Ermey's performance in 'Full Metal Jacket' was so awesome, he blew the doors off the cinema. One of the greatest acting jobs in the history of the art-form. May he rest in peace...
I always thought it was so interesting the way Kubrick cut his trailer for FMJ. You only see battles from the City of Hue. You get zero idea that there's this whole other preamble, practically a completely separate film, set on Parris Island. Kubrick knew he had dynamite in his hands with Ermey's performance and he wanted to let it happen naturally for the audience. That alone is a great tribute to what he brought to that picture. Ermey was also particularly convincing in Sean Penn's DEAD MAN WALKING as the distraught father.
A great job because, of course, he had been a Marine drill instructor and knew better than anyone else how to deliver that performance. And no question that performance will live on. A golden vignette of his from another movie:
Now St. Peter gets a taste of Basic Training. Ol' Pete will be a lot kinder to Marines who walk through his gates, from here on out. My D.I. was nothing like Lee. Then again, my D.I. didn't serve in Vietnam like Lee did. I got to meet Lee at the red carpet premiere of HBO's The Pacific. They showed the first two episodes, and I was there with some WWII Marines who were actually at Peleliu. One old rifleman told Lee, "Ya know, it was nothing like they just showed in that picture." Lee looked at him and smiled, "Yeah, they'll never get it right unless they were there. You just have to humor these Hollywood types." Coming from a guy who had spent a lot of time in Hollywood, that statement let me know right there that Lee never forgot what he was really acting for: those voices who would remain forever silent. 74 years old. Might as well. Semper Fi, man.
RIP to a fine actor. Loved him in FMJ, and enjoyed his performance in "Saving Silverman", among others.
I feel like I just heard him on a radio interview or something like that. 74 is not incredibly young but it does seem sudden. My kids have been watching the 'Kung Fu Panda' TV show, where he had a recurring role. It's amazing how many things he was in. I recall he said something about Full Metal Jacket like 'Since that role, I've never had to look very hard to find work.' RIP.
He must have given himself permission to die. I really dug that FMJ movie, but remember him more now as "Gunny" in the History Channel's Lock N' Load with R. Lee Ermey. -Bill
his FMJ performance reminded me of my Army drill sergeants (most Nam Vets), but he was even more intense and never let up. Great performance. RIP.
I'm sad to hear this. He was outstanding in Full Metal Jacket and I liked his History Channel programs. The Boys In Company C I enjoyed as well. I will have to seek out some other of his movies, but I guess that would be a different thread. RIP
50 years from now, people will still be talking about the incredible performance he gave in FMJ. RIP Sir, and thanks for your service.
"Full Metal Jacket" was heavily influenced by 1978's "The Boys In Company C", which also featured R. Lee Ermey as a drill instructor. Ermey's performance in that movie was not as intense or hyperbolic as it was in FMJ, but maybe it was a more realistic portrayal of what boot camp was like? Anyway, here's a scene that revisits the kind of dynamic that was previously explored in "The Dirty Dozen":
But.....he was in the USMC.....he didn't play anyone in the army....I'm sure he considered soldiers lily-livered bowls of jello compared to his beloved Marines!
