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Full Metal Jacket

Play trailer 1:57 Poster for Full Metal Jacket R 1987 1h 56m War History Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
90% Tomatometer 87 Reviews 94% Popcornmeter 250,000+ Ratings
Stanley Kubrick's take on the Vietnam War follows smart-aleck Private Davis (Matthew Modine), quickly christened "Joker" by his foul-mouthed drill sergeant (R. Lee Ermey), and pudgy Private Lawrence (Vincent D'Onofrio), nicknamed "Gomer Pyle," as they endure the rigors of basic training. Though Pyle takes a frightening detour, Joker graduates to the Marine Corps and is sent to Vietnam as a journalist, covering -- and eventually participating in -- the bloody Battle of Hué.
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Full Metal Jacket

Full Metal Jacket

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Critics Consensus

Intense, tightly constructed, and darkly comic at times, Stanley Kubrick's Full Metal Jacket may not boast the most original of themes, but it is exceedingly effective at communicating them.

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Critics Reviews

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Pauline Kael The New Yorker 09/13/2023
What happened to the Kubrick who used to slip in sly, subtle jokes and little editing tricks? This may be his worst movie. Go to Full Review
Jay Scott Globe and Mail 12/07/2022
Full Metal Jacket is violent, caustic, ironic, and cold, an amoral object formed from a camera gliding majestically across slow-motion carnage while refusing to blink an eye or shed a tear. Go to Full Review
Peter Rainer Los Angeles Herald Examiner 08/09/2022
Kubrick is trying to make a movie about madness and chaos, but he won't give in to the chaos. Go to Full Review
Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Nov 8
4/4
It still qualifies as one of Kubrick's most underrated pictures, and it's second only to Apocalypse Now as the best Vietnam War movie ever made. Go to Full Review
Branyan Towe Loud and Clear Reviews 07/29/2024
4/5
As Private Leonard “Gomer Pyle” Lawrence, D’Onofrio encapsulates the impact that military brainwashing can have on soldiers and their mental health in a way that is better than expected Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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KING P. @KING_PALM Dec 5 Extremely entertaining and attention grabbing. Easily one of the best Vietnam films to date. See more Michael O Nov 23 One of Kubrick's foremost triumphs, a genuinely challenging and uncomfortable war film See more Jack F @MovieFan111 Nov 19 I only saw it once, but I liked it. Kubrick classic, and one of the best war movies. See more Jairo P Nov 12 Strong but accurate movie, friends of mine had told me the cruelty might have decrease a little but this is how marines should be trained, to be killing machines. See more Dominique E. @encisonico Nov 11 Cult classic to be seen by generations to come See more Sims F Nov 5 A female Vietcong firing squad and machete squad kill American prostitutes masseuses blood goes everywhere they are shot there throats are slit they are stabbed impaled and beheaded blood is seen everywhere some masseuses legs are seen hanging over tunnel entrances and some impaled in booby traps. This is hilarious 😂 See more Read all reviews
Full Metal Jacket

My Rating

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Movie Info

Synopsis Stanley Kubrick's take on the Vietnam War follows smart-aleck Private Davis (Matthew Modine), quickly christened "Joker" by his foul-mouthed drill sergeant (R. Lee Ermey), and pudgy Private Lawrence (Vincent D'Onofrio), nicknamed "Gomer Pyle," as they endure the rigors of basic training. Though Pyle takes a frightening detour, Joker graduates to the Marine Corps and is sent to Vietnam as a journalist, covering -- and eventually participating in -- the bloody Battle of Hué.
Director
Stanley Kubrick
Screenwriter
Gustav Hasford
Distributor
Warner Bros. Pictures
Production Co
Natant, Warner Brothers
Rating
R
Genre
War, History, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Jun 1, 1987, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Aug 15, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA)
$42.9M
Runtime
1h 56m
Sound Mix
Mono
Aspect Ratio
Flat (1.85:1)
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