Undescribable Perfection

The Age of Commercialism

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

The brutal truth of one with their dreams set on a life overseas but their heart is stuck in one place.

Let me preface this with a statement about myself, for me, it's really difficult to like a romantic movie because I cant enjoy it unless it feels real to me, and making fake love seem real isn't easy. However the reason the love in this movie doesn't feel real to me isn't because the acting is bad or because there's just no chemistry between the two main lovers, Richard Gere and Debra Winger, the issue is that this entire movie is just a gigantic pizza which is 80% cheesiness and 20% movie.The movie only ever manages to have one genuinely good part, the climax, when David Keith offs himself in a motel room with a belt in the shower, something truly sad and something that made me feel a connection to his character and disdain for his ex-lover who had pushed him off the edge. Shortly after however it seems like the movie just forgets this whole entire incident with little collateral damage beyond Gere mouthing off to the gunnery sergeant and having a grudge match that leads to (not even joking) Gere getting kicked in the balls and lying down in the fetal position after him and Gossett exchange a few pseudo karate kicks.Its a shame too, mostly because Gere's character could have been much more interesting, what with his background being raised by his alcoholic father in the Philippines and ports around the world, but the movie seems all to eager to move past that and just get to the part where he's a nice guy and marries the girl. Really he's only ever a jerk in the beginning and his jerkiness is only ever mildly apparent. yet they still try to make him seem like some disturbed rebel when the only edgy stuff he does is karate, riding motorcycles, not talking about feelings, and having a stash of boots and belt buckles he fenced off to his bunk mates, a kind of ridiculous plot point which leads to him and the sergeant having beef, but what was his purpose in doing it anyways? did he need money? did he just want to be edgy? did the screenwriter just want him to be edgy?The worst part is the end, if this were a cheese pizza the last slice would literally just be a melted piece of a cheese wheel, of course he commits to Winger and goes to her upon his graduation and lifts her up in the air joyously in love a mere 20 or so minutes after his closest friends suicide, and the credits roll leaving me, the audience, wondering where the last two hours of my life went with nothing to show for it but the memory of a crappy cheese pizza of a movie without a single pepperoni or topping in sight.smh 4/10

Version I saw: UK Bluray releaseActors: 7/10Plot/script: 7/10Photography/visual style: 6/10Music/score: 5/10Overall: 7/10The final scene of this film has been referenced a billion times, and goes down as one of the most cheesy you have ever seen. Just the sound of 'Up Where We Belong' is enough to bring on your worst 'school disco' nightmares.And while the rest of the film is very much honed toward delivering a happy ending that comes from a dark enough place to deliver as a surprise twist, there is also plenty of time for a surprisingly gritty military drama. Richard Gere is a more nuanced character than most parts he plays, and Louis Gossett Jr. stands out as his harsh-but-fair training instructor.For my full review, see my independent film blog on Blogspot, Cinema Inferno: http://cinemainferno-blog.blogspot.co.uk

An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) **** (out of 4)Box office champ about a loser (Richard Gere) with an attitude who tries to become an aviator and once at the Naval academy gets involved with a local woman (Debra Winger), a new best friend (David Keith) and a gunnery sergeant (Louis Gossett, Jr.) who tries to get through to him. This here not only ranks as one of the best films of the decade but I think a strong argument could be made that it's right up there with CASABLANCA as one of the greatest love stories ever told. The film is flawless from the acting to the directing to the characters and the story. I really don't think I could find a single negative thing to say about this film and what's so shocking is that a mainstream movie could be so brutally honest on so many levels. This film has quite a bit going for it and all of it works perfectly. This includes the fun scenes early on during the basic training all the way up to the darker elements of the picture. I really can't recall too many movies that have such rich characters as this one. This isn't just true of the lead characters but even the smallest ones also have an impact on the story. The real showcase is of course the love story between Gere and Winger and I think it works perfectly well and is very much believable without coming across as fake or forced. The second love story is the one between Gere and Keith, which is something that doesn't get enough credit in the picture. Of course, there's also the Gossett character and his relationship with Gere. The film is certainly all about relationships and how humans deal with one another and their emotions.The performances are certainly some of the best you're going to see. Gere never gets the credit he deserves, which is a real shame but this here is perhaps his greatest performance. Just the way he goes through the various stages of this character is pretty special to watch and he perfectly nails all of it. Winger is also extremely good in her part and I thought she brought a certain maturity to these sometimes wild, young and naive characters. Keith is the one who never gets enough credit for his part but we've also got Robert Loggia, Lisa Blount, David Caruso, Grace Zabriskie, Tony Plana and Harold Sylvester doing great work. Gossett certainly deserved his Best Supporting Actor Oscar as he turns in one of the more memorable roles of any military officer.Director Taylor Hackford really keeps the film moving at a wonderful pace but he smartly mixes in some laughs with all of the heavy drama. There are some pretty dramatic and dark moments scattered throughout the film but there are also several moments that are quite funny. The film ended up winning two Oscars but I think it could have won a lot more because it really is the type of film that you can watch over and over and never grow tired of it or have its power fade.