Jarhead

[swerb]

Finally saw this on HBO last night. Interesting look at a marine sniper, his life chronicled from boot camp to Operation Desert Storm, to life after the war.

Movie was kind of slow, just as that war was for those guys, and a good part of the film focuses on how bored they were over there, and the challenges that created. Jake Gyllenhall was good as the main character. Movie got off to a good start in boot camp, then kind of dragged.

Worth watching if you have HBO and it's on (you'll see it on each of the 12 HBO channels ad nauseum for the next 3-4 months) ... but don't expect to be blown away.

2 footballs on The Cyrus Scale.

[Guest]

Yeah, I was a little disappointed in it.

Thought that Mendes would make a much more interesting movie after the genius he showed in "American Beauty".

Wasn't pissed that I spent $3.99 at Blockbuster for it, but glad I didn't go to the theater for it.

One thing I will say...despite my trashing and ridiculing of "Brokeback Mountain", Jake Gyllenhaal is a hell of an actor. Looking forward to seeing him next month in "Zodiac".

[swerb]

Yeah, Gyllenhall is very good.

And I was expecting more too Mitch. American Beauty was a classic from Mendes, and I like Road To Perdition more than most did also.

[furls]

In all honesty, as a former Marine now (still hard to say that), parts of that movie are about as true to the Marine Corps as anything I have ever seen from hollywood.

The Corps (and military in general) is characterized by long periods of extreme tedium and short periods of intense excitement. I thought the movie captured that pretty well, so I was pretty happy with it.

I am a bit tired of the "Rah, Rah, depictions," and the stereotypes that they promulgate.