Richard Gere plays a wannabe pilot who must overcome adversity in the shape of a mother who killed herself, a deadbeat dad, played by Robert Loggia, getting beaten up as part of growing up, and now a beastly drill sergeant, played Louis Gossett.
It sounds run-of-the-mill, but what distinguishes this are the performances. Richard Gere is thoroughly convincing, although frankly he actually looks a little too old for the part of a cadet officer. Debra Winger, his romantic interest, does a fantastic job of showing the range of her character's emotions as the romance progresses. Gossett's performance of a man hiding his human side is really impressive, not to mention he delivers a sound kick into Richard Gere's crotch in order to defeat him in the "showdown" fight near the end of the film.
An Officer and a Gentleman is a far better film than it appears to be on paper, I definitely recommend it, even to those people who've been driven barmy by endless replays of the title song "Love Lift Us Up".
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