Jarhead

At the beginning heavy-duty boredom that you’ve seen a hundred times in a hundred movies. But later Mendes starts to show us different, more interesting things. Gyllenhaal’s dream-like visions when he pukes up sand, burning oil wells (definite climax of the movie) and soldiers who would do anything to be able to shoot at a live target. Jarhead really is an extraordinary film. It shows the US Army in a different, and maybe finally perhaps a true light. By the way Newman’s soundtrack is just outstanding. (04/26/2007)

I wasn’t expecting much from Mendes, but I really liked Jarhead. I know I'm not the first or the last to write this in a review, but after making a war drama with a penchant for expert psychology, a minimum of real action and a premise seemingly glued together by pathos in such an open, unobtrusive and uncomfortably real way, Mendes deserves, if not outright respect, then certainly deep compliments. It's a chilling account of the horrors of war, easygoing and low-key on the surface, but so powerful and believable inside that it has earned a place in my eyes among the thought-provoking masterpieces that are dominated by Coppola's Apocalypse Now (which also comes to mind quite strongly here). Jarhead may not be the best shot, funniest or most emotionally gripping war story made in Hollywood, and we've seen all of its basic themes in many other films, including some that we now call classics, but it’s one of the few American films that had me believing everything in it. This is where the awkward "based on a true story" caption would work quite nicely:-) 80% (08/26/2013)

An entertaining and, in its own way, very cool account of war without chilling battle scenes? Yes! Sam Mendes is at the top of his game, creating the dense atmosphere of the desert in an original way and, without sentimentality or emotional swings, documenting the depression of the Marines who experience life’s losses instead of fulfilling their American boyish dreams. Jarhead is a remarkably laid-back film about uncomfortable issues. (01/14/2006)

After a long, very long time, we have a politically incorrect and properly wild ride that doesn't pretend to be too artistic, like The Thin Red Line, nor does it try to impress the viewer with the naturalism of its combat sequences, like Saving Private Ryan. Jarhead is a cool war caper that masterfully mixes all the necessary ingredients (stunning visuals, excellent actors, a hint of philosophy, and a thoroughly depressing war atmosphere), just in the way as a slightly demanding viewer would like. Some scenes are flawlessly staged, some are funny, some are shocking. But the whole is excellent, and for the first time, this is a film from Sam Mendes that doesn't try to impose on the viewer that he is a great director who only makes artistic stuff (whether it is true or not). Jarhead is a fair affair that grips you and there is no escaping it. (08/09/2006)

Unconventional war and anti-war film, not unlike Platoon, but unfortunately quite difficult for the average viewer, and I admit, even for me. Total boredom in the desert is not completely boring on the screen, but I couldn't fully immerse myself in the rising traumas of the soldiers. And a war film without gunfire simply isn't suspenseful. (08/14/2006)