Good war film about the wait to go to war and what happens when you get there

Rating: 7/10 (13 November 2005)

The story of an enlisted Marine as he goes from signing up to the deserts of Saudi Arabia to wait for war, and then into battle during the first Gulf War.
Reviews from friends have been mixed, nobody didn't like it, but some people were floored by it while others were less than impressed. Going in I didn't know what to expect.
My reaction to the film is one of disappointed enjoyment. The problem for me is that the film becomes a series of loosely connected sequences that didn't hold together once we head for the desert. No doubt that this is the result of compressing the source down because you really can't show several hundred days of people doing nothing. All of the bits were excellent unto themselves but at the same time they didn't connect well to each other and so I became distracted with each jump in time.
This isn't to say this isn't a good film, it is. Its a very good film that clearly shows the boredom of modern warfare. Hurry up and wait. In its way its a very good anti war film since it clearly shows that the military is not all fun and games. One guy I was talking to on a train the other day, loved the film. He also said that while he wanted to serve his country, he was going to look for other options since after seeing this film the excitement to boredom level seemed to be very low.
Definitely worth seeing. Try to see it on the big screen where the empty vistas of sand will seem even more engulfing.
7.5 out of 10