Film Review 2 - Full Metal Jacket

Stanley Kubrick must have thought he struck gold with the release of this film because everything about Full Metal Jacket is superb. It focuses on the marines as they go from training camp to the war in Vietnam. This film is packed with memorable performances and fantastic dialogue that has been recited countless times amongst friends, on television shows or other films as some sort of a tribute. In fact a line of dialogue even features in a famous Nelly Furtado song, but whether she's actually watched this film or not is another question.

Full Metal Jacket has a unique structure that is executed brilliantly with the story split into two parts. The first part is about the training camp and the progression the recruits make under the intense regime carried out by Sergeant Hartman. The film is introduced to the main character, Private Joker who becomes squad leader after a confrontation with Hartman that proves he has the guts to stand up for himself. His role of squad leader also involves assisting the most incompetent recruit, Private Pyle.

Private Pyle becomes the centre of attention for the majority of this section of the film as Hartman constantly ridicules him for his slow grasp of the easiest tasks. When Hartman finds a doughnut in Private Pyle's locker, he punishes the rest of the platoon for every mistake after, which results in the whole squad brutally making Pyle regret this. After that, Pyle goes on a downward spiral of insanity and motivates him to become one of the more advanced recruits, which doesn't stop his worrying mentality. By the end of training, they all graduate, but Pyle has unfinished business and in a dramatic and one of the most breathtaking film scenes ever, he guns down Hartman and himself with Joker witnessing it all and shaking him to his very core.

The film then turns to the Vietnam war where Joker is a war journalist for 'Stars and Stripes' as they follow recruits to report on the war itself. They encounter the Vietnamese public, most notably a prostitute where the film's most recoginised dialogue comes from. Joker also meets up with Private Cowboy, who features in the training camp. Joker and his photographer, Rafterman join Cowboy and his fellow recruits and get a bigger insight into the action. This takes them into South Hue where a Sniper slaughters the majority of this small crew, including Cowboy. They eventually find the culprit, a Vietnamese woman stranded in a torn building, completely frenzied and Rafterman brings her down. Joker then kills her to relieve her from her pain despite the damage she inflicted on his friends. The recruits then carry on through the war with the main unit and the film closes with them chanting in honour of Mickey Mouse.

Clearly this film has entertainment that only stops at the end credits, but what makes this film great is the sensational performance for the role of Hartman, (R. Lee Ermey) delivering some comical outbursts with his recruits amongst even more amusing marching chants and the equally impressive performance for the role of Private Pyle, (Vincent D'Onofrio) who everyone can feel sympathy for and can worry about with his increase in anger that explodes in extraordinary fashion. However these performances should not overshadow the role of Private Joker, (Matthew Modine) which provides a subtle contrast in humour and shock much like the overall feel for the film itself.

However one criticism I do find with this is the transition between the training camp and the war, which seems too quick when many films would provide some breathing space after a dramtic climax, like the one at the training camp. However that is one slight error in a film that is remarkable for it's story, characters and the theme and proves why Stanley Kubrick is so highly regarded as a top director. Nobody else could devise this film with a better contrast of emotion which makes Full Metal Jacket exciting from start to finish.