Full Metal Jacket

Plot Summary

Full Metal Jacket is based on the novel,"The Short Timers," and is split into two main parts. The first part follows a platoon of Marine Corps recruits during training. It focuses on the relationship between Sergeant Hartman, a hellish drill instructor, Private Pyle, a misfit, and Joker, a natural leader. Pyle is tormented and Joker unable, and unwilling to help Pyle. On their last night of training, Pyle decides he has had enough tormenting and murders Sergeant Hartman, and then commits suicide. The second half shows private joker covering the war as a writer for Stars and Stripes, an on-site war newspaper, focusing on the Tet offensive. In the second part we see into Joker’s psyche and the idea of the duality of man, in where he wrote Born to Kill on his helmet, but wears a peace button on his lapel. When his usual behind-the scenes job is interfered with by the Tet offensive he becomes thrust into combat and must decide if he really is a killer.

Soldier Interviews in Vietnam

In this video, we gain the perspective of the soldiers and their interpretation of what is going on in Vietnam. Many of these soldiers cannot clearly describe why they as American's are in Vietnam which reflects many American's perspectives toward the war in Vietnam in the late 80's. Especially since this film is the closest to the event, it shows how confused and critical American's were about the war, even years after the fact.

Themes

War as Hell
Dehumanization/Brainwashing
Ignorance
Questioning Vietnam
Military

" The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle. It is your killer instinct which must be harnessed if you expect to survive in combat. Your rifle is only a tool. It is a hard heart that kills. If your killer instincts are not clean and strong you will hesitate at the moment of truth. You will not kill. You will become dead marines and then you will be in a world of shit because marines are not allowed to die without permission. Do you maggots understand?" -Sergeant Hartman

Cinematography

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In the first half of the film there are many cinematic techniques to illustrate the Sergeant's power, and to show the de-individualization of the soldiers.
- Upward tilt of the camera to make the Sergeant seem large and powerful
- Long-shots showing the training group as a whole; close-up's are rare
Close-up's used rarely, and when they are, they are used to show an intense feeling that a character is having.
In the second half of the film, more medium long shots are used
Not very many extreme long-shots because the film was not actually filmed it Vietnam, but in England because Kubrick rarely leaves his home country when filming movies.

Mise-En-Scene

Setting: The film takes place in both the Perris Island training camp, and Vietnam.
Props: Guns, tanks, and other war machinery and memorabilia are everywhere in the film.
Costume: Most everyone, besides the rare scenes with civilians or prostitutes are wearing the green Marine uniform. Or in the training part of the film, they also wear plain white training shirts. From far away, they more or less all look the same reinforcing the loss of individuality.
Performance: There are a few stand out personalities (Pyle and Joker most notably) but at the end of the day they both fall victim to the psychological effects of war.
Positioning:
Lights and Color: Overall, very realistic colors and cool depressing tones. A lot of green, gray, and blue, especially in the first half of the movie. Colors begin to warm up in the second half, and end on a fiery note in the scene where the soldiers are walking through the flames. This coloring suggests that while the men were dehumanized in the cold military camp, they were brought into the warm and fiery hell that is war.

SOUND

The diagetic playing of "Hello Vietnam" in the beginning of the film, foreshadowing the events of the film
An eerie water drop sound that is heard in Pyle's final psychotic moments before he kills the Sergeant and himself. In this scene the sound is diegetic
- This same sound is heard when Joker must kill the young Vietnamese girl who happened to be the sniper. In this scene the sound in non-diegetic.
  - The sound playing in both scenes suggests that we should pair these two events together