Jarhead - Collector's Edition

Rating R Formats DVD Genre action Starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Scott MacDonald, Lo Ming, Kevin Foster, Peter Sarsgaard, Damion Poitier Directed by Sam Mendes Publisher MCA Home Video External Links Jarhead MCA Home Video

Before all of the gay cowboy fuss and media hype that surrounded Brokeback Mountain, Jake Gyllenhaal starred in another picture released late last year. Since it was a film that centered on the original conflict with Iraq, it got a good stream of buzz and publicity. However, as soon as they learned about Ang Lee's "controversial" picture, Jarhead became buried underneath and disappeared, until now.

The third film by director Sam Mendes is a visual adaptation of the riveting and controversial memoir of former Marine and Desert Storm/Desert Shield veteran Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal), documenting his time at basic training to his advanced training as a Marine Sniper Scout and his recollection of his time served in the conflict. Along the way, "Swoff" has some other issues on his mind, such as the mysterious actions of his girlfriend back home and the internal mental struggle of whether enlisting into the military was such a wise choice or not. Accompanying him on this "inner" journey are Troy (Peter Sargaard), his meditative sniping "spotter" and Sykes (Jamie Foxx), his commanding officer.

Much like the war classics of the 70's to present (Full Metal Jacket, Apocalypse Now, Deer Hunter), Jarhead focuses on the mental psyche of its characters. When the Sniper unit arrives to prepare for the conflict with Iraq, their anticipation grows and their patience diminishes, as they find themselves killing time with pointless and absurd routines (such as playing football in the scorching desert heat while wearing full gear), cleaning outhouses and, of course, more training drills. Meanwhile, the war is moving too fast for our soldiers, giving an indication that they may never get their chance to do what they were conditioned to do, and that is kill. With each passing moment, you can see the psychological breakdown of these Marines begin to take form. It seems that all of the training they have endured, all of the physical and mental hardships they have faced, was all for naught. And the brilliant performances of this film heavily exercise this narrative (but we'll get to that in a moment).

Visually, Sam Mendes has created a grim and somewhat apocalyptic setting. The desert scenery is eye catching and haunting at the same time. The oil well burning scene in the film's final act is perhaps one of the films unforgettable moments. However, while the imagery and cinematography of Jarhead is a sight to behold, we still have some issues to face. Some of the film's moments seem a bit too inspired. For instance, the opening boot camp scene, from the wide shot of the soldiers lined alongside their bunks to the drill sergeant choking "Swoff" for his insubordinate behavior, completely reeks of Full Metal Jacket. I would figure that being the brilliant director Mendes is, he would give such a standard "war movie" his own brand of uniqueness, much like Kubrick did. Alas, the scene comes off like such a carbon copy, it wouldn't surprise me if Stanley jumped out of his grave and demanded a royalty check!

The film contains some political messages within its context; some of these are of an anti-war rhetoric. However, amongst all of the subliminal overtones, the film's overall mood is a modest reflection of life itself. There are times of comedy and times of serious drama and, again, the performances help push this. Jake Gyllenhaal is outstanding in his performance. From the opening scene, we slowly see him morph from a na¯ve and regretful recruit into a motivated and (well, somewhat) disciplined soldier then into a man on the verge of a mental breakdown. All of these emotive levels are delivered so smoothly, he makes it look easy. Renowned for his exceptional supporting roles, Peter Sarsgard gives a solid performance. His scene in the sniping tower at the end of the film nearly steals the show. Jamie Foxx, who I feel is capable of amazing performances, is way too "cookie cutter" in his role. It's not that his performance is poor, it just feels limited. He's tough and he's wise, but we've seen this character in many other films before. Although ranked high in the credits, Chris Cooper is given limited screen time, appearing in only a couple of scenes. However, he makes these few scenes count.

Jarhead is being released in two formats, a single-disc edition and a two-disc collector's edition. The single disc edition includes two commentary tracks, one featuring Sam Mendes and the other with screenwriter William Broyles Jr. and author Anthony Swofford. The Mendes track is rather entertaining, filled with anecdotes and stories about the production aspect of the film. The writers track follows a more technical approach, dealing with character development and the scripts technical facets. We also get 11 deleted scenes, mostly of which unfold more of Gyllenhaal's character. They can be viewed with optional commentary provided by Mendes and editor Walter Murch. The news footage scene featuring all of the major characters is available in uncut form as well, clocking in at 16 minutes. We also get all of the deleted "Swoff's Fantasies" dream sequences, a batch of scenes that, albeit they were interesting, wouldn't fit in well with the film. I have to say for a single-disc edition, its got some good stuff.

The true meat and potatoes of the supplemental features lie in the two-disc collector's edition, which consists of all of the above and a healthy chunk of additional features. "The Jarhead Diaries" is a making of documentary clocking in at nearly 30-minutes. "Background" is another feature that looks at the real Marines who appeared in the film and how their knowledge helped with the production area. "Semper Fi: Life After the Corps" is perhaps the most gripping of the lot as it looks at former Marines who have served in both Iraqi conflicts and their efforts to once again accustom themselves to civilian life. If you have already seen Jarhead and enjoyed it, then I suggest picking up the two-disc edition. The extra stuff is worth it.

Although it has some moments of weak inspiration, Jarhead is a solid film visual wise and performance wise. Mendes creates some memorable scenes that contain a flavor that will stick in your mind for a long time. Why the MPAA didn't consider Gyllenhaal for a Best Actor nod for this performance? I will never know. All this and some great bonus features make this DVD a definite winner.