Jarhead
May 2006 Reviewed by: Mischa Hayek Format: DVD	(all ratings out of 5): Overall Enjoyment Picture Quality Packaged Extras Sound Quality

On my list of last year's best films, Jarhead is based on the 2003 best-selling book by Anthony Swofford that detailed his experiences as a marine before and during the 1991 Gulf War. While Swofford’s book spans several years, Sam Mendes’ Jarhead condenses Swofford’s real-life experiences into the short time preceding Desert Storm, giving the story a tighter feel. Jarhead is a unique anti-war film in that it delivers its message not through the gruesome experiences of a battle-tested veteran, but through the eyes of marine sniper Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal), a young, bored and disillusioned soldier waiting to enter the war.

The story starts conventionally enough with an opening scene in which a sadistic drill instructor (Scott MacDonald) plays mind games with the new recruits. Very reminiscent of the famous boot-camp scene in Stanley Kubrick’s Full Metal Jacket, this scene is wonderfully entertaining. At the same time as I wanted to punch out the drill instructor, I couldn’t stop laughing. Subsequent vignettes, also full of dark humor, introduce the other recruits, the marine training program, and Swofford’s selection as a sniper -- one of the most prestigious positions.

The story quickly changes venue as the marines are shipped off to Saudi Arabia to camp in the desert and await the beginning of the Gulf War. Here we see Swofford begin to break down mentally as he and his buddies try to cope with unfaithful wives and girlfriends at home, stressful training routines with no apparent purpose, and debilitating boredom and frustration. Jarhead captures the hurry-up-and-wait mentality of military life as no other film has.

The video and audio on this disc are outstanding. Because Jarhead is shot to look crisp and not necessarily "pretty," it was 30 minutes into the film before I realized that this was one of the most sharply etched transfers I had ever seen. The sound was effective, with good use of all five channels.

This widescreen DVD release contains the following special features: two optional commentaries, one by director Mendes and the other by author Anthony Swofford and screenwriter William Broyles, Jr.; deleted scenes with optional commentaries; Swofford’s dream fantasies; full-length newsreel interviews (which were cut from the final release); and English, French, and Spanish languages and subtitles. The language features are a nice touch. They enable hearing-impaired individuals to see subtitles in the same language as the audio track. Usually subtitles are in alternate languages.

The second film commentary is a smart and worthwhile feature. While the first running commentary by Mendes focuses on the acting and directing techniques employed in the making of Jarhead, the second by Broyles and Swofford (both US marines and veterans of the Vietnam and Gulf Wars, respectively) engages viewers with comparisons of the events depicted in the movie with those personally experienced in Vietnam and the Gulf.

My only gripe with this DVD release is the inclusion of movie and television previews, which were both nuisances. The television preview advertised a current Wednesday night television drama that has, at least temporarily, been replaced by another show!

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