“Full Metal Jacket” Kubrick depicts the relationship between childishness and madness *Spoiler alert

Meaning of “Born Killer” and “Peace Mark”

The Joker has these words written on his helmet: “BORN TO KiLL” (Born to Killer). And a peace Signs badge on the chest. The peace Signs was a symbol favored by hippies who opposed the Vietnam War at the time. This antinomy is a Joker style joke, but it's also a safety valve. When asked by his superior about the contradiction between the peace Signs and "BORN TO KiLL," Joker replies: "It expresses the dual nature of humans." It may sound like a cynical answer, but this is a way for him to maintain his mental balance, in other words, to maintain as much rationality as possible as an adult. "Killing" and "Mercy". This tightrope-like state of maintaining oneself on the boundary between these contradictory concepts without being biased towards either side is what it is like to be an adult, something that a child cannot do. Children cannot keep up with contradictory contradictions and try to simplify things. Joker knew that at the end of that simplification, an abyss of madness and murder lay waiting.

Full Metal Full Metal Jacket© 1987, Package Design & Supplementary Material Compilation © 2012 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Distributed by Warner Home Video. All rights reserved.

However, at the climax of the movie, the Joker slips from the ``tether'' of being an adult. When he sees a dying female enemy soldier, he kills someone for the first time with an expression of agony in order to deliver the final blow. At that time, the peace badge on his chest is hidden by the gun and cannot be seen.

Immediately after the Joker kills a female soldier, he marches across the battlefield with many soldiers singing the theme song of "The Mickey Mouse Club." His appearance is as proud as a child's.

"We live in a shitty world. But I'm glad to be alive. I'm not scared of anything anymore."

Full Metal Full Metal Jacket© 1987, Package Design & Supplementary Material Compilation © 2012 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Distributed by Warner Home Video. All rights reserved.

Joker was charmed by his fearless childish nature. Kubrick insisted that the Joker, who had descended into madness, die at the end of the film. However, co-writer Michael Herr disagreed. This is because Joker's humanity as an adult has already disappeared, and he has become a mere soldier with no personality. Because it's actually depicting the death of the Joker. Kubrick agreed with that opinion.

``Full Metal Jacket'' uses many 60's pop songs selected by Kubrick. One of the most memorable songs is the Rolling Stones' ` `Paint it black,'' which plays during the movie's end credits. When I listen to this song and watch the end credits, I imagine children being given black paint and happily doodling around. The children endlessly paint the battlefield black.

*In order to respect the intentions of the original author/producer, we have published the lines as they were in the original text.

References: Complete works of Kubrick/written by David Hughes

The Musical World of Kubrick's Films (Series of 20th Century Art and Literature) / Masanori Akashi

Text: Tetsuya Inagaki

TV director. My personal goal is to realize a documentary project that depicts the obsessions of manga and movie creators. Programs he has directed in the past include ``Gekiga The Godfather : The Man Who Revolutionized Manga'' (WOWOW) and ``Takeshi's Birth: Master of Oira and Asakusa'' (NHK). Currently, he is planning a documentary about a famous manga artist.

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Full Metal Jacket © 1987, Package Design & Supplementary Material Compilation © 2012 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. Distributed by Warner Home Video. All rights reserved.