Gunner Palace
User Score
8.3 out of 10

Universal acclaim- based on 17 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 17
  3. Negative: 1 out of 17

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  1. lupi
    Mar 9, 2005
    1
    A year with this awesome group of soldiers and this what you chose to portray? I saw the Frontline piece and yours was just that: a piece. It seemed like you wanted to show the less intelligent side of these troops. No point to the entire doc.
  2. JoeF
    Mar 17, 2005
    4
    Okay, to start off, I am a combat veteran of the U.S. Marines Corps., and a huge movie buff, for I hope this will not slant my opinion one way or another of this film. Having said that, this was an okay movie. The fillm gives the average soldier a voice, however, there was no real attempt in the "tying together" of a plot, or artistic semblance whatsoever. The filmmakers don't grant you enough substance to make an educated decision about our U.S. forces in Iraq. Any one of us could get "war" footage and freeze a frame here and there, and overlay music for effect. Yet this was too choppy, and extremely disorganized. The moviegoer wants to come out of this film either feeling patriotic, or, build upon their will to get our troops home and out of this cluster of a situation. This movie makes you feel empty afterwards, and with no closure, other than the fact that our men and women are are dying each day, without reason. Either attempt to provide the reason or give reason for our occupation. There was far too much footage of our troops smokin' and jokin' without real substance. You get the feeling throughout the entire movie that something dramatic is about to occur, and never does, until the end of the film in which the narrator sloppily ties together loose ends instead of providing true meaning during the film. The in film narration is horrible, and is sporadic at best. Yes a documentary, but please have a point. For the average moviegoer, this may just be a "sneak peek" into the lives of those that serve and defend our country, in which they may never see. I guess this is a good substitute for those of you who just have to see war, and lust after the 24 hour news footage, that is long since gone. However, in that regard that is all this film really is, extended footage, and not much else. Kudos to our troops serving our country and through candid interviews, contributing their opinion. That is the one true bright light of this film. However I feel without a strong base, all this film amounts to is cheesy one minute clips of boys just being boys. Rent it, and volunteer your time at your local VA.… Expand

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
70 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 33 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 26 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 33
  3. Negative: 1 out of 33
  1. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Ken Tucker
    30
    Gunner Palace too often makes the grunts look like mean slackers -- precisely the opposite, one presumes, of what was intended.
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  2. Rolling Stone
    Reviewed by: Peter Travers
    88
    A riveting and indispensable record of the war in Iraq because it comes from the men who lived it.
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  3. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    70
    For the soldiers, it's about living to see the next day and living with the things they see, and Gunner Palace honors their perspective like no other Iraq documentary has to date.
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