An Officer and a Gentleman (1982)

A young man must complete his work at a Navy Officer Candidate School to become an aviator, with the help of a tough Gunnery Sergeant and his new girlfriend.

Director:

Taylor Hackford

Writer:

Douglas Day Stewart

Stars:

Richard Gere, Debra Winger, David Keith

Won 2 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 13 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
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

Storyline

Zack Mayo is a young man who has signed up for Navy Aviation Officer Candidate School. He is a Navy brat who has a bad attitude problem. Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley is there to train and evaluate him, and will clearly find Zack wanting. Zack meets Paula, a girl who has little beyond family, and must decide what it is he wants to do with his life.

---

Plot Keywords:

sex scene | navy | military officer | u.s. military | naval uniform | 

---

Taglines:

It will lift you up where you belong.

---

Genres:

Drama | Romance

---

Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Filipino

Release Date:

13 August 1982 (USA)

Also Known As:

Reto al destino

Filming Locations:

City of Olongapo aka Olongapo City, Philippines

Box Office

Budget:

$7,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$3,304,679, 1 August 1982, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$129,795,552

Company Credits

Production Co:

Lorimar Film Entertainment,Paramount Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

124 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The blimp hangar used for the famous fight scene between Louis Gossett, Jr. and Richard Gere is located at Fort Worden State Park and as of 2013 is still intact, but has been converted into a twelve hundred-seat performing arts center, called the "McCurdy Pavilion".

---

Goofs

Most navel officers do not become aviators as flying is only a small part of navel operations. Having Foley and the candidates constantly bring up wanting to fly jets would never happen. Some of the candidates would probably want to fly but it would hardly ever be mentioned at OCS.

---

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.

---

Crazy Credits

With special thanks to Art Kulman of the Washington State Dept. of Commerce & Economic Development, Fort Worden State Park, Gus Gustafson, Brent Shirley, and the people of Port Townsend, Washington.

---

Alternate Versions

TV versions change the chants repeated by the group while marching and by Zack marching in place in the mud. The alternate rhymes contain fewer references to ethnicity and sex.

---

Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: Staying Alive (2015)

---

Soundtracks

Tush
(1975)
Written by Billy Gibbons (as B. Gibbons), Dusty Hill (as D. Hill), and Frank Beard (as F. Beard)
Performed by ZZ Top
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records, Inc.

User Reviews

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.