Release Year: 1982 Rating: R Duration: 122 minutes Director: Taylor Hackford
synopsis
Zack Mayo (Richard Gere) has nothing--the son of an alcoholic, indifferent military father, he's grown up in the Philippines living on top of a brothel. But after college he decides he wants more and, despite his father's mockery, enrolls in the navy's Officer Candidate School to become a jet pilot. His sergeant, brilliantly played by Louis Gossett Jr., makes his life a living hell from day one, but Zack won't quit. The candidates are warned to stay away from the local girls looking for naval husbands, but Zack and his bunkmate, Sid (David Keith), find themselves falling for two friends, Paula (Debra Winger) and Lynette (Lisa Blount), who work at the local paper mill. Zack fights his feelings for Paula, determined to let nothing sway him from his goals. But as the hellish weeks of training go by, Zack begins to see that maybe he can't do it alone--and that what's getting him through are his friends in the ranks, and the girl he's been pushing away. Widely acclaimed at the time of its release, director Taylor Hackford's inspiring film is a romance for the ages.
'An Officer and a Gentleman' did an extraordinary thing when it was first released in 1982. Not only did it showcase the best performance of Richard Gere's career, but it found the perfect balance necessary in appealing to both men and women. Many of my friends saw the movie on their first dates and it struck an emotional chord with many of them. It also made personality the main focus of its moral overtones and while it did appear at times to play out like a soap opera, no one can accuse it of being a false statement on life.
