Jarhead - Willkommen im Dreck

In 1989, Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal) is getting trained in a U. S. Marine Corps boot camp by the choleric, hard-boiled Drill Instructor Fitch (Scott MacDonald). After finishing boot camp, "Swoff" is dispatched to Camp Pendleton. Anthony Swofford talks us through his Marine training and service in 1991 Gulf War, is also about an institutionalised man in existential meldown. Anthony is approached by Staff Sergeant Sykes (Jamie Foxx), a Marine "lifer" who invites Swofford to his Scout Sniper course. He is selected to be trained as a sniper and paired with his roommate Troy (Peter Sarsgaard), who becomes Swofford's spotter. Every man fights his own war !. Welcome To The Suck !

This is the story of a 20-year-old boy in the war of Iraq, a life that has little to do with what the newspapers and television offered. It's not often that a film captures exactly what it must have been like for a person to live through the Gulf War as a soldier, but Jarhead partially succeeds. The focus is on a youth who yearns to do what's expected -Are we ever going to get kill anyone ?. The movie's strong suit is vagueness, presenting combat as a semi-surreal state of ignorant expectation and dislocated experience. These warriors loll in the desert awaiting action or attempting to make sense of its consequences. Apart from a few caustic asides about oil and censorship there's barely a glance at life outside the barracks let alone any contemporary resonance.

It is contemporary war seen from the surface with the images of oil wells burning in the night, like comets fallen from the sky, there were recruits laughing and reveling, and full of enthusiasm, and at the same time frightened by the idea that the battle could surprise them behind the next dune or hill. However, the infernal situation in which they live is compensated with their eternal loyalties, camaraderie that nothing could break, unlikely friendships, creating a brotherhood of 'Jarheads' who have sworn eternal fidelity. A gripping and powerful story packed with hard-hitting experiences , drama comedy and many swearings and bad language.

Well starred by Jake Gyllenhaal who began his film career with ¨City Slickers¨ by Ron Underwood. After that, he made ¨Donnie Darko¨, ¨Bubble Boy¨, the drama ¨Moonlight mile¨, a disaster film: ¨The day after tomorrow¨and the interesting thriller ¨Zodiac¨. Achieving his greatest success with the highly awarded ¨Brokeback Mountain¨for which he obtained an Oscar nomination for best supporting actor. He's well accompanied by a good cast such as: Peter Sarsgaard, Scott MacDonald, Jamie Foxx, Lucas Black, Kevin Foster, Brian Geraghty, Dennis Haybert and Chris Cooper.

This wartime picture was well directed by Samuel Alexander Mendes , though with no too much originaly. Sam Mendes was born in the United Kingdom as part of his family of Portuguese descent. In 1996 he filmed "Company" for television, a musical by Stephen Sondheim. Thanks to his admiration for his adaptation of ¨Cabaret¨ music. Which won several Tony Awards, Spielberg gave him the opportunity to begin a film career when DreamWorks produced American Beauty in 1999, winner of the Oscar for best picture and best director. Sam Mendes is a good director who has made some successful films played by important actors , such as : Jarhead , American Beauty , Revolutionary road , this Road to perdition and two Bond movies : Skyfall and Spectre . Rating: 6.5/10 . Above average. Well worth watching . Essential and indispensable watching for Jake Gyllenhaal fans.

The saga Jarhead is made up of: ¨Jarhead¨ (2005) by Sam Mendes with Jake Gyllenhaal, Scott MacDonald, Peter Sarsgaard, Jamie Foxx, Lucas Black. ¨Jarhead: Field of fire¨(2014) by Don Michael Paul with Cole Hauser, Stephen Lang, Bokeem Woodbine, Esai Morales , Jesse Garcia, Jason Wong, Josh Kelly.¨Jarhead: The siege¨ (2016) by William Kaufman with Scott Adkins, Charlie Weber, Dante Basco , Romeo Miller, Erik Valdez, Sasha Jackson, Dennis Haysbert. ¨Jarhead: Law of Return¨ (2019) with Devon Sawa, Amaury Norlasco, Amos Taman, Nicholas Aaron, Robert Patrick .

The old war movies are so simple. Our heroes are eventually going to meet that adversary and finish the issue. This is a film about the boredom, the alienation, the disconnectedness that takes place in wartime. The men in this film are hung out to dry in the desert. Remember the first gulf war was fought mostly with high tech weapons and bombing runs. Of course, there were ground casualties and close fighting in some places, but this film is more about the tension that develops when those with their fingers on the triggers are made to stand down. I think the most gripping part of the film is when the oil fields are burning a and sludgy rain of oil ash and black particles rain from the sky. These guys suffocate on this. It's like a plague from the Bible. All they can do is trudge through it. There is much more to this film, but the bottom line is what the heck is the enemy and what do we poor soldiers have to do to confront it? The answer in this case is to wait and see.

JarHead was one the most riveting war-drama that is bold and yet sympathizing.

Based on former Marine Anthony Swofford's best-selling 2003 book , Jarhead tells about the experiences of Swofford while going through rigorous military training in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

From the director of American Dream , Sam Mendes brings you a very powerful drama about the frustration and anger experienced by an army man away from family , away from home and away from your loved ones. It portrays the picture of pre-experiences of a soldier in the military camp and how he struggles to fight for the country. Direction is incredible but looses the steam later. Wish the second half would have been more impacting. Screenplay is decent. Cinematography is world-class , art direction and dialogues are good. Editing is loose. Jake Gylanhall is superb as Marin Swofford. He is one of most underrated actor. He emotes effectively through his eyes and has given a brave performance. Jamie Foxx and Peter Saarsgaard lends good support.

Overall , high-gripping war drama which is different in terms of story- telling. Good 3/5

I saw a promotional screening of the film, sponsored by my university. Following the screening was an audience Q&A with the author (and main character), Tony Swofford.

And it was no surprise that the very first question from the audience was, quite ambiguously, "Do you support the military?" When Swofford dismissed the question as too broad and complex to be answered with a simple yes or no, the inquirer followed up with, "Well, do you support the war?" Swofford dismissed this even more readily.

To me, this was perfectly representative of how the film handled its potential political implications.

As Troy says early on in the film, "To hell with politics. We're here now." And that's essentially how the movie went.

It bypasses the soapbox and simply tells you how it was, from the perspective of a single soldier. And while the opening boot camp scenes may seem like Full Metal Jacket Lite, the rest of the film is truly unique.

Sam Mendes directs with his usual brilliance, showing once again his affinity for bright, vivid color, even in the largely monochromatic desert.

Jake Gyllenhaal gives an excellent performance as Anthony Swofford, complemented by the able talents of Jamie Foxx and Peter Sarsgaard.

The film's only real flaw is that, like the war on which it was based, it's pretty slow, and not a lot really happens.

In the strictest sense, I would have a hard time even classifying this as a war film, and it's certainly not a deliberately political film.

But in its own way, it tells an intense, personal story. Beyond that, you're simply left to make your own judgments.

7/10

I was reluctant to see this movie. As a veteran of Desert Shield/Storm, I spent my first 90 days in-theater in the Weapons Co of A Swofford's Battalion. I later was moved to the 1st Bn of 7th Marines, but having been in the same unit for some of the same time I felt I could offer readers a unique perspective on the film's accuracy.

From a purely aesthetic perspective I thought the film was well done. The acting was very good, and the script was well written, witty, and accurate. The actors were well suited to their roles. My personal preference for a good plot would have been disappointed were it not for my personal interest in the film. In my opinion this film is an outstanding dramatic-documentary, so adjust your expectations accordingly. If you are expecting a driving plot line and all the accompanying dramatic tension, then I think you will be disappointed (as many whose comments I heard exiting the theater certainly were). But if you think of it as a chance to take a glimpse into a point in history, and see it as some of those who lived it did, then I think you will be impressed.

Many people may think that the obscenity of some of the interactions was overdone for effect. But whatever anyone's personal judgment of that behavior, that is the closest portrayal of Marines (or soldiers) being themselves I have yet seen on screen. Marines are vulgar. They do watch porn. They do fight among themselves. They do both hate, and love, the Marine Corps. There is an omni-present anti-war conspiracy theorist. The do say ridiculous things. There are some who are over the line. The reality of the Marine Infantry is that things happen there every day that are well beyond conventional sensibility, and which strain credibility to the average civilian. It's all true. I love the Marine Corps and I am still serving - I don't have an axe to grind. It just happens to be true.

Are there parts of the film that I find incredible? Yes. But they are not the essential things. There is a scene, it's even in the trailer, in which everyone is firing their weapon into the air. I wasn't there, but I can't fathom a breach of discipline on that scale. I can't say it's impossible, but I am doubtful. But whether it's true or not is not important. At its essence this is a film about Marines, how they adjusted to the Marine Corps, each other, and a war. If there are a few incredible details, then we can just be grateful that Hollywood didn't impose a car-chase on us.

This is a film about Marines. At that time, there were very few who turned down scholarships to Ivy League schools to come in. We were from strange backgrounds. We were obscene. We did want to get our kills. Many of us were frustrated that our war was only 100 hrs long. We knew we were filling the footsteps of giants - the Marines of Iwo, The Chosin, Belleau Wood - and I think we all wanted a chance to earn a place next to those men. In our wild, adrenalized youth, those aspirations just took the crude form of looking for a kill. Or at least that's how I've put it in perspective 15 years later.

If you go and see this film, try to recall yourself at 18 (as I was). Suspend your judgment of the obscenity and vulgarity until you're sure you would've done it differently. I can't speak for Swofford, but I am still incredibly proud of my service there. The insanity of this film reminds me why: because it is characteristic of the immense hardship that our youth bears on behalf of the rest. Do the characters look stressed? It's not hyperbole. We were 18 and we thought we were going to die over there. Still, at H-Hour, everyone marched North. In my opinion, you better fill some big shoes before you judge that.

So don't go into this film champing at the bit to pigeon-hole it as "Anti" or "Pro" war, with all the pre-fab rhetoric that comes with such a judgment. You have an opportunity here to look back into our little moment in history. Swofford has invited you into our memories. They are not Right, and they are not Left, they are just our story as Swofford lived it. If that kind of thing interests you, then go and see this movie.