Rating: 
Summary: One Of The Most Enjoyable Movies...
Review: This is one of my husband's and my favorite movies! If you are looking for entertainment value, it's great! I watch them purely for entertainment, and this movie has a lot of that. It's funny and warm,the characters were diverse and likeable,and there was enough action thrown in to make it a well-rounded piece of entertainment. There are very few movies that we'll watch more than once. We've watched this one at least a dozen times, and will watch it many more in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: My name is Gunnery Sargeant Thomas Highway....
Review: ....and I've drank more beer, pissed more blood, and ....well, you get the idea. Like some other reviewers stated, this is almost a comedy -- it IS a comedy in many respects. This flick features many cartoonish characters: besides Eastwood's Tom Highway we have "Stitch" Jones (Mario Van Peebles), who's a guitar-playing shyster; Major Malcolm Powers, Highway's CO who thinks he knows everything and considers Highway outdated (gee, y'think this'll lead to a confrontation?); Lt. Ring, the oafish platoon leader who looks and acts more like a computer nerd than Marine; "Swede" Johannson, the Hulk-ish always-in-the-brig enforcer who gets his butt kicked by Highway; and then there's the cast of other Marines with nicknames like "Profile," "Fag-etti," "Ajax," "Colitis" and "Cojones." Trying to make one feel patriotic about our action in Grenada doesn't work too well...especially when Highway and his buddy Chooz ponder how they are "0-1-1" in wars they were in. ("No wins, one loss -- Vietnam, and one tie -- Korea.") Getting that first victory -- in *Grenada??* Hmmm....something to be "proud" of. Maybe. The one-liners alone make this movie worth repeated viewings -- that is, if you chuckle at men's locker-room humor, laced w/profanity. Van Peebles is hilarious -- he plays his role completely naturally from start to finish. If you don't laugh at his first encounter w/Eastwood on the bus then you must be dead! The action's pretty good too, if not entirely realistic, and, of course, Eastwood turns the lazy, spoiled "Marines" into battle-ready, gung-ho MARINES. (Plus, he gets to kick Major Powers' backside along the way!)
Rating: 
Summary: Suspend reality and enjoy the show!
Review: I thoroughly enjoy this movie every time I see it, but I have to suspend reality during the show. Is there a former or present member of any branch of the armed forces who doesn't look at the ribbons on the uniform? Imagine Mario Van Peebles as not just a Marine, but a member of Force Recon meeting a Gunnery Seargeant on a Greyhound bus and not noticing the Powder Blue one with stars on Gunny Highway's top row of fruit salad. Take it one step further and imagine a gung-ho USNA grad Major who would bad mouth someone who had earned the CMH. I bristle when they use the expression "won" as opposed to "earned", but that's another story. Never mind that flaw and about a thousand others. You will enjoy this for its humanity if for nothing else.
Rating: 
Summary: Minor detail: U.S. Army Rangers did the rescuing
Review: We seem to forget a major detail here; and Clint Eastwood should have known better: U.S. Army Rangers rescued the American medical students on Grenada in 1983, marine force recon didn't even do the beach reconnaissance missions, U.S. Navy SEALs did it. U.S. Army Rangers and 82d Airborne Paratroopers did most of the fighting/dying on Grenada and perhaps its fitting that Eastwood chose to title the film "Heartbreak Ridge" after an Army battle to steal glory for those that didn't deserve it. The main character, Gunny Highway and his Sergeant Major friend were in the U.S. Army in Korea when Highway won his Congressional Medal of Honor, then joined the marines afterwards. As a marine during the time this film came out it was highly embarrasing to try to make excuses for this film when there really are none ("Just pretend they are Army Rangers and enjoy the film"). Its one thing to be disappointed that the mc did not get much action in Grenada, it another to use Hollywood as a vehicle to take the exploits of U.S. Army Rangers/Paratroopers and falsely portray these deeds being done by marines, is this "improvising, adapting and overcoming"?. The blame has to be on Eastwood for not checking his facts and his screenwriter for factual integrity. All too often people begin to believe the movies for their view of reality; if its a good movie this is more than OK, if its "Heartbreak Ridge" it inexcusable. The one good thing about the film is that Highway has to fight the official status quo in order to get combat-ready; and in a twist of art imitating life, the marines actually helped Eastwood film the movie on location (wrong location) at Camp Pendleton, California rendering official support for a film which is a LIE. Its true in life that good people have to "fight city hall" which is usually corrupted by bureaucracy. The character, Highway is stellar in that right. But the man playing Highway, Eastwood should not have made it a film about marine recon; all he had to have done was pick up a newspaper of the Grenada operation and used the 75th Ranger Battalion as the protaganists, used their daring combat jump into Point Salines airfield and this film would resonate with reality; veterans would welcome it and not just be the subject of bathroom humor for introducing salty phrases and cliches.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant action comedy
Review: Clint Eastwood has actually drawn some of the largest circles that a career hollywood star could ever, perhaps, in principle, draw. Starting out as a cowboy extra in the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, he circumnavigated the remaining years in the sixties and seventies in search of something deeper. The result was the Dirty Harry line of movies, and while this was a major success in terms of studio income, there is little doubt that Eastwood was privately taken aback with the tremendous impact of the role on suburban culture - by this, take it as read that the authentic city redneck character took flesh in all and every parallel medium at this point with a vengeance. This left Eastwood holding up the empty T-shirt once again. Around the late eighties, it was unclear whether or not the studios had the stamina to re-create Eastwood in the incarnation he seemed to be demanding - and at this point the man truly becomes interesting. Heartbreak Ridge was one result. This is more in line with the elemental essence of the Eastwood sense of irony and black humour. Knowing that the invasion of Central America was likely to be the most unreported calamity of the late twentieth century, like a true American, Clint decided to cash in with ideas which had been maturing during the hazy days of the third Harry film. The result is a series of astonishing comic book images with humour belonging to the fifth grade - but don't make the mistake of thinking that this suggests failure. This was brilliant writing, re-enacting every red blooded American wet dream about joining the corps. See this movie if real life bores you - if you want to look back and regret all the days you were never a gym jock, or hanging around the big city leather bars. All my friends in the unit I served in Australia watched this, and some of them actually broke the tapes by playing them too much. Like "Bored of the Rings" it's wickedly compulsive, and this marks the ingenuity (albeit evil) of the directors... Viva Eastwood!
Rating:
Summary: Eastwood vs. Marine rookies, Eastwood vs. Grenada
Review: Eastwood plays a Hard boiled Marine Sgt. who takes on the training of the rekon marine. He runs into trouble everywhere from his ex- wife to his superiors.The result is one of Eastwoods best films.
Rating:
Summary: I'm the Ayatola of rock 'n rolla - - - Stitch Jones....
Review: "...Colitis, profilactic, ajax, cajones, fagetti: You boys are pretty"... If you love this movie as much as I do, you will definitely remember that line along with the 50 other classics you will hear...So if you are thinking of buying this movie, do it.
Rating:
Summary: We improvise, we adapt, we overcome . . .
Review: I wonder if Clint Eastwood was saying that to himself as this patchwork was cobbled together? This movie is part of the "boot-camp raw-recruits go to war with the old sergeant," genre. Only Clint Eastwood could meld them into a cohesive fighting force. And only Clint Eastwood could save this film. Before I get a score of angry and profane e-mails, understand that in my world virtually any movie with Clint Eastwood in it is accorded vast deference. But this one really pushes the limits. The main character, Tom Highway, won the CMH in Korea as a soldier . . . and then went into the Marines. Huh? Why? And Mario Van Peebles didn't "read Highway's chest" (automatic, in my world) and realize Gunny Highway was a Medal recipient (Peebles has to be told this). Huh? Then Peebles, a Marine himself, and knowing Highway is heading in the same direction, steals from and deserts a fellow Marine (and a senior non-com at that). HUH? And Grenada is the best that could be thought of for a backdrop for all of this? We won't even go into the ludicrous romantic subplot. With any other main character, this would have been a disaster. Clint pulls it off. But it's tough duty.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoy it and don¿t take it too seriously.
Review: All our great actors enter their Autumns, when they can no longer play the roles we've come to love from them, and age forces them into some casting adjustments.. For all the love of Clint Eastwood's "Unforgiven", I prefer "Heartbreak Ridge"-where Clint still can flex his muscle, as a crusty old Gunnery Sergeant, short-timing it to mandatory retirement. A hero who just won't ever change from the spit and polish gung-ho Marine he was 25 years ago. Sure it's corny in places, and even more corny in others, jive in some places, and ultra-jive in others. It's a throwback to the War movies we grew up with-where the US was the good guys, and the good guys always win, although not without at least one unfortunate casualty. Something tells me this movie may earn more than a few criticisms from the militarily wise. For us ignorant to the real ways of the services, we don't mind a bit.
Rating:
Summary: Though very funny not very accurate
Review: The one liners Clint Eastwood delivers are extremely funny. But the title of the movie is completely in accurate. Heartbreak Ridge was an Army battle during the Korean war. But in the movie it shown to be fought by the Marines. Of course it wouldn't have been as funny if Eastwood wasn't a Marine.
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