An Officer and a Gentleman (Movie)

An Officer and a Gentleman (Movie)

Thanks to AMC TV for advertising the heck out of An Officer and a Gentleman's 30-year anniversary... I totally caved to the sales pitch and watched this (again) over the weekend... this is one of those movies (like Top Gun) that when I see it on the Guide, I'll flip over and watch...no matter where it's at... it could only have 20 minutes left, and I still flip over and watch...

For those of us in the Pacific Northwest, we are especially proud of this film because it was shot right here in our own backyard with scenes shot around the Olympic Peninsula in Port Townsend and Fort Warden, and some exterior scenes shot at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton...

I was about to go recapping the whole movie here, but since it's been around for 30 years, and I think might officially be deemed a "classic" at this point, I figured most people would already know the story...soooo... I thought I'd throw in some cool trivia about the movie (that can all be attributed to Wikipedia, so take it for what it's worth...)

The title of the movie was derived from the US Uniform Code of Military Justice which states that "Conduct unbecoming of an officer and a gentleman" is subject to court martial. oh snap.

The role of Zack Mayo (or as Gunnery Sergeant Foley called him "Mayonnaise" in a drawl only Louis Gossett, Jr. can pull off) was originally set to star John Denver... it was also offered to John Travolta, but he turned it down (as he also did with the lead in American Gigolo - another Richard Gere hit movie... hmmm, interesting!)  In the end, Gere beat out Jeff Bridges and Christopher Reeve for the starring role.

The role of Paula (Mayo's love interest) was originally given to Sigourney Weaver, who dropped it, then Anjelica Houston, who dropped it, and then Jennifer Jason Leigh, who also dropped it (to film Fast Times at Ridgemont High) and was evenutally given to Debra Winger... others who auditioned for the part (though virtually unknown at the time) included Rebecca De Mornay, Meg Ryan, and Geena Davis.

Officer Candidate Casey Seeger (the only girl recruit) was played by Lisa Eilbacher, who many of you might remember better as Jenny Summers in Beverly Hills Cop.  (My own funny side note here... in BHC, Jenny Summers was childhood friends with Axl Foley... in AOAAG, her Sergeant was Emil Foley... two Foleys...that's funny :)

One more disturbing fact (that is really more of an "ew" and my observation... not to be found on Wikipedia,) for even the short time that he's on screen in the very beginning of the movie, there is WAY too much nakedness from Robert Loggia (who plays Zack Mayo's dad.)  Gross.  Just sayin'.

My Recommendation:  If you've never seen this movie, watch it!!  And if you HAVE seen it, go ahead and watch it again... it's still an incredible movie... I know you'll find that, like me, you can still remember all the lyrics to "Up Where We Belong"... AND can sing them through the triumphant tears of that iconic final scene...  Way to go, Paula!