Customer Reviews

Annapolis [Blu-ray]

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Younger fans of Hollywood films will no doubt give this movie the thumbs up. But for those Hollywood film fans old enough to remember the 1982 film "An Officer and a Gentleman" starring Richard Gere, "Annapolis" is a poor imitation. "An Officer and a Gentleman" told the melodramatic story of Zack Mayo, played by Richard Gere, whose self-absorption came into harsh conflict with the communitarian values of his drill instructor Emil Foley played by Lou Gossett Jr . The extra-curricular affair between Zack and a local girl served to illuminate his self-interested attitude in which the interests of others were held in little regard. Only after Mayo's best friend Sid Worley commited suicide over an unhappy romance did Zack come out of his culturally-programmed adolescence and then mature into adulthood.

That said, younger audiences will like the melodramatic plot of "Annapolis". James Franco plays Jake Huard, an amateur boxer and shipyard worker who wants to climb the class ladder to become a midshipman. And this is where Jake Huard parts company with his predecessor Zack Mayo. Zack Mayo was always officer material, just pre-absorbed with getting ahead and not taking notice that others were trying to get ahead also. Jake Huard, however, is in search of his estranged father's approval and determines to suffer whatever it takes to become an officer. Whereas Mayo matured into an officer, Huard remains a self-absorbed boxer in a Navy uniform - although less self-absorbed because he is able to get the monkey off his back and win his father's approval.

In a style reminiscent of "Boom Boom" Mancini, Huard battered his Congressperson with requests for over 30 days straight in order to secure a letter of recommendation to Annapolis. Once there, he bunks with the loser Estrada played by Wilmer Calderon, the methodical Loo played by Roger Fan, and the misfit Twins masterfully played by Vicellous Reon Shannon. Twins and Huard are scorned and ridiculed by the other cadets who view them as misfits. The resulting chemistry between these two characters is superb, reinforced by Shannon's excellent acting in his portrayal of Twins. Huard continues to break rules and grate nerves until his opportunity for redemption arrives - a boxing showdown with the cadet menace Cole, played by Tyrese Gibson. The film quickly transforms itself into Rocky versus the Naval Dictator. Despite the canned character scripts and sea of clichés complained of by previous reviewers, the melodrama never sinks with the ship.

The so-called romance or lust attraction that develops between Huard and the officer Ali played by Jordana Brewster is pretty far-fetched. It is true that, in real American life, sometimes -rarely - American teachers fall for students. It happens. But Huard had one previous meeting with Ali in a bar prior to all this, so she had not always been his superior officer. Younger audiences will find the relationship between Huard and Ali plausible, while older audiences will find it preposterous.

"Annapolis" is directed by Justin Lin and was filmed at a Philadelphia College rather than the actual Annapolis. It seems that the Navy does not cotton to disparaging Hollywood films - they said "No" to "An Officer and a Gentleman" too, which was mostly filmed on location at Port Townsend, Washington rather than the Naval Aviation Officer Candidate School in Pensacola, Florida.

Rated PG-13 for profanity, lust, alcohol and violence.

OK, I had heard "Annapolis" was a pale imitation of "An Officer and a Gentleman"--but I still went into it with an open mind. Just because a film shares similar plot points or qualities with another film doesn't mean it isn't worthy of a look. There are only so many plots to go around--take romantic comedies, for example. If you got rid of those that copied other movies, we'd be left with about six total in the history of cinema. If something is done well, it can defy its limitations and seem fresh. Heck, it isn't even as if "An Officer and a Gentleman" was a novel or new story--it played by fairly conventional storytelling rules, it just did so exceedingly well.

So, trying as hard as possible to offer a different perspective--I, too, feel that "Annapolis" borrows heavily from "Officer." It's all here. Boy from wrong side of the tracks makes good in the service--check. Cadet who can't complete obstacle course helped by hero--check. Cadet who doesn't succeed attempts suicide--check. Hero's tension with superior leads up to big fight--check. Mutual respect, triumph over adversity--check, check, CHECK already. By jettisoning the romance at the heart of "Officer," "Annapolis" is left with only the cliche'--becoming a good person through military service.

But even that pales in comparison. James Franco is a good actor, but he is becoming increasingly expressionless. It's as if he thinks a dour expression equals seriousness. Richard Gere (in "Officer"), meanwhile, ran a real emotional gamut--rage, passion, heartbreak. He made a very typical story moving and powerful. But, of course, he had Louis Gossett, in an Oscar winning performance, to play off of. Let's just say that Tyrese Gibson isn't in that league. As the female lead, we've got Jordana Brewster. She is appealing and likable, if not particularly believable in this role.

One of my main issues with "Annapolis" is its sloppy character development. Franco is regarded as the worst cadet in the unit, and as such is really ridden by his superiors. He is a loner, doesn't ask for help--so you know a valuable life lesson will need to be learned. Gere, in "Officer," was just such a recruit. But the moment he is broken, the moment of his realization--it is a brilliant and emotionally devastating scene played to perfection. In "Annapolis," though, blink and you'll miss it--there's no catharsis here. One night he just decides to be a great recruit. He then studies all night to improve his scores, trains for boxing all day and night for a big tournament, and helps his roommate on the obstacle course all day. I don't know when he sleeps or does any real "soldiering."

"Annapolis" is, essentially at heart, a chaste and glossy remake. But lacking the dynamic performances and the realness, it just falls short as entertainment. No deeper than a typical music video, it's all surface--pretty to look at, but ultimately forgettable. KGHarris, 12/06.

I went to see this movie because I have a fondness and deep interest in military colleges. 'A Sense of Honor' by James Webb (a fictional account of Annapolis in the 1960's) is one of my all time favorite books. Though my interest in military colleges has waned over the years it has by no means completely dissipated. And when I heard of this movie I made sure to see it on opening day.


The movie seems to be less about life at the Academy than it is as a lesson about not giving up on yourself. Some of the things I found notable is that for one the film wasn't shot at the school, it was shot in Philadelphia. And has been mentioned before why Jordana Brewster's character didn't get in trouble for the amount of time she spent 'fraternizing' with a male plebe is beyond me. And how the 'Twins' character made it that far in the year by being so heavy is also surprising. Annapolis is one of the most elite universities in the US, would the Academy really have gone out of their way to recruit a poor student, even if he was a boxer?

The film basically is no different than the usual 'fish out of water' story we have seen a million times. But what made this bearable was the fact that the character Huard didn't act out because he was rebellious. But more so out of poor self-esteem. As a working class boy in his heart he did not believe that he did not belong there. However as the film went on, it was nice to see his confidence build. I also liked the friendship with Twins, the two young men really supported each other very well.

I am not a big fan of Tyreese Gibson. But he really shinned in this role as the tight no-nonsense first class-man. It was a marked change from the "home-boy/street thug" roles he normally is cast into.



I thought that while the film was very weak it was also very inspirational.

What begins as an intelligent, well-written, character-driven military drama gradually descends into the firey pits of cliche hell during its second half. Viewers of "Annapolis" will most likely be students of "An Officer and a Gentleman," one of the greatest military films ever made, in which a Naval academy enrollee faced his over-aggressive drill instructor in a battle of wills. That film, as it progressed from scene to scene, become a powerful experience in its own way, if only marginally so. "Annapolis" works in a similar way during its first half, dealing a deck of raw emotional power and a sincere study of its characters. And then, without warning, it falls from grace into one of the first most unoriginal films of 2006.

To say that "Annapolis" is an example of how not to make an effective military drama is to say that the Atlantic Ocean is damp. Considering everything that happens, what the characters go through and how they change, where the characters end up, and what they do or do not accomplish, the film is essentially a half-drawn journey to a very poor destination. There are no surprises, save for perhaps one, and no sudden twists that grab the audience by surprise. If you take away the aspects of the Naval Academy, it is about a young man named Jake Huard (James Franco) who wants to win the favor of his father.

Huard works alongside his buddies in a shipyard across the bay from the Annapolis Naval Academy. An aimless young man who is at odds with his father, he has always wanted to attend the Academy and serve his country as an officer in the United States Navy, and one day, out of the blue, he is given a letter of acceptance. Upon arrival, he meets and makes friends with his three roommates, the overweight Twins (Vicellous Reon Shannon), the rule abiding Loo (Roger Fan), and the abrasive, cocky Estrada (Wilmer Calderon).

Somehow, he also manages to develop a relationship with one of his commanding officers, the beautiful Ali (Jordanna Brewster), whom he approached the night before his departure in a bar, thinking that she was a hooker. He also butts heads with his fierce commanding officer, Cole (Tyrease Gibson), an aggressive boulder on loan to the Navy from the Marines. The relationships between these characters are just as well-written as one would anticipate, and they are all very well-acted.

All was going well until the second half of the film began, in which I leaned forward in my chair and rubbed my eyes in disbelief. "Annapolis" is a boxing movie. Jake was an amateur boxer before he came to the Academy, and he is given a shot at participating in the Brigades, a tournament in which the enrollees get to fight one another. At first, Jake struggles for entry under the boxing teacher, Coach McNally (Chi McBride), but, unsurprisingly, he becomes one of the best fighters at the school. Under the support of sexy Ali, Jake battles his way through the tournament, with the championship match against the hard-hitting Cole at the end of the tunnel.

By the time the film was over, I wanted to do very bad things to the script, or at least the second half of the script. The film ends in 2008, which means that Jake must be entering the Academy right now or a couple of years ago, which means that we would be in a war on terrorism, which means that a boxing tournament would not be on Jake's mind. Instead of depicting Jakes journey through training at the Academy, his battle of wills with Cole, and his progression to taking command of a ship in the war on terrorism, "Annapolis" decides to place its characters in the ring, with the hero facing hardships during fights and outside of them, all the way up to the big championship match.

Exactly how Ali can get away with kissing one of her trainees is beyond me, but the film is apparently too lopsided to pay attention to detail. And just because the commanding officer is aggressive does not mean that we should hate him and despise him. In "Annapolis" he is just as tough as you would preceive him to be, and is therefore not a credible villain even if we are rooting for Jake.

While James Franco does a terrific job, there are only two perfect performances in the film: Vicellous Reon Shannon as Twins and Tyrease Gibson as Cole. Twins is probably the best character in the movie, better than Jake, and is given the most emotional depth. The scenes involving him, his story, and his fate are well thought out, and his relationship with Jake manages to push the film in a better direction, if only marginally so. Tyrease Gibson is perfect as the tough commanding officer. For at least a little while, the film plays like a version of "Crimson Tide" on land, with Jake and Cole duking it out.

The film should have stayed in that direction, but it didn't. If the first half of the film hadn't been so good, had it not brought forth the setup and character development that it did, then everything would have been sunk in the water. "Annapolis" is so intersting for the first act and then becomes riddled with cliches and eventually runs out of gas. Before we leave the theater, we find ourselves watching a totally different movie, and wondering why we bothered with it in the first place. - Isaac

Rated PG-13; 106 minutes; Directed by Justin Lin

What a dog. Don't buy this movie. It has nothing to do with the Naval Academy. Totally stereotyped and predictable, this movie isn't worth the shipping charge.

I purchased this title as part of the Amazon "Buy One Get One Free" offer on Blu-ray titles last month. I needed to pick up an extra disc, since there were only three I wanted, so I grabbed this.

This movie was mediocre at best. It never really drew me in. In fact, I'd say it was borderline a waste of time. It's really a rip-off of "An Officer and a Gentleman", as well as about every 3rd low-budget boxing movie that has come out in the past few years.

If I were in the Navy, I would probably be afraid people in the other services would laugh at me because of it.

Pass on purchasing this one. Rent only if really bored, and you've seen everything else on the shelf.

Pretty predictable and dull. I found it hard to feel for Huard because he had a bad attitude. If you can't take orders, you do not belong in the armed forces. I liked his roommate "Arkansas" Nance better because he had heart. Still, none of the characters or the plot grabbed my attention.

I don't understand why all the reviews of this film seem to be bad. It was well acted by James Franco and Tyrese Gibson. It was entertaining from start to finish. If you like military school action films then you will definitely like this one.

Annapolis takes elements from all of the truly excellent military movies of our time and uses them to create this new and exciting military drama. James Falco stars as Jake Huard, the hometown boy who boxes, works as a ship builder, and has always dreamed of a life in the navy. Before his mother died, she made him promise he would attend the naval academy. Huard spends years trying to make sure that he keeps this promise. His character has many of the same elements that made us love Richard Gere in An Officer and a Gentleman and Matthew Modine from Full Metal Jacket. Throughout the film he strives to make the transformation from a guy who dreams of being in the navy to an actual officer through and through. To this end, he attempts to prove himself by trying to win the Naval Academy Brigade boxing competition and proving that he really is good enough to be there.

Before his first day at the academy he meets a cute girl (Jordana Brewster) at a bar who turns out to be one of his superior officers at the academy. Brewster's character supports Jake throughout his attempts to fit in and helps him train for the Naval Academy Brigade boxing matches. She's got hints of Debra Winger from An Officer and A Gentleman and all the best moves from Demi Moore in A Few Good Men. Then there's the tragic character who you know is just there to let you know how hard it really is to try to fit in. Much like Vincent D'Onofrio in Full Metal Jacket, Huard's friend is overweight and works twice as hard as everyone else while constantly being berated about his size by his superior officers. Tyrese Gibson stars as the Louis Gossett Jr.-like superior officer who grills Huard constantly and wants to make sure that he's the best officer he can be. And Donnie Wahlberg rounds out the supporting cast as the lieutenant who knew from the start that Huard had greatness in him.

This movie steals elements from the best, but doesn't do so as outright copying and instead makes it fit its own elements. The boxing competition is at the forefront of the film, but it's got enough of the military element to make it a nice mixture for anyone who likes movies like Rocky, Full Metal Jacket and An Officer and a Gentleman. It's not nearly as good as any of those films, but it's a fun film to watch with plenty of action and excitement.

From the graphics, trailer, and cover of the DVD, ANNAPOLIS looks as though it is a movie about life in military training. And, yes, there are scenes showing the rigorous training these young men receive on their way to becoming Navy officers. But quickly after the Annapolis portion of the film begins the story turns into yet another young boxer proves himself through his sport story and not a very powerful one at that. For those expecting something more, then best to look at other films from the past about military training.

The plot is full of clichés, each of which has a weak lead-in and an easy-to-predict ending. Thee are some good actors assigned to the cast - James Franco (more buff than he has ever looked!), Jordana Brewster, Donnie Wahlberg, and some strong supporting cast members, but the story never involves us beyond a head-nodding 'yes, I've seen this before' status. It is a piecemeal work, some of the pieces being sensitive but most being disposable. The story doesn't seem to have a point except that of life in the first year of Annapolis is tough, that those in charge may seem really mean but they all have heart, and the good underdogs make the best of a bad situation.

But if you like boxing movies, this one has a lot of time in the ring and for that audience ANNAPOLIS will please. Grady Harp, June 06