Generation Kill (2008)

It's a movie as timely as it is provocative and amazingly, for much of its running time, it is weirdly funny.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

I got the same feeling watching this that I got when watching the first season of Band of Brothers: Fantastic! Superb acting, no big anti- or pro-war message being shoved down your throat, just a well-told story of men in combat. It's said that warriors (from day one of war one) fight not for country, religion or cause, but for their brethren. So any war movie or TV series that tries to portray more than that is implausible tripe. Even Saving Private Ryan had it's moments of preachiness that almost--almost--ruin that movie for me. This series does visit civilian casualties, conflicting ROEs, conscientious refusal of orders, and the banalities "why are we here?/what did we really accomplish?" that are ever-present in Hollywood war tales. But the above listed do not detract from the larger narrative: the intersection of the singular experience of combat and soldiers, mere ordinary men in extraordinary circumstances. This is exactly why this series works so well; the soldiers are relatable, the dialogue is natural, their relationships are human. This is why Band of Brothers and All Quiet Along the Western Front work. The side that the soldiers are fighting for or against is immaterial; we relate to their humanity, when portrayed correctly, and imagine ourselves in their shoes. Generation Kill succeeds where its contemporary The Hurt Locker failed miserably: it portrays grunts, officers, enemy and civilians with all the humanity and diversity that you would realistically get from a cross-section of people in the midst of unfathomable violence. In addition, humor is thrown into the mix to good effect. I found myself laughing along with the soldiers' inside jokes, and cursing along with them at their tribulations, making me feel part of their story -- a sign of a well-told story. My only complaint about Generation Kill is that they only made one season. I wanted more!

Very good series. Similar to Band of Brothers, you're invested in the characters and the war is the background story. It also completely reminded me why I lasted 1 year in the military. Screwed up chain of command, hurry up and wait and constant barraging from the sgt major.

This series is an absolute masterpiece. It shows war for what it really is: The screw-ups; the senseless killings; the waste of tax payer money; the equipment failures; the failure of leadership despite all the nice West Point degrees parading around. But also: the heroism; the grit; the ability to push forward against all odds; the comradery and the love for our country despite all its incompetent politicians. One of the best depictions of war I have ever seen. By far. After you have watched this, you will finally understand why the rest of the world hates us. But you will ALSO understand what it means to be a marine, and that the slogan "We will NEVER leave a man behind" is NOT a hollow phrase. I give this an absolute TEN.

So being a sister of a Force Recon Marine ( his first deployment was the battle of Fallujah ) and actually , I think one of the guys in this show- Rudy- I met in my Mom's living room, if I'm not mistaken. So ... yeah this was a repulsive look at war but much needed. I also think it makes a huge difference that this was most of these guys first deployments ( all the lame immature guys that think killing is cool ) when you see these guys after a second and third and especially when they come back from serious fighting ( this particular "invasion" was relatively easy and comparatively just not as bad as others ) you see a whole different man. Someone who isn't raw raw on killing people, a man who doesn't think that killing is easy.. or cool. Most of the guys I met and also my brother after a couple tours , start hating war and have no hesitation saying war is stupid and dumb and ugly. This showed marines that were not battle hardened yet.. having to maintain an attitude to survive and also not yet experiencing what was happening or really digesting ... the hormones help to keep you distracted. You know when American Sniper came out I heard a couple guys talking about it that knew that guy personally - and all of them hated him. Said he was trigger happy and basically a complete psychopath , he had a commanded much like the one depicted here, a commander who wanted to kill everyone and get those medals. Giving orders like kill everyone in this area- is dangerous. And happens a lot it seemed like. Basically what I mean is the reality is not often depicted in the movies... they leave out the unsavory parts , the gallows humor and the fact that these men are supposed to keep up a certain level of morale in a really terrible situation, the constant joking is a great distraction from reality. My dad is a combat vet too, and i remember he told me a story about Vietnam , about how he would watch all the new guys get there and they would be talking so much crap- just like a couple of the guys in this show. Acting all tough and like Rambo. And then he would see them after six months at war and no one would be talking , no one would be laughing and definitely not joking about killing people. It's that old saying, the young and inexperienced talk the most crap. And it is true here. Those same marines a few tours later will be totally changed men. The ineptitude of the officers was really a bright spot in this miniseries and everyone needed to see it. I hope that all of those jerks watched this and I hope they got what they deserved .. a lack of respect and really fired. Ineptitude in the marine corp is dangerous. Anytime we have an institution where orders are strictly obeyed and there is such a taboo about not following them , and saying anything to anyone above you- I mean it's a recipe for disaster and really a disservice to the military even though they think they need it. They really don't . Orders should be questioned and officers should not be given a free pass to put men's lives in danger. Now I know why my brother hates being thanked and hates telling people what he was. When you look at it from this vantage point you get it. Those boys have nothing to be proud of. Not really. Men like ice man and Nate , and Rudy and the doc, and a few others have something to be proud of. They were good men put in a crap situation and we're trying to do their best jobs and cared about the people around them. I think probably why so many of these guys are coming back all messed up is because they acted like idiots and did some evil crap over there ... sure all of them in combat get ptsd to some degree ... nightmares and panic attacks - but the ones that go totally postal and beat their wives and kill themselves ? Probably because they did some horrible crap that can't feel good. Living a lie is hard for anyone . Breaking the silence on combat was needed. I think we learned what we already know. Some people are good. Some people are bad. And some people are dead. The invasion of Iraq will remain one of the biggest blunders of our history ... and absolutely didn't need to happen. From the top down it seemed as if ambition and greed and a distorted sense of anger fueled it ... just like The Godfather, Captain America, Encino Man = Bush. When our leaders are incompetent it trickles down and infects the chain of command with the same exact qualities ... I have the utmost respect for the few guys in this show that kept their heads on straight and maintained a dignified presence throughout. Some men are born to be Warriors and it's not the guys shootings camels and little kids. Or pissing on couches just because . . It's the guys that put their lives at risk to disarm a bomb, in a playground so kids don't die. It's the men that want to help a wounded kid so he doesn't die. It's the men that put themselevs at risk to prevent another tragedy. It's the men that get punished so a tragedy doesn't happen. Hats off... this was a great show. Frustrating, and embarrassing and just plain ugly ... you feel their pain. And the total injustice of all of it. And man... makes you really want to raise the barre for military entrance ... an IQ test , and be at least 30 years old.