Annapolis

An Officer and a Gentleman meets Rocky in this formulaic tale of a driven young man from a middle-class family who enters the Naval Academy on the strength of his pugilistic skills. Once there he must meet the rigorous demands of training and coursework while striking up a romance with a female drill instructor, go up against more seasoned opponents in a big boxing contest, and earn the respect of the father who didn't want him to give up his job at the shipyard. A by-the-numbers assortment of roommates—overweight jovial black guy, spit-and-polish Asian, and a corner-cutting manipulator—as well as a hard-nosed but supportive mentor and an array of upperclassmen who enjoy tormenting the plebes, add to the stable of stock characters. The message in all this, of course, is twofold: never give up, but also remember that no man is an island—our hero, slackly played by James Franco, succeeds only when he's willing to set aside his silly pride and accept the help of others. Unfortunately, there simply isn't anything in director Justin Lin's Annapolis that isn't either predictable or contrived (and usually both). Not recommended. [Note: Available in either widescreen or full screen versions, DVD extras include audio commentary (by director Justin Lin, writer Dave Collard, and editor Fred Raskin), seven deleted scenes with optional commentary (12 min.), the “Plebe Year” 11-minute “making-of” featurette, “The Brigades” in-depth look at the boxing sequences (10 min.), and trailers. Bottom line: a decent extras package for a disappointing film.] (F. Swietek)