Jarhead movie poster
B+
Our Rating
Jarhead movie poster

Jarhead (2005)

Drama War
Rated R
115 min.
Release Date
November 4, 2005
DVD Release Date
March 7, 2006 (Buy on Amazon)
Director
Sam Mendes
Writer
William Broyles
Cast
Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx, Peter Sarsgaard, Lucas Black, Chris Cooper, Dennis Haysbert, Rini Bell
Running Time
115 minutes
MPA Rating
Rated R for pervasive language, some violent images and strong sexual content

Jarhead (the self-imposed moniker of the Marines) follows "Swoff" (Gyllenhaal), a third-generation enlistee, from a sobering stint in boot camp to active duty, sporting a sniper's rifle and a hundred-pound ruck on his back through Middle East deserts with no cover from intolerable heat or from Iraqi soldiers, always potentially just over the next horizon. Swoff and his fellow Marines sustain themselves with sardonic humanity and wicked comedy on blazing desert fields in a country... Full synopsis »

MOVIE REVIEW

Although Sam Mendes doesn't make many movies, when he does make one it is almost guaranteed to be a masterpiece. Jarhead is no exception. Drastically different from his last two films, Road to Perdition and American Beauty, Jarhead brings the intensity of Full Metal Jacket and combines it with Mendes near perfect story telling and visual styles. Based upon the memoir of the same name written by Anthony Swafford (Gyllenhaal's character) the film takes a realistic look into military life, showing the ups and downs, the homesickness and most of all the waiting. Perhaps only Sam Mendes could make a war film that not only is not about war, but that does not have one battle, not one shot fired by the ground troops. This film is a film about people. People that are placed in some of the most difficult situations imaginable. Full movie review »
B+
Our Rating