Jarhead (2005)

Jarhead:

’Jarhead’ exists in a state of perpetual paradox - it aims at entertaining and amusing us by making us laugh at the boredom and ennui of American soldiers during the Gulf war. Haven’t we been subjected to this treatment before and in better fashion in the form of ’Buffalo soldiers’? In comparison with ’Buffalo’, I believe ’Jarhead’ doesn’t entirely work because it takes place during the scant few months of a war that all of us remember so well, as opposed to ’Buffalo soldiers’, which was based during the fall of communism, a longer era and an event that seems more remote and all but forgotten in these politically charged times focusing on the Gulf region. What works however is the top notch photography and some great desert shots and for Mendes and Co, this is more a visual and technical achievement, than a thematic one.

’Jarhead’ is also perhaps the first war film that I’ve seen which consciously acknowledges the existence of certain landmark films from that genre that it no doubt aspires to be associated with - the soldiers sit down to watch ’The Deer hunter’, enthusiastically cheer during camp screenings of ’Apocalypse now’ and one conversation even references ’Rambo’. Nothing wrong with this, in fact the sense of irony it portrays is all the more stronger because of it. It also unconsciously aspires to reach the great heights of certain other films including ’Three Kings’ - Mark Wahlberg’s character in that film was named Troy, as is the Peter Sarsgaard character in ’Jarhead’ - and even Kubrick’s ’Full Metal Jacket’, but really, the subject matter of Jarhead doesn’t merit an entire film because there just isn’t enough of substance going on, unlike ’Three Kings’ which also prudently touched upon the lack of action that ground soldiers saw during Operation storm, and also the effects of global consumerism, capital greed and even rascism.

So these soldiers are bored, yes, I get it...move on already.

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