MovieChat Forums > Full Metal Jacket (1987) Discussion > Did the actors really know if R. Lee Erm...

Did the actors really know if R. Lee Ermey was going to slap/hit them?

posted 3 years ago by kittmaster (54)
8 replies | jump to latest

Vincent d'onofrio with left and right slap of his face with the gun scene......then when he "choked" him.....etc.

Joker gets it on the left side regarding the "Virgin Mary"......

The scenes always seemed authentic..... I was just wondering since the lines where improvised by Ermey which is well known...... wondering if the physical hits were improvised or expected by the actors.

Anyone know outside of what is shown in movie?

[–] [deleted] 3 years ago

I know the chocking scene was fake, they talk about it on the commentary track (blu-ray).

[–] xergan (1067) 10 months ago

I doubt you can really push through with a choking scene without faking it. I mean, you would need to pay no name actors likely star salary to keep them shut. Why else would someone accept such a thing done to them? It's just easier to do it controlled. The slaps are I think OK, if they told everyone that this has to happen for authentity. It is not like in real life when you have to potentially fearing several slaps in a row, you are only on danger during filming.

[–] drhouse (81) 2 years ago

I can't seem to find the clip, but I was watching a bunch of these really in-depth behind the scenes videos on FMJ (linked below)... I seem to remember that some of the slaps were real, and the actors knew they'd be coming... but even when real, Kubrick always thought they looked fake - so, the next time another actor needed to be slapped on film, they made sure to angle the camera so it was very clear the slapping was real

Full Metal Jacket | Making Film - YouTube Playlist:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGciYgiR4atEaATnlMM3onJZwjS1gs195

[–] BKB (10098) a year ago

Very Authentic and that's what made his role so good.. I'm convinced in the end, the blanket party for Private Pyle in the middle of the night is what pushedt him over the edge

[–] Seperatrix (1234) a year ago

I remain a bit surprised that Kubrick didn't have something in the towels that made the scene a bit more convincing. Obviously they weren't going to use real bars of soap, but the towels looked empty and therefore unconvincing. Didn't ruin the scene, or film in general, for me . . . just knowing Kubrick's reputation for being so detailed and meticulous it remains a curiosity.

[–] DoctorThirteen (14202) 10 months ago

I remember first time I saw that thinking the towels looked like they had sponges inside.

[–] kittmaster (54) 8 months ago

Thanks for the feedback, still holds up today, RIP R. Lee Ermey.

[–] BKB (10098) 6 months ago

They interviewed Matthew Modine about what it was like making this movie and he stated he didn't get along very well with Vincent D'Onofrio because of his method acting as Private Pyle and that both he along with D'Onofrio actually had to do the bootcamp portion of it and it made it really hard acting with each other..