Excellent but underrated film

Crappy film

A lot of perfectly good film show their cards early, establish a unique premise and let the audience explore a topic at a leisurely pace, without much in terms of surprise. this film is not one of those films.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

I'm a big Clint Eastwood fan but there was something about this film that just felt off to me. I've never served in the military, but my son served in the Marines and simply based on some of his boot camp stories I could tell that the kind of recon platoon that Gunnery Sergeant Highway (Eastwood) encountered on his first day back would never have existed in real life. So early on, one has to view the story as one in which all the stereotypes apply, as Eastwood's character takes on the mission of whipping his boys into shape while challenging the arrogance and ineptitude of his superior officers. Malcolm Powers (Everett McGill) looked and acted like someone who could have been a Marine Major, but the portrayal of Lieutenant Ring (Boyd Gaines) seemed to come out of left field. He just seemed totally out of his element.Then, when the action shifted to actual combat during the invasion of Grenada, the film really took on an air of incredulity. With a population of about ninety one thousand at the time, it felt like there was no one else on the island except the Marines and a minor opposing force of revolutionary soldiers. There were the American medical students of course, about the only thing that felt accurate historically.This wasn't Clint Eastwood's first directorial effort, so I can't really account for the movie's lack of authenticity. One's best approach to the picture probably ought to be one of settling back and suspending disbelief, and enjoy the story as any another Eastwood actioner. I did get a big kick out of the Gunny quote to his new platoon that I mention in my summary line above. I had a boss in the supermarket business that would state "I'm here to tell you..." at least a couple of times in every speech he ever gave.

Last year, Clint Eastwood wowed moviegoers with his gritty, realistic performance as Walt "Get Off My Lawn!" Kowalski in the film "Gran Torino". In "Heartbreak Ridge", the U.S. Marines are the "lawn" and Eastwood (once again) isn't taking any prisoners.Basically, the film centers on a Marines Recon unit of the 1980s that, in all aspects, has "gone soft" in a time of peace. Gone is the strict military discipline of the 1940s-1960s, and in its place is a disrespectful, laissez-faire attitude towards fighting for our freedoms. That all changes, of course, when Sergeant Thomas Highway (Eastwood) is brought in to lead the unit. Though Highway is only given the assignment as a disciplinary measure, it quickly becomes clear to him how far the Marines have fallen. No angel himself (Highway is shown instigating a prison riot at the beginning of the film), Highway goes about instilling into a rag-tag bunch of young men the kind of military values that he holds near and dear.Much like "Gran Torino", then, the most entertaining portion of this film is watching Eastwood embody that kind of old-world toughness that is on its way out (for better or worse) as the World War II and Korea veterans begin to pass away. Both Highway and Kowalski are the type of men who will have your back to the end if you respect them and do right by them, but the only way they know how to show it is through harsh profanity, crude jokes, and a crotchety demeanor that belies their true emotions. Whereas Walt bonds with a young boy who shows potential but just needs some strong leadership in his life, Thomas Highway runs the same emotional gamut with his Marines Unit.There are only a few things that keep this movie from "instant classic" status, those being Highway's rather un-interesting love life on the military base, as well as an ending that just seemed to fall a bit flat considering the entertainment that preceded it. "Torino" was a bit more adept (and thus more deserving of a five-star rating) at handling the emotional drama of Eastwood's character, as well as providing a better send-off.Thus, whether you want to look at "Heartbreak Ridge" as a prequel to "Gran Torino", or "Torino" as a sequel to "Ridge", the similarities between both films are readily apparent. If you loved watching Eastwood's gruff, tough Walt Kowalski portrayal, you will love this film as well. If you were offended by the type of prejudices that Walt held, steer a wide berth around this movie.

Clint Eastwood's Heartbreak Ridge is best described as a cross between Stripes and Full Metal Jacket. Also, Heartbreak Ridge came out in a time frame in between both film's releases. Clint is great as Marine Corps. lifer Thomas Highway. The supporting cast was excellent as well with Mario Van Peebles giving his best performance ever as "The Duke Of Cool" Stitch Jones. Heartbreak Ridge is a great blend of comedy, drama and action. There is great dialogue, performances and balances genres really well. While not strictly an action movie, Heartbreak Ridge has a lot in common with the cold war era 80's action flicks that were popular in this period. Heartbreak Ridge was not exactly the recruitment poster the US Marines wanted and they withdrew their support for the project. Clint did an about face and went ahead and made the film he wanted to make. Heartbreak Ridge is an excellent film and by far my favorite Clint film to come out in the 80's.

I know it is going to be good! The only question is how good!? Let's start watching it.28minutes - I enjoy it a lot so far. It is really interesting because main character played by Clint Eastwood is unpredictable, you never know what will happen next with him. Movie is full of funny situations, lines and you really can't wait to see more.1h 13minutes - OK it is getting a little boring... It feels like everything went in slow motion and I'm not talking about fancy special effects here... I still want to see more though 1h 33minutes - every time they leave military base the movie is getting dull... The good thing is that those moments last only a couple of minutes. I think the statement I made at the beginning was...hmm... let's say... a little overenthusiastic...1h 48minutes - lol... really...? I didn't think this is gonna be that kind of a movie... bulletproof good guys, zero causalities and the enemies who can't shoot...oh my dear god...WAIT!... one good guy just died!The movie is a little retarded and cheesy... but it is funny as well, especially at the beginning. I really hoped for something else... half of it is good and the other half is just eh... Maybe I jinxed it with my first sentence...?If you like Clint Eastwood/army or both, you shouldn't be disappointed... BUT I WAS ! tgchan's rating: 6/10