Question: Hartman compliments Pyle after his round of shooting at the range. How could Hartman possibly know how accurate Pyle was from that distance? There's no way he could see if Pyle had hit the target.
Brittle Fingers
7th Jun 2025
Full Metal Jacket (1987)
Answer: He wouldn't be able to, no. I think this comes under the class of "deliberate mistake", i.e. an inaccuracy that was a choice by Kubrick to advance the plot quickly (establishing Pyle's marksmanship/rifle skills) without an extended sequence showing all of the steps taken to verify how well he'd done.
Answer: Hartman compliments Pyle based on what he *thinks* happened based on what he saw; this is the same with almost all shooting ranges. When drill sergeants are watching you at the range, they aren't just looking to see if they can see you hit a target; they are looking at your movements. How was your stance? How was your trigger control? How were you holding the weapon? How steady was your aim? Usually, if you're good at things like the aforementioned, they just assume it all worked together in harmony and you hit the target.