rating:
(out of
4 stars)United Kingdom, United States; 1987
Directed by Stanley Kubrick; produced by Stanley Kubrick; screenplay by Stanley Kubrick, Michael Herr, Gustav Hasford
Starring R. Lee Ermey, Matthew Modine, Adam Baldwin, Vincent D'Onofrio, Dorian Harewood, Kevyn Major Howard
Below you will find a temporary review for this film. The real (better, more complete) review will be online very soon.
When you here the name of Stanley Kubrick most people will think about 'Dr.
Strangelove', '2001: A Space Odyssey' and 'A Clockwork Orange' and they
probably should since they belong to the greatest film ever made. But before
and after those three Kubrick has made some other masterpieces including
1957's (anti-)war movie 'Paths of Glory' and 1987's war movie 'Full Metal
Jacket'. The first one was set in WW-I, the second one takes place in
Vietnam.
Well, not entirely. The movie is more like two segments; the first dealing
with the training of the soldiers going to Vietnam, the second dealing with
an actual mission in Vietnam. The first part belongs to the best scenes from
a war movie I have ever seen. We meet Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, the senior
drill instructor. He is played by R. Lee Ermey and Kubrick follows him
during his introduction in one long take.
Ermey creates in these first few moments a character you'll probably never
forget. During his long and great monologue we meet some privates including
Private Joker (Matthew Modine), Private Cowboy (Arliss Howard) and Private
Gomer Pyle (Vincent D'Onofrio). These characters are at the center of this
part, with Gomer Pyle being the loser slowing all the others down. As we
follow him through basic training you kind of feel more and more sorry for
him.
Than the second part starts and a curious thing happens. Kubrick sticks with
Private Joker but never shows one of the many other characters from the
training part again. We do meet Rafterman (Kevyn Major Howard) and a private
nicknamed Animal Mother (Adam Baldwin). We follow them and others on a
mission where they encounter a sniper.
It is too bad the first half is so good since now we easily see some flaws,
or actually just a certain simplicity, in the second part. It is not that
Kubrick is bad here, it is that he shows us the usual almost clichéd things.
We understand that when a person is hit by a sniper a second one will be hit
as well while trying to help the first. I mean, the sniper is probably still
watching.
On the more positive side, Kubrick shows us other things than we have seen
in 'Apocalypse Now' or 'Platoon'. The most noticeable thing is that the
action does not take place in the jungle but in a town where buildings are
actually made of stone. I like this change in a cinematographic way; we
understand better who is where. On the other hand, the feeling of not
completely knowing what is happening is probably the feeling the soldiers
had most of the time.
It is hard to explain what I think of the movie as a whole, since I never
had the feeling it was one movie. The first half is way better than the
second, but together they give us a complete vision from a great director.
It still is one of the best Vietnam (or any) war films I have seen.
(Admittedly I think both 'Apocalypse Now' and 'Platoon' are better.) The
memorable first half should be enough for everybody to think this is a very
good movie.