finally!) and so he had a documentary crew film more peripheral stuff and gave the actors their own cameras to shoot whatever they wanted. The actors are refreshingly candid about their feelings making this movie as they are going through the actual experience.

"Semper Fi" takes a look at four Marines who came home from the First Gulf War and from the current one. Anthony Swofford interviews these guys and has them talk about what their experiences were like over there and what their life is like now. Because he is also a veteran, he is able to get them to open up a bit. These are pretty sobering accounts as we listen to how hard it is for them to just turn off their combat training once they come back home.

Finally, there is "Background," a documentary about the extras who played anonymous Marines in the background of scenes. is a fascinating snapshot of their experiences.

I'm a retired Sergeant First Class from the U.S. Army. I didn't get a chance to see the movie at the theater but I bought the DVD yesterday. Personally I thought it was a great movie. There was a great deal of reality to it. Soldiers, Sailors, Airman or Marine, it matters not. You have some that act totally ignorant in certain situations to help cope with stress while others just deal better with it. I've seen it in many forms over my 21 years of Active Duty. I don't think it shed a bad light on the USMC, because these troops didn't act much differently then some of the Vietnam troops did. If you're a warmonger and want to see a lot of action this is not the movie for you, but if you are interested in the day to day or A Day In The Life of kind of movie that shows how a person or typically a servicemember grows this is the one for you. The language is what it used to be like in the Army until they started changing the regulations. The movie took me back to my Army days. I loved it!

A truly excellent movie. The portrayal of the Gulf War is done in a realistic and blunt way, which is not to say that its bad. Its actually exactly the kind of account I was looking for. People who are used to movies about World War I and II will take some time to adjust to this since the events that unfolded in the Gulf War are drastically different.

I read the book for this movie a couple of months ago, and after seeing the movie, I must say I am impressed. Anthony Swofford's brilliant writing style has been exhibited well by the producers of this project. You can see the anxiety felt by marines who are trained to kill but never get the chance to. You notice the subtle hints at the domination of oil companies in our industrial war machine. This is in no way a conspiracy theory, it is sheer reality. Without giving away spoilers, I can say that you should watch closely when the marines land in Saudi Arabia aboard the commercial airliners- take a look at the words on the tent they sit under the first time.

The interactions between the characters also occur at many levels, really setting the mood for the "brothers" type of relationship that Anthony Swofford and the other scout snipers had. Please take note that this is all based on a true story, so you will see the realities faced by troops, including 110 degree scorching weather in the desert, training drills in which marines don gas masks in preparation for a chemical attack, and the lonely moments away from loved ones during the holidays.

All in all, an excellent movie. Having watched this with a former marine, and having him confirm most of the things content-wise, I feel confident in recommending this as an honest account of events. Of course, the Marine Corps has changed quite a bit since Gulf War times, so don't use this as any type of indicator. However, watch it to see exactly what Swofford and the other marine scout snipers went through in their part in the Gulf War.

"Jarhead" is a marine expression that describes a recruit as an open vessel waiting to be filled by the commanders that be and by the haircut that makes the marine look like one. The movie is a recollection of the first Persian Gulf War, told from the point of view of Private Anthony Swofford (who wrote the book, but is played by Jake Gyllenhall) and his trek from marine recruit until the end of Operation Desert Storm. The war only lasted six weeks, and his contributions only four days, but the process he undergoes is absorbing. "Swoff" undergoes initiation and later reluctance until he meets his command leader Sgt. Sykes (Jamie Fox) who gets him ready. His biggest challenge is keeping a fellow marine in check (Fowler, an ex-con) who seems unstable at best and incorrigible at worst.

The movie isn't as intense as the most acclaimed war movies, but it isn't less insightful. We are given a palpable reality. The scenes show the urgency of missing women, the boredom and agony of anticipation, and the wild comraderie in all its details. The best scenes are when the narrative focuses on Swoff separate from his brigade and he shares his inner angst. The dream sequence tells more than any scene and has a surreal stream-of-consciousness effect. We also get a first-person feel to when they have to play football in the grueling 112 degree heat. Other revelations are done well, too. For instance, their frenzy is present when watching "Apocolyse Now". There's an interview scene where Swoff and others show their reluctance to follow the military's command to keep silence about the downside of being a recruit. (They're just brimming to tell it like it is.) Later, Swoff gets into big trouble during a holiday party where he shares contraband liquor. The war itself, for all its brevity, in the movie and in real life, just tells the unvarnished truth. It shows the war, like any war, in all its mundane horror. Swoff leaves us with some concrete thoughts about how his experience changed him forever.

"Jar Head" is a good movie experience. It feels genuine. The performances are fine, too. Gyllenhall makes the experience authentic, and the supporting cast is believable throughout. Jamie Fox, in particular, shows an acting range here that makes us appreciate his other contributions. (His Oscar for "Ray" seems all the more deserving after seeing this film.) The music and other atmospherics help to create a solid movie--even if it doesn't brim with suspense. Overall, it doesn't try to sensationalize anything. (3 1/2-4 stars)

Having spent time in the Marines I can look at this movie in a different way than an actual "movie critic." To say that the movie's acting was bad and that the characters don't express their relationships with eachother very well is, to say the least, untrue. When you have a relationship that marines have with very close battle brothers, you don't have to express the relationship and closeness, it's like tension in the air, you can feel it all the time. You know how close you are to your buddy and you know how close he or she is to you.
As for the film, at that time the situations that were presented like sitting in the desert and waiting, are things that actually happen. To a civilian who's never experienced this it can be an eternity to us and that's what was trying to be conveyed in the film, waiting for something to happen. Mairnes don't like to wait for something to happen, we like to go make something happen, that's our job.

Sorry, but I cannot give this film a fair objective evaluation because it hit me personally as a former Marine of 8 years and current Air Force Reservist of 9 years, and also as an OEF/OIF combat zone veteran. So unfortunately I will have to state my opinion and fall into the ranks of the other evaluators whose reviews are voted on according to social poularity contests and not according to the actual content of the reviews. But it's okay...I can live with 0 helpful votes out of 26 reviews!

I watched Jarhead for the first time yesterday. My stint in the Corps lasted from 1986 to 1994 and I spent plenty of time living in open squad bays, two-man "hooches," GP tents with all kinds of Marines from 0311 grunts and 9th Recon Marines to pencil pushing office pogues in a variety of countries and secluded, tense conditions. Of all the personalities I was exposed to and all the practical jokes, mind games and stress releaving activities, I can honestly say that I never ran across such sustained extremes of group behavior with such complete disregard for the UCMJ and the safety of fellow Marines.

The opening scenes of Jarhead are less than convincing as the main character is harrassed by a drill instructor who somehow manages to get away with sporting a moustache. Small detail but an inaccurate one, from any of the USMC drill instructors I ever saw. The actor appears to try desperately to follow in the foot steps of R. Lee Ermey of The Boys in Company C, Full Metal Jacket, Mail Call and the real U.S. Marine Corps. The behavior is not far off the mark (as any bruised-up Third Battalion Parris Island recuit can tell you) but the acting is not quite convincing.

Throughout the movie the main character whines and moans about what a raw deal life has given him, and he frequently throws childish temper tantrums. If these were the actual real-life antics of this "Marine" then it surprises me that boot camp did not successfully weed him out or that he was not eventually sent home with a Section 8 or Bad Conduct Discharge. And yes, there WAS a designated way to deal with psychological issues: it was called the Chain of Command/Company First Sergeant, Chaplain's Office (or tent in combat zones), Consolidated Substance Abuse Control Center, Family Advocacy, and the Base Psychiatrist. These and other resources were no mystery to any Marine during that era.

Not withstanding the over-exagerrated and almost mindless depiction of Marines (I assure you they are neither that ignorant, lawless, savage or ill-prepared, either as far back as the first Gulf War or today) Jarhead seems to entertain the basic idea of the meaning of life, somewhat along the same vein as The Thin Red Line and Apocalypse Now though approached from its own unique perspective. The character struggles with why he ever came into the Corps in the first place, cannot understand why he does not fit in, and grapples with the gnawing agony of wanting to make his mark in life. God knows that any Marine worth his salt can identify with the frustration of being restrained from doing what he or she was trained to do. It seems to be on this level where Jarhead earns points with those who give it higher ratings: it taps into the rudimentary psyche of almost every living human being. "Why am I here? What is it all worth? Will my existence count?" As a "war film" or documentary of the Marine Corps military subculture, however, Jarhead is WAY off track. Overall, this is a film that poses questions with no answers and provokes self-evaluation. Aside from that, it is only Hollywood and the rantings of an off-balance, almost criminally insane little non-hacking snot who completely missed the whole idea of what Marines are and why they do what they do. That's my first-hand experience.

Honor, integrity, valor, self-control, service before self...

Semper Fi.

Were intentions graded instead of product, then JARHEAD would be given 4 stars rather than 3, merely because it is one of the few films (so far) that shows the particular idiosyncrasies of that first Bush war, the DESERT SHIELD transforming into DESERT STORM. We have many films that document the mindset of the soldiers from the Civil War through the two World Wars, to Korean War to Vietnam War and each is different. JARHEAD is as much about the changes that have occurred in the American military with the advent of computerized warfare and sophisticated war machines and weapons as it is about the Greed for Oil Dominance that prompted the US Kuwaiti involvement. And for that this film is important and will remain so until something better comes along.

The story is rather minimal and as narrated by the author of the novel on which it is based, Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal), it takes a while to become airborne. Swoff is a disillusioned kid who can't figure out how to make life meaningful so he opts for the USMC as a staging zone in his growth. What he discovers is the usual boot camp mentality and training, encountering other men who have both similar and different reasons for joining the Corps: Troy (Peter Saarsgard) has dark issues that remain with him throughout the story; Kruger (Lucas Black) opted for the Corps instead of prison; Cortez (Jacob Vargas) needed money to support his pregnant wife; Cuban immigrant Escobar (Laz Alonso) sincerely is a grateful patriot, etc. Along the way the boys encounter the stereotype DI (Scott MacDonald), the Staff Sergeant (Jamie Fox) and the company commander Lt Col Kazinski (Chris Cooper) as well as the usual variety of testosterone provoked young kids successfully brainwashed to be 'fighting men'.

The bulk of the story after boot camp is the boredom of going to war in the Kuwaiti desert, having nothing at all to do except play dumb games and wait and hydrate, until at last the Staff Sergeant gleefully announces Saddam Hussein is shooting and they are off to actually do what they were trained to do - Fight! But even that is thwarted as they wade through a miserable existence of seeing sky-darkened oil well fires, constant oil raining from the burning oil money holes, losing buddies to friendly fire and mistaken attacks by their own air support. And just at the point when this company of trained snipers (especially Swoff and Troy) gets the chance to kill, the 'war' is over and they go home. And in Swofford's narrative comments he notes how those men will never be allowed to leave the desert experience behind. 'Wars are different, yet wars are the same'.

Jake Gyllenhaal, buffed and shaved headed, gives us everything Swoff represents - as far as the meager script and misguided direction by Sam Mendes allow. He is a fine actor and his range of emotions is what holds the film together. The remainder of the cast likewise does their best to make their shadowy character outlines from the screenplay by William Broyles Jr. as close to three-dimensional as the lines allow. Yes, the film is about a new kind of soldier, one less driven by patriotism and more informed about the commercial greed that drives these fiascos, and Mendes does allow us to see that. But deeper character development and motivation could have made this a more powerful antiwar statement than a visual excursion of life under the sun of the foreign desert skies. Grady Harp, March 06

American Boredom: Every War is the Same

There is a mantra within the EMS (Emergency Medical Services) community that the work is defined by extended periods of intense boredom interrupted by occasional moments of sheer terror. The same has been said, I believe, of war (and marriage too perhaps). This is the primary message that is being made within this finely crafted piece on modern warfare. That and what this sort of pattern does to a man's psyche. However there are many other specific points of consideration that are touched upon during the film within this larger contextual premise.

One of the strengths of `Jarhead' is that is manages to maintain a healthy comedic tone throughout most of its entirety. The humor is, though at times perhaps crude, nonetheless true to life and consistent with the type that emerges from within the safety of the camaraderie found in such a setting. To compare this film to Full Metal jacket is unfair. FMJ was iconic with its brutal depiction of basic training and the preparations for war. Attempts at humor were minimal when present at all. `Jarhead' is not only unique with its contrary approach but highly effective in making its points along the way. Its gradual progression into a more serious piece of work correlates with the transition of the young men in the film into active war combatants. It's logical artistically and it works.

The acting is strong throughout, anchored by Jake Gyllenhaal and Jamie Fox, and talented more unknowns like Lucas Black and Chris Cooper in supporting roles. The points within the film, aside from the central aforementioned premise, relate to political motivations for war (like oil), suicide/mental health issues in combat veterans, friendly fire concerns, and the masturbatory practices of young men in isolation. It is at times tragic but the humor is what keeps it together and smooths the consumption of the more serious topics broached.

Mendes exhibited his mastery previously with `American Beauty' and he does so again in a polar opposite setting. Do yourself and favor and check out `Jarhead'. Amidst the regular clutter of banal mediocrity in modern film and the overpopulated collection of similar war movies, lies this treasure. A thinking man's piece if not a masterpiece. And a fine one at that.

-Rusty Scalpel

Let's admit it: the kid can act. Jake Gyllenhaal is quickly showing everyone what a great actor he is, with this, and much more notably, his recent Oscar snub for Brokeback Mountain (though how much of a snub it actually was is up to debate, I preferred some recognition for the great character actor Paul Giamatti, but Clooney deserves some recognition as well, especially with what he has been accomplishing as of late).
But back to the film, I like it for what it tries to be. Let's be honest here, this is no Apocalypse Now, no Thin Red Line. This movie knows what it is trying to be: a meaningful war film. Now, some might be turned off by this notion, but I really like it and admire it, especially considering there are only a handful of parts that seem so contrived and obviously done for the sole purpose of being "cinematic" that they fall apart (like when everyone is shooting their gun in the sky looking angry at the camera, I mean, come on, those bullets gotta be going somewhere).
But aside from that, Jarhead has some great images (really great images, like when the oilfields are set on fire) and awesome acting done by the actors (like Peter Sarsgaard, Jamie Foxx, and, of course, Gyllenhaal). Although I do question Sarsgaard's casting, he doesn't seem the buff Marine type to me, and the way he speaks a too cultured, but he manages to pull it off somehow, and extremely well to boot.
So in summary, Jarhead is a well-shot, well-acted, merit-seeking film that is well worth a watch.