Full metal jacket: military culture and psychological transformation

¶ … Metal Jacket" Analysis

How does the director use the elements of the film, such as music, photography, sets dialogue, etc., to give the story a sense of realism? Give example to explain. "Gunny" on the History Channel's "Mail Call" was a former drill sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps; his language is fairly reflective of that used by the drill sergeant in Kubrick's production, only Gunny's language is cleaned up for public consumption. Kubrick, though, makes it clear that notwithstanding General Patton's reprimand for slapping a combat-fatigued Army soldier, the U.S. Marines would curse you and beat the hell out of you if you did not shape up to their standards. The language, brutality and downright cruelty shown by the drill sergeants in this movie were all highly effective in communicating a sense of in-your-face realism about what was taking place; further, the military base sets used for the training scenes (including the spotless latrines until Private "Pyle" blew blood and bits of brain all over the wall) were realistic.

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Do you see any relationships between the first and second halves of the film? If, so what are they? If not, why? Give examples to explain. The differences between the first and second halves of this movie are as pronounced as the beginning of the Wizard of Oz where everything is in black and white, and the part where Dorothy lands in Oz and everything is in Color by Panorama; in fact, if someone walked in on "Full Metal Jacket" during the second half, only to later return and see the first half, it would probably not appear to be the same movie at all. The first half of the movie is different because of the military settings, but it is still obviously the good ol' U.S. Of A; however, when the second half of the movie begins, Dorothy knew that she was not in Kansas anymore and so did Joker and his friends. There was a sense of desolation and destruction that became progressively intense throughout the second half of the movie, culminating with the scenes in the burned out building complex where Joker's buddy was repeatedly shot while his friends looked on. Smoke filled the air, and Kubrick's use of the Doors and other creepy music just contributed to a sense of surrealism -- that this really could not happen anywhere, could it?

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The protagonist in realist fiction often faced with the moral dilemma or ethical question. What are the motivations, main conflicts, crises and contradictions for the character, Pvt. Joker? Do you see him as a character faced with realist moral dilemmas or ethical questions? Give examples to explain. Private Joker stands out among his buddies as an individual who has a solid grasp on just how wrong it was for him to be in Vietnam; two examples in particular stand out. The first example that stands out about Private Joker and his own moral turmoil about the war was his initially reluctant attempt to help Private "Pyle" overcome his inherent bumbling and personal shortcomings to achieve the level of killing efficiency required of U.S. Marines. In a reflection of his own personal frustration with both his own involvement, as well as "Pyle's" lack of progress, Joker lashes out with his buddies when they give Pyle a "blanket party" with bars of soap in socks. The second example was the "peace sign" button worn on Joker's Marine Corps uniform, which represented the powerful divisiveness that existed in America as a result of the war, as well as Joker's on personal political views about his participation. When he was confronted by the Marine lieutenant colonel about the button, it was revealing that Joker did not immediately remove it, but chose to face the consequences and remain defiantly respectful in the face of this high-ranking representative of the establishment. This suggests that Joker was in fact ready to "travel to distant countries" and "kill people" as required of a good Marine, but he was also prepared to let everyone know that he was personally against it, as well as the people who sent him and his friends there in the first place.

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