‘Best war film ever made’ is a 1987 ‘masterpiece’ | Films | Entertainment

War films are extremely popular with audiences around the world. Over the years, viewers have fallen in love with many classics because of their brutal battle scenes, storylines and realistic portrayals of combat.

But there’s one Vietnam War film from the 1980s that many fans still describe as the greatest ever made. Even though the film came out nearly 40 years ago, viewers continue to call it a “masterpiece”. The film also has an incredible rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with a 90% critic score and a 94% audience rating.

That film is Full Metal Jacket, the 1987 war movie directed and produced by Stanley Kubrick.

Based on Gustav Hasford’s autobiographical novel The Short-Timers, the film follows a group of US Marines during the Vietnam War.

The first half of the movie focuses on brutal boot camp training at Parris Island under the harsh Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, while the second follows Marines fighting during the Tet Offensive in Vietnam.

The film stars Matthew Modine as Joker, Vincent D’Onofrio as Leonard “Gomer Pyle” Lawrence and R. Lee Ermey as Sergeant Hartman.

Ermey’s performance became one of the most memorable parts of the film. Much of his dialogue was improvised, drawing on his real-life experience as a Marine drill instructor during the Vietnam War.

Full Metal Jacket was released in the United States in June 1987 and later arrived in the UK that September. It went on to gross around $120million worldwide.

The film also received several award nominations, including an Academy Award nomination for Best Adapted Screenplay and two BAFTA nominations.

Fans still regularly praise the movie online for its raw and disturbing portrayal of war.

One person said in a review on Rotten Tomatoes: “Words can’t explain the emotion this story brings as you tag along to experience the full lifecycle of war in this Kubrick masterpiece.”

Another added: “Definitely the best war movie of all time! Full Metal Jacket proves Stanley Kubrick really can’t make a bad movie.”

A third wrote: “One of Kubrick’s foremost triumphs, a genuinely challenging and uncomfortable war film.”

Someone else commented: “In my opinion, it’s the best movie I have ever seen so far in my life. Its ability to portray the nature of war is unparalleled by anything I have ever seen.

“Brutal, visceral and raw, this movie has all the components necessary for a spectacular war epic.”

Full Metal Jacket is available to stream on Now TV.