worth watching

Rating: 9/10 (25 November 2006)

I have seen a few other films with Jake Gyllenhaal in, such as Donnie Darko, The Good Girl and Brokeback Mountain, and I was always impressed with his performances. When my brother mentioned Jarhead to me positively, I was keen to watch it, and when I did, I was not let down. What I like about this film is that it is quite different from other war films I have seen- not much actually happens, which is the point really, but my attention was not lost. Another brilliant performance from Jake Gyllenhaal, and just as good were Jamie Foxx, Scott MacDonald, Peter Sarsgaard and others, giving a very realistic image of "jarheads". It kept a slightly brutally sinister side to it, and I liked how it seemed that some deaths were more important than others. Although Jarhead had great acting and good camera directing, I don't think I would go as far as to call it a favourite of mine. It was narrated by the main character, Swaff, played by Jake Gyllenhaal, and I think perhaps the narrations were rationed to give it a more even, realistic effect, but I think it would have improved the film if there were more of it. I felt it could help the audience feel more involved and see things better from their point of view. It could also help them understand the point of the film more. I did feel a little like the audience was just sitting on the side, watching everyone else, when it should have been a part of it. I was also a little bit disappointed with the ending, I felt like I wasn't left with anything to think about, and if my last thoughts on the film were negative due to this ending, I feel I'm left feeling unhappy about this film, when it, all in all, was quite good. Apart from these bad points, I think it is worth watching, with good acting, pleasant subtlety, and, to be honest, Jake Gyllenhaal looks quite good topless.