I have never been in the military, so I can only guess as to home realistic this film is. But one thing that startled me was how close to insanity the various Marines were in this film. One minute, one of them would seem pretty normal and the next they'd be losing their minds. This happened again and again to practically all the soldiers in the film...even the leading man, Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal)!

The story follows Swofford from a brief scene in boot camp to his advanced training to eventual deployment in Kuwait during the Gulf War. All during which, he and his fellow Marines were all just a few steps away from completely losing their minds.

This is not a pleasant film to watch, but I liked that the story was NOT sanitized....it was nasty, ugly, and, most interestingly, focused on how incredibly boring and uneventful the war was for the average grunt. It also focuses on the emotional damage incurred by these men. Quite interesting if not enjoyable.

Jarhead is based n the memoirs of the real Anthony Swofford and his time in the United States Marines. Jake Gyllenhaal. When you're trained for war the hardest thing sometimes to do is stand and wait.

Which was what back in the early 90s the Marines and the rest of the coalition sat and waited in Saudi Arabia for about 6 months. Days when being cool meant the temperature was only in double digits fahrenheit.

Gyllenhaal is not the most gung ho marine out there. In fact during basic he scrapes by. But the man can shoot and Sergeant Jamie Foxx thinks he would be good for special sniper training.

Gyllenhaal is something of an intellectual and a Marine barracks is not a place where one usually finds them. But the memoirs of Anthony Swofford in this time provide a nice insight into these troops trained for war and finding no outlet.

Jarhead might be the film concerning Desert Shield and Desert Storm.

Anthony Swofford (Jake Gyllenhaal) is a Sacramento kid who enlists in the Marines. The audience is taken along through his training, and then the first Gulf War starts. He's in the middle of it all, but it's a struggle to maintain his sanity in an insane situation.

It's a compelling and fascinating story based on the real Anthony Swofford's book. The training provide some memorable moments. The deployment gets strange. It's the actual war that's where this movie is unusual. Most war movie is about the bang bang. This one is about the search and longing for the bang bang. Like the disappointment that Swofford must have felt, I think the audience also feels that disappointment in the film.

Jake Gyllenhaal gives an amazing performance. Director Sam Mendes achieves exactly what the experience is about. The movie leaves you feeling empty and a little haunted. It makes you wonder if everybody wasted their time.