Jarhead = "Three Kings" Meets Poor Man's "Full Metal Jacket"

Rating: 6/10 (17 November 2005)

We went to see Jarhead with high expectations. After seeing the film, it didn't live up to those expectations.
While it certainly wasn't a "bad" movie, it wasn't a great one either. The movie did have some very funny parts to it and the absurdity of war was certainly shown in the forefront.
However, this was really just a poor attempt to make a great film by taking bits and pieces from other films already made. I mean they even put in actual footage from Apocalypse Now! And the beginning of the movie might just as well have been the Dollar Store's version of Full Metal Jacket with the drill instructor pathetically trying to be R. Lee Ermey. The notion of the absurdity of war was "borrowed" right from Three Kings (but used in a different way). And the list went on and on.
Is the movie worth watching? Yeah, sure... but you might as well wait for it to come out on DVD. However, if you are in the armed forces (thank you for your service to our country), you might want to see it in the theatre as you would probably relate to the movie much better than us civilians.
It did give a different perspective regarding the life of a Marine which was interesting, but all in all it just wasn't anything special. However, I will say that Jamie Foxx did a nice job of acting in the movie.
I'd say go watch this film and then go watch Full Metal Jacket and you'll realize the sheer genius of Stanley Kubrick. People wonder why the box office is losing money... it's because the quality of film making today pales in comparison with many of the greats of the past.
Anyway, this movie gets a 6 out of 10. "Oo-rah."