Jarhead (R)
Mike:
Scott:
Scott: Tonight we are reviewing Jarhead
, starring Jake Gyllenhaal as Anthony 'Swoff' Swofford, a newly minted Marine recruit. The story centers on Gyllenhaal, his Marine training, and his experiences in the first Gulf war, Desert Storm.
What are your thoughts, Mike?
Mike: I think this is one of the best movies we have seen this year.
How about you?
Scott: It is a very powerful movie, both in what you see and in what you don't see. I liked it.
Mike: It's interesting that it's not a straight war movie per se, because it's more about the preparation for war, than actual combat.
Scott: Yes, you see Gyllenhaal in boot camp and follow him through the end of the Gulf War. Of course, for a grunt, the Gulf War wasn't a whole lot of anything anyway.
Mike: Let's make it clear that this is about the original Gulf war of the 90s, not present day.
Scott: Yes, correct.
Mike: I think the acting, direction and cinematography was first rate. I have been impressed with both of Sam Mendes' previous movies: American Beauty and Road to Perdition. This makes three good ones in a row.
Scott: You can see his style in this movie. There are several telling shots, where the actors are small on the screen physically, but the weight of what you see is huge.
Mike: He definitely seems to be an actor's director and he elicits strong performances from a great group of young actors. The standouts are Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx and Peter Sarsgaard.
Scott: Interesting thing about Peter Sarsgaard, who plays Corporal Troy, was that he was born on Scott Air Force Base. So I guess he was a military brat at some point. I first noticed him in Garden State. In that film and in this, he was very good.
Mike: I liked him in Garden State, Kinsey and the Salton Sea.
Scott: Foxx made up for his appearance in Stealth with this movie. I really liked him in this, more so than in Ray.
Mike: Foxx does a great job as the Staff Sergeant. I think Ray Charles was his standout role, but he first showed what he had in Collateral. It made me wonder if he had really been in the military, but I don't think he has.
Scott: He was good. It was the best Staff Sergeant role since Full Metal Jacket. I was reminded of Full Metal Jacket throughout this movie. They were not similar movies really, just some shots were reminiscent. Of course, a lot of good shots from a war movie will remind you of other war movie shots.
Mike: I definitely see the Full Metal Jacket similarities, and that is a huge compliment to the film.
Gyllenhaal has the lead everyman part as Anthony Swofford. He impressed me more in this film than in anything we have seen him in up till now. His part reminded me of Charlie Sheen's role in another classic war film, Platoon.
Scott: To be honest, I thought Gyllenhaal reminded me more of Matthew Modine in Full Metal Jacket than Sheen. He had anger and kindness whereas Sheen seemed more dazed and confused.
Mike: I still say Sheen, because he is very naive and though Gyllenhaal has a talent as a sniper; he is still at many times overwhelmed or prone to screw up.
Let me mention the cinematography. Some of the shots of the scenes in the deserts of Iraq and Kuwait will stay with you. The image of the burning oil wells is memorable.
Scott: Even more memorable is the scene of the "highway of dead". That shot was right out of the historic photos of the war. It was gruesome and gross. That was one of the most telling shots in a war movie I have seen.
Mike: The movie reminds you of other landmark war movies without seeming like it has stolen from them. Rather, it tries to impart the reality of war in a film.
Scott: That's what I was saying earlier. It's like they have to be shown the same way. There is no One-Upping a war movie shot at its best. I think Platoon, Full Metal Jacket, even Thin Red Line, have those defining shots. Like this movie, they just make you say 'Oh, wow'.
Mike: Yeah. I think alot of people think the first Gulf war was no big deal in comparison to other conflicts like WWII or Vietnam. But this movie shows you that all war is gruesome and a tragedy.
Scott: One part in the movie that I mentioned earlier, the "highway of dead", was very disturbing to me. It was powerful not only because of the scene itself, but because there was no music in the scene. It was eerily quiet and calm (except for the idiot behind me in the theatre).
Mike: There are actually a number of tense scenes when the actual Desert Storm conflict begins. Another very quiet scene is when they come across the nomads in the desert. The tension had me literally curling my toes in my shoes.
Scott: I guess we were waiting, like the soldiers were, for the action to start. You know a war is coming, you just know something is going to happen at some point, but it never really does. This movie shows what happened to the front line guys. They waited for 6 months to get into combat and it was over in 4 days... 100 hours I believe it was.
Mike: Another thing to point out is even though this is a very serious film about a very serious subject; there is a lot of humor in the film.
Scott: It's not 'comedian' funny, it's more like 'life' funny.
Mike: The humor wasn't out of place, though, since it came out of the camaraderie of being a Marine and the comedy of everyday life.
Scott: Exactly. There weren't one liners. It was just a bunch of guys, a bunch of Marines, doing what they do. You see their lives, see how they cope, see what they go through and how they make it through the day.
Mike: The thing about all the movies like this is, it makes you wonder how you yourself would cope if put in a situation like these guys are in.
I think this movie is definitely going to be in the Oscar running a couple categories, including Best Picture. That's my bold prediction of the evening.
Scott: Out on a limb are you?
Mike: I didn't hear you say anything to that effect!
Scott: I didn't think I had to. I think it will be up for cinematography, screenplay adaptation and possibly best supporting actor for Foxx.
Mike: Oh, now you speak up.
Scott: What do you rate this one?
Mike: I give this 4 out of 5 overall and 4 out of 5 as a war drama.
Scott: I give it a 4 out of 5 overall and a 4.5 out of 5 for war drama.
Mike: Don't be alarmed when you walk into the theater and they say "Welcome to the Suck"!
Click here to visit our blog and comment on our review.
