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Anthony Swofford's memoir of his time as a Marine in the first Iraq war, Jarhead, has been adapted to the screen. Critic Kenneth Turan says the movie has brilliant parts and excellent co-stars, but the picture rarely makes the emotional connection it's after.

Jarhead tells the story of a Marine sniper whose unit is sent to the Middle East for the Iraq conflict of 1991. It stars Jake Gyllenhaal, who narrates the film; Jamie Foxx; and Peter Sarsgaard. It was directed by Sam Mendes, who won an Oscar for American Beauty.

Critic at large John Powers considers the films of Alfred Hitchcock as a new DVD survey of his work is coming out: Alfred Hitchcock: The Masterpiece Collection. The new release collects 14 of his films including Shadow of a Doubt, Rope, Rear Window, Psycho, The Birds, and Frenzy.

Film critic Kenneth Turan reviews director David Cronenberg's latest work, A History of Violence. Cronenberg directed films that many consider bizarre, such as Crash, The Fly and Naked Lunch. Turan says this film is less strange, but more disturbing.

Los Angeles Times film critic Kenneth Turan reviews Carroll Ballard's movie Duma about a boy and a cheetah. He says the film has the same magical qualities as Ballard's earlier films, Fly Away Home and The Black Stallion.

Rock critic Ken Tucker reviews the new three-and-a-half-hour documentary about Bob Dylan called No Direction Home by director Martin Scorsese. It's available on a two-disc DVD and will be shown on PBS as part of the American Masters series.

Graphic designer and music video director Mike Mills is making his feature film debut with Thumbsucker. The film, based on a novel by Walter Kirn, stars Vincent D'Onofrio and Tilda Swinton.

Six Feet Under, rest in peace. The HBO series, which aired its final episode Sunday, followed the Fisher family and its funeral home business for five seasons. It received two Golden Globe awards and six Emmys. Alan Ball, creator and executive producer, reflects on his show about death.

Writer Mark Vaz's new book is Living Dangerously: The Adventures of Merian C. Cooper, Creator of King Kong. Cooper was an explorer, war hero, filmmaker and cinema pioneer. A new biography tells of this larger-than-life personality.

Nicholas Cage stars in Lord of War, a new film about an international arms merchant opening in theaters this weekend. Alex Chadwick talks with the film's writer and director, Andrew Niccol, about creating a plausible story that features an arms dealer as the "hero."