Sexual Deprivation, and other elements of war...

Rating: 9/10 (6 November 2005)

My favorite movie of all time is American Beauty, so I expected a lot from this movie, directed, of course, by Sam Mendes. Its sharp opening and initial surreally bright cinematography is reminiscent of Mendes, but throughout the movie I made the mistake of comparing this to Mendes's early work--when it in fact is nothing like American Beauty or Road to Perdition. And I think that is the mistake a lot of critics make in reviewing this movie--you must not look at Jarhead as another Mendes, you must look at it as a "war" movie superior to its contemporaries. Another mistake Jarhead reviewers make is looking at this movie as all action, snappy character development, just like other movies of its genre. This is the story of a man descending into anger and depression ignited by war. There are a lot of symbolic elements, a lot of themes that most people will not see when viewing. There is also the theme of political blindness, and sexual deprivation, maybe even suppressed homosexuality? In any case, Jarhead is a movie to see, and not one to just watch for entertainment. Is "Mendesian" in its literary qualities--irony, metaphor, symbolism, but at the same time, a thrilling and tragically hysterical movie experience.