An Officer and a Gentleman
An Officer and a Gentleman is a 1982 American romantic drama film directed by Taylor Hackford from a screenplay by Douglas Day Stewart, and starring Richard Gere, Debra Winger and Louis Gossett Jr. It tells the story of Zack Mayo (Gere), a United States Navy Aviation Officer Candidate who is beginning his training at Aviation Officer Candidate School. While Zack meets his first true girlfriend during his training, a young "townie" named Paula (Winger), he also comes into conflict with the hard-driving Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant Emil Foley (Gossett) training his class.
Plot
After his mother's suicide, adolescent Zachary "Zack" Mayo was sent to live with his alcoholic womanizing father, Byron, a US Navy petty officer stationed in US Naval Base Subic Bay, Philippines. Now an adult, Zack prepares to report to Fort Rainer, a US Navy's Aviation Officer Candidate School (AOCS), located near Port Townsend, Washington. Zack surprises Byron by announcing his intention to become a Navy jet pilot.