The duality of man

Rating: 8/10 (9 April 2014)

The movie follows a group of aspiring young men as they endure the trials of basic training in their quest to become Marines and, ultimately, soldiers in the Vietnam War. In the first half of the film, Privates Joker and Pyle struggle through the mentally and physically tiring stresses which are intensified by the strict guidance of Gunnery Sergeant Hartman. The second half of the film is set in Vietnam. Privates Joker and Rafterman go out into the field to get a firsthand account of the bloodshed and atrocities of war.
The basic training scene alone could have given the movie a fantastic rating right from the start. It was not only hilarious but also very true to life. It also shows how hard and stressful basic training is for the soldiers that go through it. It shows just how fragile some people's minds can be in such stressful situations as well. It makes you realize just how strong the notion of patriotism is. It's a word that can put a nation to collectively agree to go to war or make someone put themselves in a situation that they know they can't handle.
Contrasting the limits is the hellish chaos of Vietnam, where Marines can try to march in line, but the unpredictable can, and will, throw them off. The film as a whole is distinguished by how intimately it depicts the psychological impact on the Marines, whose cracking faces are often quietly observed in close-ups. Joker and his boys go to war mimicking John Wayne movies and expecting to be heroes in the same sort of Western showdowns. What they get instead are abusive sergeants, hookers with tuberculosis, people who don't want to be saved, and a shootout so traumatizing that, by the end of it, they revert back to infancy for security, chanting the Mickey Mouse song just to get by.
It details the lives of several Marine Corps. Infantrymen. The most recognizable is that of "Private Pile". Private Pile is not your standard Marine Corp. soldier, as he is on the overweight side and a bit clumsy. Pile must also survive the basic training of Gunnery Sgt. Hartman, who gives him utter hell as he progresses through training. his movie has many iconic and classic quotes that have made it a classic. As far as philosophical content , there are some morality questions that may be raised; especially those about how soldiers are trained and how another individual can decide whether an individual lives or dies. However, those seem to be some of the realities of war.
This film is darkly humorous, uncompromisingly brutal, and subversive in every way, "Full Metal Jacket" is easily one of the best war movies without being remotely similar to your standard issue war flick. Through out it all though, Kubrick is subversive, funny, and offensive to authority, which fits in well with his style. I think Kubrick again draws you in by showing you the true nature of war and the character of the me n required to go fight and die; they are humans each and every one, just like us all.