Rating: 
Summary: VIETNAM : The Movie.
Review: First-rate stunning view of America's involvement in 'Nam still holds the repeat viewings,even if the DVD lacks a letter-box format. Kubrick dips this particular "world" into chocolate,turning the 'Vietnam-Experience' into a big dangerous hunting/camping trip,which was probably the adopted attitude of hardened "grunts" at the time. The Harsh becomes The Impressive. One of the best movies ever made.
Rating: 
Summary: Really two movies - One good, one poor
Review: This is essentially two movies: The Parris Island portion & the Vietnam portion. The Parris Island sequences are engrossing and masterfully done. It would have been great if Kubrick could have developed the basic training story line through two hours. With Embrey in his legendary role as the drill sergeant, I don't think any other movie has portrayed basic training better. Unfortunately, the last portion set in Vietnam is just not that good. Kubrick's attempts to make England look like Vietnam is laughable. The combat intensity of films like Platoon & Hamburger Hill don't develop, but just a bunch of soldiers name-calling each other. By the time we get to the sniper at the end, I was just feeling "who cares?"
Rating:
Summary: Jesus H. Christ!
Review: This is the best and most realistic Vietnam war movie ever made. If you are looking for a true account of the war and not a glamorized version, you've found it. I am a marine, and I know what the Island is like. (That's Paris Island, SC) You can't pass up the oppurtunity to see the best war film ever recorded. Kubrick is a master!
Rating: 
Summary: Astounding first half, then goes downhill...
Review: My feeling about Full Metal Jacket is similar to many others'. The first half of the movie, set in marine basic training on Parris Island, is so riveting and powerful that it could have been a movie on its own - seriously, it's that good. The relentless Drill Sergent Hartman and the bumbling-fool-turned-psycho Pvt. Leonard Pyle are by far the two strongest characters in the movie. The problem with the second half, Vietnam itself, is that, well, neither of them are in it! The plot here seems a bit random, as though they're just wandering around killing people with no real direction. I guess I'm being too hard on the film, because it's much better than most, it's just that my expectations were set so high in the first half that the second just couldn't deliver the same emotional power. It's really a shame.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful Sunsets
Review: I purchased 'Full Metal Jacket' after hearing little snippets of praise for it, and of course having seen some of Stanley's other gems. I was unable to hire it out (all damaged or something) so I just went and bought it. As it turned out it wasn't such a bad decision. Vietnam movies fascinate me, maybe something to do with not actually being born to witness the whole circus. Anyway, Kubrick did a masterly job on this one. 'Full Metal Jacket' seems to have come into being thanks to a few sources. Firstly the novel by someone Gustav, second Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, third Michael Herr's novel 'Dispatches' (who co-wrote the screenplay, I just found out; that's where most of the Vietnam dialogue seems to have come from ie. the 'Hand Job' story and the 'Born To Kill/Peace Icon' helmet, the crazy door gunner: 'You just don't lead them so much, ha ha ha'). The movie is divided into two distinct parts, basic Marine training, and 'combat corresponding' in Vietnam. The first features much military brutality (as does the second, I suppose) , in an organisational manner, along with absolutely BEAUTIFUL cinematography (bold sunsets/sunrises, gentle fades, slow pans etc). Kubrick does not rush things, the pace is steady and well-measured. The second half of the movie largely takes place in a city in Vietnam, maybe Hue or something, I don't really know. Contrasted so clearly alongside the first half of the movie, actual combat seems something of a cinematic disappointment. The surroundings feel staged and small and there is a severe lack of scale. There are no bodies festering around, other American or South Vietnamese squads, planes screaming overhead, you know the deal, just general ambient activity. However I can only criticism so far. I think Kubrick did a stunning job with what he had: a few troops, a derelict gasworks and a little pyrotechnics. And anyway, the last scene with the troops marching singing Mickey Mouse with the flames in the background makes up for all the faults. Wow, that really was a fine way to finish things off. Oh, and the music's pretty good too, especially the end credit track (Rolling Stones, I think). In short a carefully thoughtout and crafted masterpiece, on of the better pieces of cinema to emerge from the 80's.
Rating:
Summary: A War Movie With a Message
Review: Full Metal Jacket is a film which conceptually deals with a platoon of men in Marines Corps training and Vietnam, but thematically expresses the notion that man is "born to kill." It is an excellent film by an excellent director (Kubrick), with elements (such as wonderful cinematogpahy and acting) that make the experience of watching it all the more enjoyable. Kudos especially to Lee Ermey, who plays gunnery sergeant Hartman while the platoon is in training. However, all the performances are equally noteworthy: Modine as Pvt. Joker, Baldwin as Pvt. Cowboy, and D'Onofrio as Pvt. Pile. Anyone who loves Kubrick and movies with a message will undoubtedly enjoy Full Metal Jacket, a fantastic and fascinating film.
Rating:
Summary: BORN TO KILL
Review: Full Metal Jacket is the gritty, psychologically disturbing tale of the process that turns humans into trained killers. The film is essentially diveded into two halves, with the first taking part during marine recruit training where the would-be soldiers are molded into remorseless killing machines. The performance by Vincent D'onofrio highlights this intense first half. The second half follows Private Joker to Vietnam and the combat of Hue City. Surprisingly, the violence of war pales in comparison to the dehumanization process and build-up of the recruit training. Despite losing some momentum(which would have been almost impossibe to keep up) it completes the story by showing how the training has effected them mentally. The combat scenes feature great cinematography among the backdrop of countless burning buildings. This is a welcome change from the scenery of the jungle of most nam films. The end is cold, calculated and surprising, culminating in an extrordinary experience. The film also contains a unique feel to it, credited to director Stanley Kubrick. The acting of Mathew Modine carries the film and the now infamous character of Sg. Hartman make this an unforgetable film. Definitely worth the purchase for the fact that it can be viewed many times because of its deep layers of meaning. The Stanley Kubrick Colection also features the origional cinematic trailer. In short, if you're looking for a film about vietnam then skip this, but if you're looking for a film about the dehumanization of war then this classic fits the bill. The film was nominated for best adapted screenplay and was voted second best picture of the year by the late critic Gene Siskel.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic
Review: Stanley Kubrick is a genius. The movie is great entertainment. It's really fun to watch. You have to watch it.
Rating:
Summary: masterpiece
Review: A Stanley Kubrik masterpiece by all aspects, It is a great movie, superbly shot, and presented in an extremely efficient plot. The plot is one of the best among the myriad of Vietnam movies, because it emphasize on how the soldiers were first greeted & treated in the boot camp. From the very first second (the head shaving) all the way to to the last one in the first part of the movie, we seee the soldiers to be going from humiliation to another. Soldiers are not "born to kill" as the poster of the movie announce, they are "made" killers. In my opinion this is the uniqueness of the movie. The second part is not as strong as the first but I loved the way the camera was shooting in a low angle to mimic a war reporter (what Spielberg imitated in Saving Private Ryan). In my opinion Amazon should include two kinds of rating (stars) one for the movie as a movie and one for the delivery (the vhs or dvd quality, the sound etc...) it took me three minutes to decide if I should pu 4 stars or 5 for this movie, the DVD deserves 4 but the movie is a sure fiver!
Rating: 
Summary: Quite possibly the worst looking DVD ever.
Review: I bought this DVD, already having owned the VCR tape, thinking that I would get a better quality picture. Boy was I wrong. The quality of this DVD is quite possibly worse than the video tape. The sound is only in 2.0 so you don't get anything new there and the only extra you get is a 30 second trailer. Definately stay away from this one if you have the video tape already, it's not worth the investment.
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