Review of Full Metal Jacket (1987) by Cameronius_113 — 15 Jan 2017

Full Metal Jacket was released in 1987 and directed by Stanley Kubrick and is set during the Vietnam War. The movie follows the journey of a marine nicknamed Private Joker through Vietnam, starting in boot camp and eventually ending up in the war.

The first half of the film is set in boot camp and is amazing, one of the reasons for that being the drill instructor. Apparently, the actor who portrayed him used to do drill instructing himself so he was just left to say what he wanted to say as he knews what one would say in a real situation. This adds a sense of realism to it and that is one of the main things I like about this film- it feels very realistic and feels like you're experiencing war with them. Private Pyle was very well portrayed and his journey through boot camp is very engaging and goes places you probably wouldn't expect at times. Matthew Modine was also good as Joker, with his charisma, courageousness and relatability as a character.

The grittiness of war is displayed really well, in particular in the boot camp. You see that the marines don't get to have their say and are treated like animals. Private Pyle's character shows perfectly how all of this can affect someone.

The second half of the film is Joker when he is actually in the war. The quality does definitely drop here and I thought the pacing was a little off at times and it also got quite dull sometimes but it was still entertaining and the final act was very gripping and I really enjoyed it; it was constantly tense and if you watch it you'll probably see what I mean.

Upon first viewing, I was quite confused as to all of the events in the second half linked together and how they were relevant to the first half but now that I've gone back over the story I understand it now and I appreciate it more now.

As I stated earlier, I love how the film feels very realistic and the reason it feels like this is for the great characters I believe. Also mentioned earlier, it makes you feel like you're experiencing these events with them.

Overall, I really enjoyed this movie. The first half was absolutely amazing and while the quality did drop in the second half, it was still enjoyable with a great final act and the performances for the drill instructor and Private Pyle are great. Joker is also a good main character to root for.

8.