An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)

Director:

Taylor Hackford

Writer:

Douglas Day Stewart (written by)

Release Date:

13 August 1982 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

It will lift you up where you belong.

Plot:

A young man must complete his work at a Navy Flight school to become an aviator, with the help of a tough gunnery sergeant and his new girlfriend.

Plot Keywords:

Navy | Suicide | Sailor | Friendship | Nudity

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 6 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Richard Gere	...	Zack Mayo
Debra Winger	...	Paula Pokrifki
David Keith	...	Sid Worley
Robert Loggia	...	Byron Mayo
Lisa Blount	...	Lynette Pomeroy
Lisa Eilbacher	...	Casey Seeger
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Sgt. Emil Foley
Tony Plana	...	Emiliano Della Serra
Harold Sylvester	...	Perryman
David Caruso	...	Topper Daniels
Victor French	...	Joe Pokrifiki
Grace Zabriskie	...	Esther Pokrifiki
Tommy Petersen	...	Young Zack
Mara Scott-Wood	...	Bunny (as Mara Scott Wood)
David Greenfield	...	Schneider

Runtime:

124 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Filipino

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Canada:R (Nova Scotia/Ontario) | Finland:K-16 (re-rating) | Finland:K-18 (original rating) | Portugal:M/16 | Iceland:12 | France:Unrated | South Korea:18 | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:PA (Manitoba) | Chile:18 | Ireland:15 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Singapore:M18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R (PCA #26387) | West Germany:16 (w)

Filming Locations:

Bremerton, Washington, USA

Company:

Lorimar Film Entertainment

Trivia:

During the scene at TJ's where Zack says goodbye to Paula, Seegar says "I can still taste that bug!" This is a reference to a deleted survival training scene (including in the novelization) where Zack goads Seegar into eating a bug that is crawling on the roof of their shelter, then is forced to eat one himself to avoid disgrace.

Goofs:

Continuity: Zach enters Sid's motel room to see him hanging, naked, in the toilet. Zach runs to cut him loose and grabs him round the waist, and the camera angle reveals the underpants Sid is now wearing.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Mayo: [whispered to sleeping father] Hey.
[flashback to Manila]
Byron: Hey, kid! Are you Zack?
Young Zack: Yes, sir.
Byron: I'm Byron; nice to meet you. Come on, let's get your bags, OK?
Young Zack: Yes, sir.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "TV Land Confidential: Movies (#2.2)" (2007)

Soundtrack:

Theme from 'An Officer and a Gentleman'

Vivid characters and story make this a classic.

I was quite young when I saw this and not into movies this deep, heck I was a kid! Yet this powerful film touched me and I never forgot it.

There were so many various relationships going on that between the characters, if the movie had just been about one of those it might have gotten boring but each one of these individuals were so fascinating in their own right, that it never did get dull. Officer isn't a film one can watch at any time, it's so heavy you really have to be in the mood for it. I would definitely call this a classic.

I will comment on Debra Winger because as good as everyone was Winger hasn't been commented on as much and should be. Her character Paula was gritty, tough and so likable. She was easily as good as anyone else in the movie(I miss not seeing her in current movies, she's amazing).

This isn't my absolute favorite film but its one of the most well done films I've ever seen.