A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.A pragmatic U.S. Marine observes the dehumanizing effects the Vietnam War has on his fellow recruits from their brutal boot camp training to the bloody street fighting in Hue.
- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 8 wins & 15 nominations total
- Gny. Sgt. Hartman
- (as Lee Ermey)
- Rafterman
- (as Kevyn Major-Howard)
- Doc Jay
- (as John Stafford)
- Da Nang Hooker
- (as Papillon Soo Soo)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaIn the first part of the movie, in the sequences inside the barracks during the drill, a special lens was designed to keep every single Recruit in focus. Director Stanley Kubrick intended that no one was special and they all had the same treatment.
- GoofsOn several occasions, the word "repeat" is used while speaking on the radio. In the Marine Corps, the use of the word "repeat" on the radio is reserved solely for talking to artillery units to request a repeat of the last fire mission. The term used would be: "say again your last" or "I say again."
- Quotes
[first lines]
Gunnery Sergeant Hartman: I am Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, your senior drill instructor. From now on you will speak only when spoken to, and the first and last words out of your filthy sewers will be "Sir". Do you maggots understand that?
Recruits: [In unison in a normal speaking tone] Sir, yes Sir.
Gunnery Sergeant Hartman: Bullshit, I can't hear you. Sound off like you got a pair!
Recruits: [In unison, much louder] SIR, YES SIR!
Gunnery Sergeant Hartman: If you ladies leave my island, if you survive recruit training, you will be a weapon. You will be a minister of death praying for war. But until that day, you are pukes. You are the lowest form of life on Earth. You are not even human fucking beings. You are nothing but unorganized grab-asstic pieces of amphibian shit! Because I am hard, you will not like me. But the more you hate me, the more you will learn. I am hard but I am fair. There is no racial bigotry here. I do not look down on niggers, kikes, wops or greasers. Here you are all equally worthless. And my orders are to weed out all non-hackers who do not pack the gear to serve in my beloved Corps. Do you maggots understand that?
- Crazy creditsEnd credits list a song performed by Sam the Sham and The Pharaohs, misspelling the last word as "Pharoahs." This has not been corrected on any home video version of the movie.
- Alternate versionsOriginally the song Paint it Black played at a higher speed and higher pitch during the end credits but starting with the 2001 DVD re-release, whenever the movie was remixed to 5.1 (from mono) it was "corrected" to where it plays at the regular speed and pitch instead.
- ConnectionsEdited into EBN: Commercial Entertainment Product (1992)
This is Kubrick's most accessible film and I suspect that contributes to it's high rating on the imdb. There can be no other reason why it would rank so high on it's own merits. This is not to say it's a bad film but it is certainly not one of the best anti-war films ever made. The plot is a game of two halves first the training camp and second the actual conflict. The point that both halves hammer home relentlessly is that war dehumanises those involved.
The first half is enjoyable pure and simply because of Emery's Gunnery Sergeant. His is a witty character despite the inherent cruelty in his actions. However eventually his screen time is ended and the film continues to make the same point over again but in a different setting. The problem is that it hammers it's point home so heavily that it doesn't allow us to work things out for ourselves. Even things like Platoon and the like allow us to work it out ourselves! The film's strength is it's wonderful streak of black comedy that runs right the way through it is the reason for watching and makes it feel a little different from other hardcore war movies of this ilk.
Kubrick is always going to be watchable but this is not one of his best. His cold direction is usually excellent but here it is alienating and clinical when we should really be getting to like the soldiers involved. The film is still good but I felt that the flaws are too much here. Emery is undoubtedly the main reason for watching this film. He gives a great performance that is a mix of improvisation and script that works well and guaranteed him work in the same role for many years. Modine is suitably wide eyed as our guide through his experiences but he is like most of the other marines just blank characters for Kubrick to work around. Only D'Onofrio (Pyle) came out of this as a real person.
Overall this is a good anti-war film but not a great one. There is no doubting the power of the message and Emery easily carries the film till the war itself. It is still a very good film but I suspect that the fact that this is Kubrick's easiest film to get into explains why it is rated so highly.
- bob the moo
- Oct 26, 2002
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket
- Filming locations
- Isle of Dogs, London, Greater London, England, UK(Da Nang scenes)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $30,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $46,357,676
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $2,217,307
- Jun 28, 1987
- Gross worldwide
- $46,361,894