MOVIE - Jarhead
~By Anonymous friend of One-eye's
Well a friend of mine saw this, this past weekend and i've asked him if i could repost his review in here. He's asked to remain anonymous, of which i totally respect.
Who better to review a Movie based on a historical event, than
Part - 1
My review of Jarhead.
First of all, I have lots of different thoughts. Some banal, some that if not profound, at least mean something to me.
Accuracy. Well, the gear was about spot on. Minor note - the Marines use an amphibious armored personelle carrier called Amtrack to carry just about everything. That's what I drove. They have a very distinctive look. Those were missing from the movie. Of course, since I was an Amtrack guy, perhaps it is only my perception that tracks are everywhere. On another note; the movie showed tanks a couple times - they were the "modern" M1A1 Abrams. While in reality, the Marines were mostly still using the older M60 vietnam era tank. I'm surprised they missed that one.
As far as the movie itself. Well, the book was better - heh. Isn't it always.
There is a scene where they take friendly fire from a couple of roving A10s. In reality, it was my unit (Task Force Ripper) that lit them up. I remember hearing the incident over the radio, but never saw any of it.
As far as the movie itself; well, I'm not sure what the movie was trying to do. For gulf war vets they could take their significant others and talk about their experiances, but I'm not sure what the general public is supposed to get out of it.
The director refered to it as a "tone poem"; that's nice, but maybe I'm too stupid to get the poetry.
Part - 2
So, as to their experiances and how closely it matched mine.
Well, I've seen a couple of "gulf war" movies. Each time I think, "ok, that wasn't my war". I'm beggining to realize that unless they had stuck a camera in my turret, it will never be "my war".
I'm also starting to realize that my experiances were not what most people went through over there.
When I got back, I was surprised by people's perceptions of the war: It was a little boring, everybody gave up, etc. I was bitter about that, but couldn't articulate why.
Perhaps for most people, their experiances were like those of the movie: Sitting around, partying in tents, walking patrols in empty deserts, waiting for trips back to the rear for showers and movies. Gearing themselves up for a "gyp of a war".
To say that my experiance was "worse" is unfair really. Worse is relative. Try telling a vietnam vet about my experiances make me feel foolish; and he would be embarresed to complain about his experiances to some of WW2's island hoppers.
The movie failed completely to express the heat or the flies. Which surprises me. Everybody who was there (or is there now) talks about the flies. At one point, a Marine complains that it is 112 degrees out - please. The hottest temperature we recorded was 132, only 4 degrees off the world record. Heat that hot has its own presence and gravitas.
Part - 3
For me that war can really be divided into 3 parts.
First, is the build up in the rear. I was part of an advance party that was sent to set up equipment flowing off ships. Creature comforts were actually high - but we also literally expected to hear that Saddam was pouring over the border at any second. For those first few days, it was defenitly a suicide delaying mission - and we knew it.
The movie made a point of what we thought of the Iraqis in the beginning: Worlds fourth largest army, a million men, most of them 8 year combat veterans. In hindsite, everybody plays the "of course they were easy to beat". But I haven't forgotten those days of being on the ground with only a couple thousand guys, waiting for a this bad-ass military to come pouring down.
Second part of the war for me was the time spent waiting in the deep desert. No tent cities, no parties. My world was reduced to a single vehicle and the shade circle the cammie net provided. Light discipline and noise discipline were tightly maintained. Not even our supply units knew where we were - we would meet them for mail and supplies.
Water was for drinking, vehicle coolent, shaving, and if anything was left over then we could "shower" or wash clothes. A shower was a tall guy pouring water over you. I had 2 in eight months. The drinking water was always hot. I would have seriously mugged someone for a cold glass of water. The deep desert time was the most significant for me in many ways. I've heard other gulf war vets talka bout how they feel that they are still in desert - the movie says it again. For me, this waiting in the deep desert was my time in the gulf. If the whole "still in the desert" thing has any validity - then thats where I am in spirit.
And the Third part is, of course, the ground war. Which was markedly different than the movie. By the way, they didn't take out Al Jabar airfield with airstrikes - task force Ripper took it. And we blew that wall to smithereens. Some of you may have heard my story about how I almost shot my best friend in head on accident.
Part - 4
I also noticed from the movie how juvenile the "rough play" was. In my mind, it was different, the feel wasn't quite so sophmoric...but if I could see myself then, would I be appalled at my immaturity? Perhaps. And perhaps I already secretly knew this. I was a little worried about Meaux seeing the movie and just seeing a bunch of assholes. Worried she would say, "this? This is what you obsess about years later - this frat party gone horribly out of control?"
That is all...I could go one and on..about how I had forgotten the strange phenomena of black sand turning white where you step. Of the surreal site of the oil fires burning [the movie mostly got this right, except I remember the sky black and the sand glowing bright orange as the fires reflected off the sand.]
Well, enough for now...this turned into more about me than about the movie.
Short review...it was good, it was different, I think most people will hate it.
Well a friend of mine saw this, this past weekend and i've asked him if i could repost his review in here. He's asked to remain anonymous, of which i totally respect.
Who better to review a Movie based on a historical event, than
Part - 1
My review of Jarhead.
First of all, I have lots of different thoughts. Some banal, some that if not profound, at least mean something to me.
Accuracy. Well, the gear was about spot on. Minor note - the Marines use an amphibious armored personelle carrier called Amtrack to carry just about everything. That's what I drove. They have a very distinctive look. Those were missing from the movie. Of course, since I was an Amtrack guy, perhaps it is only my perception that tracks are everywhere. On another note; the movie showed tanks a couple times - they were the "modern" M1A1 Abrams. While in reality, the Marines were mostly still using the older M60 vietnam era tank. I'm surprised they missed that one.
As far as the movie itself. Well, the book was better - heh. Isn't it always.
There is a scene where they take friendly fire from a couple of roving A10s. In reality, it was my unit (Task Force Ripper) that lit them up. I remember hearing the incident over the radio, but never saw any of it.
As far as the movie itself; well, I'm not sure what the movie was trying to do. For gulf war vets they could take their significant others and talk about their experiances, but I'm not sure what the general public is supposed to get out of it.
The director refered to it as a "tone poem"; that's nice, but maybe I'm too stupid to get the poetry.
Part - 2
So, as to their experiances and how closely it matched mine.
Well, I've seen a couple of "gulf war" movies. Each time I think, "ok, that wasn't my war". I'm beggining to realize that unless they had stuck a camera in my turret, it will never be "my war".
I'm also starting to realize that my experiances were not what most people went through over there.
When I got back, I was surprised by people's perceptions of the war: It was a little boring, everybody gave up, etc. I was bitter about that, but couldn't articulate why.
Perhaps for most people, their experiances were like those of the movie: Sitting around, partying in tents, walking patrols in empty deserts, waiting for trips back to the rear for showers and movies. Gearing themselves up for a "gyp of a war".
To say that my experiance was "worse" is unfair really. Worse is relative. Try telling a vietnam vet about my experiances make me feel foolish; and he would be embarresed to complain about his experiances to some of WW2's island hoppers.
The movie failed completely to express the heat or the flies. Which surprises me. Everybody who was there (or is there now) talks about the flies. At one point, a Marine complains that it is 112 degrees out - please. The hottest temperature we recorded was 132, only 4 degrees off the world record. Heat that hot has its own presence and gravitas.
Part - 3
For me that war can really be divided into 3 parts.
First, is the build up in the rear. I was part of an advance party that was sent to set up equipment flowing off ships. Creature comforts were actually high - but we also literally expected to hear that Saddam was pouring over the border at any second. For those first few days, it was defenitly a suicide delaying mission - and we knew it.
The movie made a point of what we thought of the Iraqis in the beginning: Worlds fourth largest army, a million men, most of them 8 year combat veterans. In hindsite, everybody plays the "of course they were easy to beat". But I haven't forgotten those days of being on the ground with only a couple thousand guys, waiting for a this bad-ass military to come pouring down.
Second part of the war for me was the time spent waiting in the deep desert. No tent cities, no parties. My world was reduced to a single vehicle and the shade circle the cammie net provided. Light discipline and noise discipline were tightly maintained. Not even our supply units knew where we were - we would meet them for mail and supplies.
Water was for drinking, vehicle coolent, shaving, and if anything was left over then we could "shower" or wash clothes. A shower was a tall guy pouring water over you. I had 2 in eight months. The drinking water was always hot. I would have seriously mugged someone for a cold glass of water. The deep desert time was the most significant for me in many ways. I've heard other gulf war vets talka bout how they feel that they are still in desert - the movie says it again. For me, this waiting in the deep desert was my time in the gulf. If the whole "still in the desert" thing has any validity - then thats where I am in spirit.
And the Third part is, of course, the ground war. Which was markedly different than the movie. By the way, they didn't take out Al Jabar airfield with airstrikes - task force Ripper took it. And we blew that wall to smithereens. Some of you may have heard my story about how I almost shot my best friend in head on accident.
Part - 4
I also noticed from the movie how juvenile the "rough play" was. In my mind, it was different, the feel wasn't quite so sophmoric...but if I could see myself then, would I be appalled at my immaturity? Perhaps. And perhaps I already secretly knew this. I was a little worried about Meaux seeing the movie and just seeing a bunch of assholes. Worried she would say, "this? This is what you obsess about years later - this frat party gone horribly out of control?"
That is all...I could go one and on..about how I had forgotten the strange phenomena of black sand turning white where you step. Of the surreal site of the oil fires burning [the movie mostly got this right, except I remember the sky black and the sand glowing bright orange as the fires reflected off the sand.]
Well, enough for now...this turned into more about me than about the movie.
Short review...it was good, it was different, I think most people will hate it.