Kubrick mystifies the minds

Rating: Null/10 (18 December 2000)

I have to start by making one statement: this is not a war film. Granted, I may be called an idiot by those who see the guns, the violence, the basic training, but in the end, this is not a war film. As any Kubrick film, you cannot take it at face value. This is not a movie where you can just watch and accept what you see on the screen. This movie is made to be peered into, seen for what it really is: commentary on the human psyche.
Now with my rant out of the way, I will proceed with my review. This is simply one of the best movies ever made, as are most of Kubrick's. We are presented with several characters who we are not sure of: are we supposed to hate the loud-mouthed general? Or are we supposed to feel that the private is the enemy for not believing in the cause of the country?
I have also heard that many feel only the first portion of the movie is entertaining, and therein lies the movie's fault. Kubrick, for whatever reason, made the first part to be taken only at face value. Only after joker is shipped to Vietnam do we begin seeing Kubrick's mind emerge, the that draws you in and traps you as a parallel to the human mind. We are not looking at the Vietnam war through sane eyes, only through what "sane" would be to a soldier in Vietnam. The second part of the movie shows the transgression on Joker's part, the gradual loss of his humanity as he becomes another machine.
Is this the best Kubrick film ever? No. Is this the best war film ever? no, it's not a war film. Is this yet another look into the human psyche? Yes. And this is why I watch this movie over and over, not because I enjoy the violence, the language, or the first 40 minutes. I watch it because I get yet another opportunity to open up to the world of Kubrick, to see the world through his eyes, and play another character in his world.