Full Metal Jacket

Rating:
Summary: 7 6 2 millimeter, full metal jacket
Review: This movie is one of the best vietnam films ever made. Stanley Kubrick at his finest. Matthew Modine is brilliant, but ex drill seargent R. Lee Emry is the highlight of the film, using all of his own insults. Funny, violent and thoughtful. A must in any collection.

Rating:
Summary: Great Movie Poor DVD
Review: Kubrick is a ledgend, he is among the best film directors ever to grace Hollywood and Full Metal Jacket is a Testiment to that. I cannot express just how powerful this film really is, if you haven't seen it yet then my friend you have missed a true gem. I wish i could have given this DVD 5 stars, but to tell you the truth Warner Brothers DVD's stink and this DVD is true to that which is why i am giving it 3 Stars, This film is presented in 4:3 full screen, desipte the box back cover stating the film is in widescreen letterbox format, the transfer is poor and so is the sound equally, you might as well just buy the video. I am very dissapointed with WB they have not put any effort into their DVD's, if Kubrick knew about this he'd roll in his grave.

Rating:
Summary: Up there with Platoon & Saving Private Ryan
Review: This is really two movies in one. The first half covers the slow descent into insanity of one Pvt. Leonard Lawrence "Pyle" (Vincent d'Onofrio) as he and other recruits endure the gruelling boot camp overseen by Sgt. Hardman (R. Lee Ermey). The last half of the film covers the Vietnam Tet Offensive. The underlying theme throughout the film is how war deprives us of our humanity. Stanley Kubrick paces the film well and gives the war in Vietnam a different look unseen in other related films. The all too familiar jungle scenes are replaced with the "concrete jungles" of war-torn Saigon. I read that it was shot entirely in England, for Kubrick hates to venture far from his London home. The only qualms I have with the DVD is with the picture format. Instead of widescreen, we're stuck with the sole option of pan and scan. Thus, the four star rating. Maybe Kubrick viewed it in standard format and decided he liked it better. Who knows. This is still a great movie and worth the viewing.

Rating:
Summary: Kubrick Addresses The Complexities Of War
Review: The dual nature of man, wherein he is able to embrace both war and peace simultaneously, is addressed by director Stanley Kubrick in the decidedly anti-war film, "Full Metal Jacket," starring Matthew Modine. Divided essentially into two parts, the first half follows raw recruits through basic training at Parris Island, where the effects of what it takes to turn a man into a Marine / killing machine is explored, predominately through the characters of Private "Joker," played by Matthew Modine, and Private Leonard Lawrence (Vincent D'Onofrio), dubbed "Gomer Pyle" by the D.I, Sergeant Hartman (Lee Ermey). It's a hard, stoic study of techniques and motivation that inherently questions the system itself, and is deftly and succinctly illustrated by the results achieved, which are not entirely those desired. It's hard stuff to swallow at times, but engrossing, and Kubrick manages to gradually build the emotional intensity that gives such impact to the climax of this first part, which is without question the strength of the entire film. The second half switches suddenly to Vietnam, where Kubrick takes up his pallet and canvass, and while attempting to paint a realistic portrait of war, instead takes more of a turn away from reality, and the film takes on a sense of the surreal; the result is more reminiscent of the visual artistry of "The Thin Red Line" than of the truly gritty realism of "Saving Private Ryan," and rather than make his statement directly through the use of the story, he uses the movie to stage sequences of events to demonstrate the contradictory nature of war and it's consequences, and man's involvement therein. And while he compares the moral and emotional conflicts with the physical, it is an acknowledgement of an inner struggle devoid of any proffered solution, though delivered quite subjectively. The pace of the film is very deliberate and much of the dialogue has a "staged" sense about it that, rather than underscore the issues being addressed, has more of an alienating effect which serves to neutralize the emotional aspects of what is being presented. The story is told from the point of view of Modine's "Joker" , but though Modine does a passable job, his is a rather unsympathetic character whose purpose it would seem is merely to act as narrator and to serve as the "eyes" of the camera. And, again, it only manages to distance the audience further, as Joker becomes a kind of buffer between the viewer and any sustained level of emotional involvement with the story or any of the characters. Instead of a stirring fulmination against the lunacy of war and man's enablement of it, Kubrick's approach creates more of a sense of rather cold ambiguity. Had Joker (as the lead) been a stronger character, and had the second half of the film been more like the first, instead of nothing more than a series of vignettes, this could have been a dynamic movie; as it is, because of Kubrick's choices, he made a good movie, but not a great one. There are two memorable performances here, one by Vincent D'Onofrio, who did an exemplary job of creating the hapless Leonard; the other by Lee Ermey, as the Gunnery Sergeant who could be the poster-boy for an anti-enlistment campaign. Also worthy of note is the work of Arliss Howard, who brought "Cowboy" so credibly to life. Rounding out the supporting cast are Adam Baldwin (Animal Mother); Dorian Harewood (Eightball); Kevyn Major Howard (Rafterman); Ed O'Ross (Lieutenant Tinoshky); and John Terry (Lieutenant Lockhart). With "Full Metal Jacket," Stanley Kubrick raises issues that are important, and makes some valid points about the causes and complexities of war, and the moral and ethical challenges of those presented with it. Obviously, this was a passionate endeavor; if only he would have allowed more of that passion to make it's way onto the screen. What a movie this could have been.

Rating:
Summary: Ammending an old review
Review: Yes I said I was mad because it wasn't in letterbox folks. My error! The truth was brought to my attention, and I apologize. The film was not made to be presented in letterbox format, thus there was no way to release a letterbox dvd.

So here is my final review. This movie had great visuals and impact. I find this movie to be entertaining each time I watch it, except for the mass grave speech. (What is with that guys meaningless speech and annoying voice?) I have yet to see a scene that hits as hard as the bootcamp finale.

If you miss the 1980's when Vietnam movies were the top draws you can relive them with this one. I know you may be wondering; is this movie as good as "Platoon"? The answer is no. But either was "Forest Gump", and people loved it!

Rating:
Summary: Kubrick¿s shot at Vietnam
Review: Stanley Kubrick provides a different spin on American soldiers in the Vietnam War. Actually about some U.S. Marines, "Full Metal Jacket" is one of Kubrick's more realistic films, comparable to his earlier feature "Paths of Glory," yet retains a different taste. Whether you want to call it an anti-war film or not, it does provide a bleak outlook on war and has its share of uncomfortable scenes.

The story is centered on a young man nicknamed "Joker," who goes through Marine basic training and soon finds himself in the midst of the Battle for Hue in Vietnam.

The first half of the movie is dedicated to Joker's experience in basic training, which contains humorous, depending on your taste, and harsh training methods used by his drill instructor, brilliantly portrayed by Lee Ermey. Ermey's prior experience of actually having been a Marine drill instructor before he was an actor obviously prepared him well for this role. There's probably no other movie that even comes close to "Full Metal Jacket's" portrayal on Marine basic training, but viewers should remember that this film is set in the 1960's and that some of the offensive training tactics displayed in the film have since been done away with in today's Marines Corps.

After the training segment, the movie then does a quick transition to Vietnam where Joker is serving as a combat correspondent, teamed up with a combat photographer nicknamed "Rafterman." Both of them are itching for some "trigger-time" and eventually get more than their share after they are dispatched to cover events in Hue. Upon arrival they link up with one of Joker's old basic training buddies in a rifle platoon, and are soon exposed to the horrors of combat in Vietnam. They participate in several battles and find themselves trapped in a particularly terrifying situation where their squad is pinned down by a sniper hidden somewhere in the city. The battle against the sniper is one of the better war scenes ever done for a film and Kubrick makes a significant point here that training and talking about war and killing is one thing, but actually doing it is another thing.

The movie's Vietnam segment has quirky feel to it, mostly brought on by the '60's pop music soundtrack that plays dominantly in several scenes almost like music videos. Another unique feature about the movie is the portrayal of Hue as a burning concrete jungle, a departure from other Vietnam-theme movies that always have regular jungles in the background. The productions sets are very impressive considering that this movie was actually filmed in England. The movie definitely has Kubrick's unique style and is a very good show overall.

DVD image and sound is excellent, but curiously released in full screen format rather than letterbox.

Rating:
Summary: The fat kid goes crazy
Review: This movie takes one of the most brutal aspects of the army and makes it even more brutal. This story starts off with a fat kid that's trying to make it through combat training. The problems he has(mostly because he's fat and not all there) and his resolution to the matter(full metal jacket). Near the middle of the movie, the forward plot direction does a 90 degree turn. From here we follow a reporter in the war. All in all, a fantastic movie with some very disturbing scenes.

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: Realistic Vietnam Era Boot Camp
Review: As a former Marine and Vietnam veteran, I have to disagree with Mr. Brennan's portrayal of the second half of this film. The war scenes were marginal at best and failed to capture the "realism" of war...Platoon was much better in that respect. Primarily because Oliver Stone was a veteran,himself. However the boot camp scenes were dead on accurate. R.Lee Ermey played the drill sergeant to perfection,as he should have, having been the very same in real life. I had several D.I.'s like this in boot camp and I can assure you, it WAS this way! I can laugh at the movie now, but while in boot camp it was no laughing matter, we were there to learn to fight and go to war, other skills were learned, but they were secondary. We had to be tough and they made sure we were. The boot camp portion was almost like a documentary to me! Having said all that the movie was very good and I was more than proud of having been a Marine.

Rating:
Summary: stanley kubrick at his best
Review: this movie is absolutely unbelievable. everything about it is good. it is as if the camera men went to a real boot camp and filmed this. it is so real. my uncle was in the marine corps and he said this movie is a vivid picture of what he went through before going to vietnam. if that isn't enough proof to show how good the movie is i don't know what is. all the elements of war are in this film. i take my hat of to the boot camp sergeant. was he a real sergeant, because it sure looked like it. full metal jacket, shows the downside of war, and the upsides of war, although there aren't that many. private joker, gomer pyle, private snowball, all these names are the people youu will get to know in this movie. it is a depiction in what the boot camps are like in this time. i give it a high five!