Rating: 
Summary: How it was in recruit training
Review: The movie is basically two stories, the first half covering boot camp and the second half being just another war movie. 5 stars for part one, 2 stars for part two. That said I never thought I'd live to see Marine Corp recruit training portrayed in a movie as dead on realistic (in the 60's at least) as this was. You had to have gone through it to really appreciate it though. The opening scene got it exactly right. Part one made the movie for me. Semper Fi R. Lee Ermey!
Rating: 
Summary: this is real
Review: I have read a lot of people's reviews of this film and they talk about the director being a sham and the acting phony and so on.
But I will say as a vet, that every step of this movie is real. It is so real that it is hard for me to watch. It is how life in combat is. It takes place in Vietnam but could as well be any other conflict at any other time. Watching those men die by the sniper near the end almost cracked me because that is how it is. As far as I see it, this film was made for people that don't go to combat because the film makers what those people to see the confusion, love, hate, and down right wonderment that vets face everyday of their life. This movie is real. "The Deer Hunter" and stuff like that is not.
Rating: 
Summary: Compelling Vietnam-era that only falls short in Vietnam
Review: Films that glamorize the experiences of war have long been a thing of the past. "Full Metal Jacket" is a fine component of the growing number of 'anti-war' movies out there. Set during the Vietnam War, there is nothing glamorous or even human about the battles these Marines must face (against both the enemy and within themselves). The dehumanizing characteristic of these soldiers gets extra emphasis under the eye of Kubrick, who makes this a regular theme in his movies. Easily the most powerful portion of this movie is the opening sequence of the Marines going through boot camp at Parris Island. The portrayal of how these young men (high school grads, rich kids, farm boys...) get turned into inhuman killing machines is done with frightening realism. The dead-on performance of Marine Drill Sergeant Hartmann by R. Lee Ermey (a former Marine Drill Instructor in real life) enhances that effect. Some men can handle the intensity; some cannot. Private Lawrence (nicknamed 'Gomer Pyle') can't hack it mentally or physically as a Marine and is constantly ridiculed by Hartmann and his fellow recruits. The training and the treatment he receives unwittingly turns him into exactly what the Marines want (or think they do): the inhuman, unthinking, killing machine; so unthinking that he cracks and kills Hartmann when confronted during the last night on the island. The dehumanizing environment follows the soldiers to their tours of duty in Vietnam, where being human can also mean being dead. The soldiers learn that you cannot ever get to close to your friends because they may be the next to be sent home in a body bag courtesy of a surprise artillery attack or a hidden sniper.
"Full Metal Jacket" is a character study of the world these men have to endure and survive. This two-tiered story arc shows effective representations of this during the sequence in Vietnam. While just standard movie far for war films, it still provides and accurate portrayal of that world. Where "Full Metal Jacket" truly shines is during the Boot Camp scenes. Former Marines have watched those scenes and said that it was just like being back on the island. The intensity and ferocity of the training make the viewer feel as though Sgt. Hartmann is drilling them as well. The true standout performance is by Vincent D'Onofrio as a Private Pyle. He easily conveys the transformation of Pyle from the 'aw shucks', friendly farm boy to the crazed over the edge killing machine simply through the looks in his eyes. The other characters, save for Hartmann, are typical war movie personalities from the wisecracking Private Joker (Modine) to the psychotic Animal Mother (Baldwin). Each lends their own degree of believability to the role.
Rating:
Summary: Wide Screen/Full Screen
Review: This is a great movie!
For those the are complaining that this movie is not widescreen, it was meant to be FULL SCREEN.
That's how it was filmed! Get over it.
Rating:
Summary: The drill instructor made this movie
Review: Kubrick is a phony, a fake and a sham. Do not believe the hype folks, Kubrick at his best is a mediocre film-maker. Don't believe me, then u should watch A.I. Despite Spielberg's attempt to salvage the project, the movie still turns out to be absolute garbage with great cinematography. Full Metal Jacket is only worth watching right until the end of boot camp, basically the first half-hour or so. After boot-camp, comes the war scenes. Here, Kubrick attempts to be an insightful and original director. This futile excercise only insults the inteligence of any individual possessing an I.Q higher than that of a senile goat. There is almost no character development in this movie therefore one is always left guessing the motive behind the 80% of the actions of the characters. The movie does not end it simply stops. After it stops, you realize the movie really had no point and Kubrick is no Tarantino. However I still bought the DVD because of the phenomenal performance of Lee Hermey who plays the drill instructor.
Rating: 
Summary: Full Frame Frustration
Review: The first time I saw this film in the theater I completely enjoyed it and would have given it 4 or 5 stars easily. Too bad only half the film gets released on this DVD; its like watching a movie through a keyhole. I would like to give this release 0 stars for not including a letterbox version for those of us who actually want to see the movies we buy. No letterbox -- no sale!
Rating:
Summary: WHAT'S WITH THE FULL SCREEN?
Review: Mr. Kubrick did the same thing with "The Shining," i.e., present it on the DVD with full screen. Waa this how it was presnted in movie houses? Why do we have to sit through his peculiarities?
Rating:
Summary: Full Screen?
Review: Good movie, bad studio.
What the thought process behind having this DVD only include the pan scan version is what I keep asking myself.
Don't let the Stanley Kubrick Collection labeling fool you; or you might very well end up having to buy this movie AGAIN just to see it in widescreen.
Rating:
Summary: A Jelly Donought?!?!?!?!
Review: Like everyone else, I enjoy the first half of this movie over and over and over. It is by the far the greatest 'boot camp' sequence ever filmed by Hollywood. Ermy will have you howling with laughter at every profanity infested tyrade. You can hwatch the boot camp 'mini movie' all by itself and never tire of it. The second half has it's moments, but fails tragicly in comparison to the first half. If the entire movie had been boot camp, this would be one of the most watched and entertaining movies of all time. 5 stars for the first half
2 stars for the second.
Rating:
Summary: Has its moments
Review: The first 45 minutes of 'Full Metal Jacket' is one of the greatest things ever put on film. One reason why Kubrick is called the master or genius is because of awesome sequences like these. I cannot imagine any other director creating such a sequence so perfectly. The other half of the movie....wel...
It has it moments, but I can't see what Kubrick is trying to say. The film fails in that it did not create any real characters.
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