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 - Interesting MovieToo bad HD-DVD is dead, but if you still own a player, this is a great movie for the price. I think those of us who are soldiers and have been to Iraq can understand this movie a little better than those who haven't. Some of the scences can be too close to home and somewhat overbearing for non-military viewers, but helps to remind us how much of a sacrifice we made in both wars. The picture quality and sound delivers, though this more of an enhanced DVD than a true HD movie. Rating:  - Really wants to be Apocalypse Now...If you want a war move that probes the depths of madness and incorporates surerealism while exploring the lives of soldiers trapped in a pointless microcosm of a wider war, you have two options. Get a pretty lame and boring variation on this theme in Jarhead, or get Apocalypse Now. The later is the infinitely better choice. Rating:  - Good Movie for a Boring DayThis isn't the most captivating movie in the world, but it does have humor in it with a serious underlying message. It's a good movie to watch when you're tired, but not so good for real brain stimulation. Rating:  - Not at all what I expectedI rented this one last night, expecting a typical war story. What I got was something else entirely. This is the movie adaptation of the autobiographical book of the same name by Anthony Swofford about his experiences in the Marines during the first Gulf War. As a former military guy myself from that era, I was initially drawn into the story because I could relate to Swofford's introduction into military life at boot camp. It was a scene familiar to anyone with armed forces experience. Unfortunately, the movie went downhill from there. As the story traces Swofford's short military career through his garrison time and into Desert Shield, there remains an aura of credibility, although frankly some of the behavior depicted by the servicemen began to stretch the limits of what was believable based on what I knew of military life. As Desert Shield drags on for months, the focus shifts to the emotional and psychological toll of wartime inactivity, which admittedly is more pronounced among sex-starved young men who know nothing but loneliness and boredom. Even so, these scenes become exaggerated and even caricatured by the onset of the Desert Storm phase. Finally, the theme moves on to the futility and senselessness of war from the perspective of the average grunt on the ground. Again, there was some familiarity here for one who had lived through eight years of often nonsensical and contradictory military culture. However, some of the Marines' responses simply didn't jive with the reality of their circumstances, or reflect fairly on the immense professionalism that characterizes the modern U.S. military, both now and during the early 90s when this story takes place. Oddly enough, for a "war movie" this had almost no violence in it whatsoever. It is much more of a character study and a psychological inquiry into the nature of young men trained to fight and kill. It renders an indictment of high-level military leadership which, while true, is also one-sided. In short, this story offers up heavy doses of both reality and exaggeration, and it is up to the viewer to try to sort out which is which. For people with military experience that shouldn't be too hard, but others will likely walk away with a distorted view of our armed forces. Rating: - Doesn't Represent the Marines I KnowI read the book and thought that a movie about Desert Shield/Desert Storm would be interesting. The special effects and photography were great. especially the scenes of the famous destroyed cars and busses of the poor folks who attempted to flee Kuwait and the burning oil wells. The war and the locale is probably pictured accurately but the Marine unit personnel portrayed in the movie didn't act like any of the soldiers, Marines, and sailors I had the privilege to serve with for 22 years. The guys in the movie were a bunch of Hollywood sterotyped animals. They constantly fought among themselves and seemed to have IQ's that seldom exceeded 80. The "why am I here?" theme for the "hero" of this wasted evolution goes on and on ad nauseum. It was difficult to have any degree of pride for this collection of disorganized misfits and if this is the Marine Corps of the 1990's and beyond God save us. If you want to see soldiers, officers, and Sargeants as they actually are, please watch WE WERE SOLDIERS.
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