Semper Fi: One Marine's Journey

I just saw this documentary on Showtime. It was nothing short of terrific. I, also, was in the military so I can identify with Jeff. This was one moving documentary. If Jeff is ever in your town with this one-man show go and see it. I had tears in my eyes at the end along with the actual audience who was watching his live performance. He is an eloquent speaker and you will be clinging to his every word. Our military men and women are heroes in every way. Everyone needs to support them. The only shame is that not everyone is allowed to be a soldier. I believed Jeff when he said he always wanted to be a soldier. And he sure was a good one. Do not miss this documentary and tell your friends about it.

Whoa! What a beautiful and sometimes sad story about a man whose love for his fellow man and his country are interwoven into a masterpiece of life. Jeff Key has done more to increase the prestige of the USMC than any poster or recruiter could ever do. Jeff shoots from the hip with no apologies. He is straightforward and leaves no doubt of his sincerity. He does a wonderful job of introducing us to members of his family and those folks who he regards as friends - both in his civilian life and members of the Marine Corps with whom he served. Here is a dedicated individual who just happens to be gay and does not let that interrupt his eagerness to serve and protect us. In the scenes of his interacting with the children of Iraq one soon learns of his honesty and willingness to offer them hope. We see war as it has not been shown to us before. Oh,yes, there is death and mayhem but there is also, in his mind at least, a reason of why he is there. I would urge every American to invest 90 minutes and absorb the various messages of Jeff Key's "Semper Fi". Thank you, Jeff. And God bless you.

As a retired Marine, I watched this film with a jaundiced eye, expecting some kind of whiny apologetic for gays being allowed to serve in the military. I figured it would be a kind of "Michael Moore-ish" blasting of the Marines. But what I saw was a real guy with a desire to serve his country who had the opportunity to serve in a war zone and try his part to do what America was told we were sent to Iraq to do: to bring democracy and freedom to the people there even though he had doubts about the war as a reaction to the 9/11 attack. I listened and watched Jeff Key deal with Iraqis, his fellow Marines and his sexuality in a mature, intelligent way. In the end, he felt compelled to admit his homosexuality and leave the Corps, but nothing I saw in the movie made he think he had done anything but serve his country and the Corps with honor. With interviews of family, friends from his gay life and from the Marines, films of his service in Iraq, and scenes from Key's one man show about his service, this movie ends up presenting, in a non-argumentative way, a persuasive argument for allowing gays to serve openly in the service.

An outstanding documentary of the life and Marine career of Jeff key, a gay man who felt the duty to join and do something for his country after 9/11.

His story is worth listening to and presents just about all the arguments that one needs to remove the ridiculous "Don't Aske. Don't Tell" policy in the military.

One of the most interesting facts in the movie is the fact that his fellow Marines in Iraq all knew that he way gay. It didn't matter to the good ones as they were only concerned about his ability to protect them in danger.

The movie also shows how the war changed from one of liberation to the sorry mess we have over there now.

Don't miss it.

I saw this last night at a screening which was part of a new queer film fest here in Denver. I was apprehensive, but decided to go based on the first user comment on this site and I'm grateful I did. In addition to the documentary being well above my expectations, the director as well as Jeff Key were there in person for a Q & A. Having them there to field questions enriched the entire experience, especially since the material begs for even more information. At 82 minutes, I could have sat for at least another 20 minutes. If you get a chance to see this on Showtime, definitely check it out. I hope this makes it to video w/ bonus material.