Nice promotional movie for the marine corps. However, it lacks depth. The characters are too superficial. I don't really get the point of this flick, it comes across as a promo for the army. It would've been nice to know more about the background of the characters, especially the women-recruits. I was kinda disappointed about that. Some parts were downright embarrassing. Everyone made it through the training, except the runaway. That's not realistic. No actor exceeded their (hopelessly)stereotypical character. The ending was a cheap shot and way WAY cliché. For would-be or wannabe soldiers it might be a nice movie, though. Personally, I'd go for Full Metal Jacket or Biloxi Blues.
16 Reviews
Semper Fi needs to spend a little more time at boot camp
Good2Go18 April 2001
This TV pilot showed various males and one female character going through the rigors of Marine Corps recruit training. I can understand why no network wanted this trash for a weekly series. As a former Marine, I was very disappointed in the way the recruits were portrayed. It was very unbelievable in many aspects, including the order in which some of the training took place (In real training, recruits qualify on the rifle range before going to the gas chamber and rappel towers, unlike how it was showed in this movie). Considering the power behind this production, it was shocking to see these glaring errors. I mean, come on, only one recruit knew his general orders?! All of their recruiters should be fired! Nearly 90 percent of the recruits I went down to recruit training with knew all 11 general orders before they arrived at Parris Island for training -- including me. Steven Spielberg executive produced this debacle, and former Marine Capt. Dale Dye's involvement makes it even more amazing how poorly this was put together. Both Spielberg and Dale were together on the masterful Saving Private Ryan, yet there was no saving these privates-to-be. Despite my reservations about its accuracy, I rated Semper Fi a five out of 10 stars simply because it was fun to reminisce about being at Parris Island again and seeing the drill instructors, the squad bays, and other memories of my three months at PI. OOHRAH! To get a more realistic portrayal of boot camp at PI, check out Full Metal Jacket. It takes place in the 1960s, but it's much more accurate than this hokey mess.
Accurate, but not intriguing
marshall2166316 April 2001
While this seemed like an accurate movie of the Marine boot camp, I am guessing that my Marine friends would not agree. It was still kind of fun to watch.
Unfortunately, the writer used several hackneyed plot devices that really distracted from any story. For example, do we really need a love interest sub-plot? Please! I'm sure that people join the Marines to escape all kinds of personal situations. Why not focus on some original ones?
Better than watching 'Who wants to be a millionaire', but I would not go out of my way to see this movie.
Unfortunately, the writer used several hackneyed plot devices that really distracted from any story. For example, do we really need a love interest sub-plot? Please! I'm sure that people join the Marines to escape all kinds of personal situations. Why not focus on some original ones?
Better than watching 'Who wants to be a millionaire', but I would not go out of my way to see this movie.
Enlist Now.
homsan toft13 June 2004
Warning: Spoilers
Seems mostly marines watched and care to comment on this TV pilot, I guess anyone sensible turned off before half of it had passed. I can't comment on its documentary qualities, knowing very little about details of Marine training, so I will only say how it play as a movie. (here be SPOILERS - but spoilers of what, really?)
Well... It plays as a simplistic recruiting film. Starship Troopers without irony or even a plot. A handful of characters from a batch of male recruits and two from a group of female recruits undertake their US Marine basic training. One guy kills himself, all the others persist through the hardships and pass their tests. All shed tears at the final ceremony and as we leave the tough, big, African-American drill instructor walks the empty barracks with a very slight smile lighting his otherwise stony features.
That's the plot outline. For drama we're invited to a series of highlights where the personal problems for some of the characters are displayed. Both recruits and problems are probably cast to match the statistics; half or more are non-Caucasian, mainly worker or immigrant's kids with few opportunities to get by in the land of the free. Did I mention this is a patriotic show to entice kids to join the US army? Well, the various character highlights are probably intended to illustrate how it's a great character-building experience that really puts you ahead in wisdom, strength and stamina. There is however not much logic or consequence to the scenes - they just follow one after another to fill the itinerary of points the army recruiters wanted to make.
Two scenes stand out as particularly bizarre:
(1) Instructor (afro-am as mentioned) sits them down to discuss "race and ethnicity." There have been some slurs from some white boys. He states that the Marines are not about race, asks for comments. One guy gets up and says (referring to himself) "This recruit is Jewish, sir!" End of scene. Yes, end of scene! One gets a feeling there was more, but it was edited out. The "I'm Jewish" bit just *had* to be left in because at the decoration and crying scene near the end, the instructor's personal words of encouragement and pride to the guy are "Mazel Tov", and this was so good they didn't want to cut just there. What do I know. As discussion of race and ethnicity issues in the US go, it's a little thin.
(2) (SPOILERS) We get to view an afro-am recruit quite a lot. His dad once was a Marine, and decorated for bravery in Vietnam. Yes Siree. But now he's in jail. On death row, to boot. For killing a man, no details given. The kid so wants his father to see him in Marine outfit. The father is set to be killed halfway through the film, but this is postponed. In the final scene in the film (after decoration scene) we see the dad strapped in his chair, about to get a lethal injection. Outside a glass wall, the kid, in Marine uniform, his mother, and a friend from boot camp (the spoiled rich kid who found himself and made it even though he just wanted away from his dad). The father smiles slightly, apparently to die a more-or-less happy man. End of film. This might be an outstanding moment in propaganda history (in spite of the plodding acting). So many troublesome features of US society put on direct display, in the hope that they will thereby just vanish. All racialism in police and judiciary, the gruesome record of killing its citizens (and children, and mentally disabled, and innocents), all that just goes away. The kid made it through the Marines' basic training, now he's ready to be decorated in the next Vietnam, and a prisoner can die happy.
My oh my, why didn't I just go to sleep.
Well... It plays as a simplistic recruiting film. Starship Troopers without irony or even a plot. A handful of characters from a batch of male recruits and two from a group of female recruits undertake their US Marine basic training. One guy kills himself, all the others persist through the hardships and pass their tests. All shed tears at the final ceremony and as we leave the tough, big, African-American drill instructor walks the empty barracks with a very slight smile lighting his otherwise stony features.
That's the plot outline. For drama we're invited to a series of highlights where the personal problems for some of the characters are displayed. Both recruits and problems are probably cast to match the statistics; half or more are non-Caucasian, mainly worker or immigrant's kids with few opportunities to get by in the land of the free. Did I mention this is a patriotic show to entice kids to join the US army? Well, the various character highlights are probably intended to illustrate how it's a great character-building experience that really puts you ahead in wisdom, strength and stamina. There is however not much logic or consequence to the scenes - they just follow one after another to fill the itinerary of points the army recruiters wanted to make.
Two scenes stand out as particularly bizarre:
(1) Instructor (afro-am as mentioned) sits them down to discuss "race and ethnicity." There have been some slurs from some white boys. He states that the Marines are not about race, asks for comments. One guy gets up and says (referring to himself) "This recruit is Jewish, sir!" End of scene. Yes, end of scene! One gets a feeling there was more, but it was edited out. The "I'm Jewish" bit just *had* to be left in because at the decoration and crying scene near the end, the instructor's personal words of encouragement and pride to the guy are "Mazel Tov", and this was so good they didn't want to cut just there. What do I know. As discussion of race and ethnicity issues in the US go, it's a little thin.
(2) (SPOILERS) We get to view an afro-am recruit quite a lot. His dad once was a Marine, and decorated for bravery in Vietnam. Yes Siree. But now he's in jail. On death row, to boot. For killing a man, no details given. The kid so wants his father to see him in Marine outfit. The father is set to be killed halfway through the film, but this is postponed. In the final scene in the film (after decoration scene) we see the dad strapped in his chair, about to get a lethal injection. Outside a glass wall, the kid, in Marine uniform, his mother, and a friend from boot camp (the spoiled rich kid who found himself and made it even though he just wanted away from his dad). The father smiles slightly, apparently to die a more-or-less happy man. End of film. This might be an outstanding moment in propaganda history (in spite of the plodding acting). So many troublesome features of US society put on direct display, in the hope that they will thereby just vanish. All racialism in police and judiciary, the gruesome record of killing its citizens (and children, and mentally disabled, and innocents), all that just goes away. The kid made it through the Marines' basic training, now he's ready to be decorated in the next Vietnam, and a prisoner can die happy.
My oh my, why didn't I just go to sleep.
this sucks. marines are not guinea pigs to be displayed as guinea pigs
SciFiGal4 July 2001
Every marine should see this movie? This was the same horrific crap that television execs put out every weekend. The real Drill instructors were very realistic of course. But the senior drill instructor was obviously an actor and not a good one at that. This movie was somewhat realistic but that ain't good enough. No movie can break down recruit training to the bare essentials in two hours, unless it was directed by me. The fake cheesy corps values that were portrayed were an insult to all marines. You are Dismissed recruit.
lcpl Luevano (writer/director extraordinaire)
lcpl Luevano (writer/director extraordinaire)
Most Accurate Boot Camp Movie Ever
motivator_177524 August 2006
I have seen just about every Marine Corps movie there is, and none of them come close to the technical accuracy of this film. Every detail from the diddies to the customs and courtesies are included. Each day in the film is just as it is in training. Watching the movie was like watching a cameraman following another company around on the depot. The Drill Instructors are a hundred times nicer in the film, but the structure of training is exact. I would recommend it to anyone thinking of joining. I really don't know how anyone could consider joining any service other than the Marine Corps. No one upholds the pride and Esprit de Corps that you see in all Marines. It helps explain why Marines are the best. And enforces the age-old fact that there is no fighting force greater than a US Marine. From an admin clerk to a heavy machine-gunner, we all went through the same initial training together. And that's exactly what you see in this film. I wish they had enough money to make ten movies about different training cycles in the forces like this one.
Semper Fidelis, Cpl Michlitsch United States Marine Corps "The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war"
Semper Fidelis, Cpl Michlitsch United States Marine Corps "The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war"
This movie brought back a lot of good and bad memories of recruit training
MovieBuffMarine12 December 2003
This is one of the most accurate depictions of USMC Recruit Training ever put out by Hollywood. Other than "Full Metal Jacket" (which put a out an accurate portrayal of Boot Camp from the late sixties) you will not find a more accurate portrayal.
I went to Boot Camp in 1990. This portrayal depicted training during the turn of the Millenium, but it still brought back a lot of good and bad memories. The Crucible which was accurately portrayed in this teleplay was the only thing that I did not experience--the Crucible did not come into recruit training until after October 1996. In my platoon we had someone who tried to kill himself, and we had another who decided he couldn't take it anymore and ran--both depicted real well in this TV movie.
As for the Drill Instructors, I second some of the comments that they were too fake. A DI cannot be faked accurately, no matter how good an actor is, (unless of course they were a DI before like R. Lee Ermey of Full Metal Jacket fame). But I credit them for carrying themselves well (i.e. Mannerisms. One of the actors portraying the DI's, Buddy Joe Farnsworth was a former Sergeant of Marines, but obviously was not a DI).
This was scheduled to be a regular series on NBC. It's a shame they canceled this series before it even got off the ground because it would've been stories about enlisted personnel (instead of officers which shows like JAG is about), which is seriously rare both in the movies and TV. The majority of shows and movies which the officers are the main characters are great, but they (Hollywood) needs to do more work about the men and women that officers lead---the enlisted force! Semper Fi could've done that.
EDIT (05/24/2021): while I still have a lot of praise for this movie, looking back, it would not have lasted long as a series. Why do I say that? Only Marines would be able to understand the plight of the characters. While I appreciated the accuracy of the movie, a little artistic license wouldn't hurt it too much. Think the military drama JAG; many liberties were taking in that program that it lasted ten seasons, both military members and the general public at large enjoyed it. Semper Fi would have a larger audience if a little artistic liberties were taken.
I went to Boot Camp in 1990. This portrayal depicted training during the turn of the Millenium, but it still brought back a lot of good and bad memories. The Crucible which was accurately portrayed in this teleplay was the only thing that I did not experience--the Crucible did not come into recruit training until after October 1996. In my platoon we had someone who tried to kill himself, and we had another who decided he couldn't take it anymore and ran--both depicted real well in this TV movie.
As for the Drill Instructors, I second some of the comments that they were too fake. A DI cannot be faked accurately, no matter how good an actor is, (unless of course they were a DI before like R. Lee Ermey of Full Metal Jacket fame). But I credit them for carrying themselves well (i.e. Mannerisms. One of the actors portraying the DI's, Buddy Joe Farnsworth was a former Sergeant of Marines, but obviously was not a DI).
This was scheduled to be a regular series on NBC. It's a shame they canceled this series before it even got off the ground because it would've been stories about enlisted personnel (instead of officers which shows like JAG is about), which is seriously rare both in the movies and TV. The majority of shows and movies which the officers are the main characters are great, but they (Hollywood) needs to do more work about the men and women that officers lead---the enlisted force! Semper Fi could've done that.
EDIT (05/24/2021): while I still have a lot of praise for this movie, looking back, it would not have lasted long as a series. Why do I say that? Only Marines would be able to understand the plight of the characters. While I appreciated the accuracy of the movie, a little artistic license wouldn't hurt it too much. Think the military drama JAG; many liberties were taking in that program that it lasted ten seasons, both military members and the general public at large enjoyed it. Semper Fi would have a larger audience if a little artistic liberties were taken.
Entertainment for marines and wannabes
Sznfctm7 September 2004
I'm just watching this movie, but I don't really like it, especially after I read the other comments. I mean, come on! Who'd be entertained to see the training of US Marines, no matter how accurate it is? As the only plot for a movie, it's sadly weak. You can find anything almost this accurate and heroic, with some action, real actors, even historical background, so why make this? The only reason I can think of is to recruit people to the Corps, especially when I see the moments where the instructors get 'soft'. This is like saying: "Join today, behind the strong, brave, heroic outlook, we are family." So - my advise is: if you want to join, see it first, and get tuned on to the task. If you have no such intentions, you might as well skip it for something less real, with more action - you'll hardly find any entertainment here.
Remarkable.
SunDevil31 April 2001
An unbelievable movie... the most true-to-life movie in terms of what life is like in the Marine Corps. A movie that anyone considering becoming a Marine should see... and one that all Marines should watch. In one word, the movie is... remarkable.
Semper Fi Wooo Waaa! Great Movie!
Pat19732 April 2001
This movie was so good that I cried! The characters in this movie you care and sweat every tear and determinaton that they are up against. Scott Bairstow as (Cliff Truckee) is a silver spooned mouth feed loner that is spoiled by his father and just keeps goig to be a marine. The real breakout stars are Bianca Kajlich as (Sharron Exler) who I just think is a great actress! Also Vicellous Reon Shanno as (Keith Maddox) is a great character actor who shines in this fresh new marine based story! I felt for every marine in this film! The film is just a treasure of joy and heartache and you will not be disappointed. Its a great start me up program that marines go through everday. Michael W. Watkins directs a great cast and supporting role by Keith David and Terry O'Quinn. Its a keeper and I hope it wins some awards because I just feel in love with this great film! PLEASE put this movie on DVD and Video. I will be the 1st one on the line to buy!Out of 4 stars I give it 4+. A great movie in a whole!
One of the best boot camp movies ever
BThomas924859 January 2005
Being in the Marine Corps I happened to catch this movie on the Armed Forces Network. Since I had been through boot camp I wanted to see how accurate the movie was and compare it to Full Metal Jacket, the greatest Marine movie ever. As I watched memories of boot camp returned and I found myself identifying more and more with the characters. The actors portray the recruits and drill instructors so well that until the end credits rolled I believed I was watching an actual platoon and actual drill instructors. If you are interested in how civilians become Marines and want to see an accurate portrayal of boot camp this movie is for you. I would recommend it to any military buff or any Marine fresh out of boot camp or retired for twenty years, it will bring back memories both good and bad, and remind you of why you chose to become one of the few, and one of the proud. Semper Fi.
Excellent movie, would make a great series
mkkerrick2 April 2001
My husband, who is a Marine, said this show was true to form. I would like to see the complete series. I have talked with a few of my neighbors and they all agree that it was was a very good movie and they would also like to see a series.
Realistic account of the lives of Marine Corps recruits during Boot Camp
shadymom3 April 2001
Very interesting portrayal of the intertwining lives of recruits while they go through the toughest parts of basic training. The story line keeps you wondering and the actors/actresses are as realistic as could be expected. It's amazing to watch as these youngsters become Marines and build the bonds that will last a lifetime. This is one movie that I can't wait to see again. Semper Fi!
Could maybe be a little bit better, but could be MUCH worse.
jacksonc1 April 2001
About the only serious complaint I had was the tears at the end. Marines don't cry, do they?
Speaking of the Corps, they must have approved of this (filiming location: Parris Island).
Semper Fi, Semper Fi, Do or die, gung ho, gung ho, gung ho!
Speaking of the Corps, they must have approved of this (filiming location: Parris Island).
Semper Fi, Semper Fi, Do or die, gung ho, gung ho, gung ho!
Excellent example of modern USMC training at Parris Island
Tarkin2 April 2001
Warning: Spoilers
This was the pilot of a series that NBC decided, sadly, to not pick up. The story surrounds two platoons (one male and one female) of young recruits during their training at Parris Island, Marine Corps Recruit Depot. The characters are very real and are performed in a believable manner by the various actors. This movie gives a good overview of Marine Corps training in modern times. I would highly recommend it to people who are considering enlistment or, if like me, you enjoy entertainment with a military theme. The only reason I could see that this show was not picked up as a series, is that it had no where to go. ***SPOILERS*** The film goes all the way through graduation and even ties up some lose ends in respect to the personal story of some of the characters.***END OF SPOILERS*** Other entertainment choices that relate to this TV movie is the Fox series "Boot Camp," the classic film "Full Metal Jacket," and the story is written much like the script for "Gardens of Stone." The first two are Marine related and admittedly are very different in genre (realism vs. Vietnam movie). "Gardens of Stone" tells the story of young soldiers in the U. S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division "The Old Guard" operating as the honor guard for Arlington Cemetery. If you enjoy military films that are well-written and truly pull you into the story, then "Semper Fi" is for you.
Excellent and Amazing
ravenlll4 April 2001
This movie was incredible. I have never been in the service, but have had many friends who are in all branches of the military. This movie was so uplifting and had such a strong message. I have a teenage son, and I wished he would have watched.
The acting was superb. I felt what these guys and girls were feeling as they struggled to find themselves, their place in their unit, their inner worth and ultimately they were faced with a test that would make or break them. Could they do it?
Despite their backgrounds, they had to dig deep and learn to work together, learn to help others, learn ethnic tolerance and diversity and come to find out what "Semper Fi" means.
I hope this movie comes out on video.
The acting was superb. I felt what these guys and girls were feeling as they struggled to find themselves, their place in their unit, their inner worth and ultimately they were faced with a test that would make or break them. Could they do it?
Despite their backgrounds, they had to dig deep and learn to work together, learn to help others, learn ethnic tolerance and diversity and come to find out what "Semper Fi" means.
I hope this movie comes out on video.
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