Capsule Reviews

Annapolis

Rating: 2.5 stars

By TOM MEEK | January 24, 2006

2.5 Stars

NAVAL GAZING: an ersatz yet entertaining knockoff of An Officer and a Gentleman.

In this ersatz yet entertaining knockoff of An Officer and a Gentleman, hot hunk James Franco (Spider-Man and the disastrous Tristan & Isolde) plays Jake Huard, a working-class hothead who through perseverance goes from welding ships on one side of the bay to being a plebe at the title Naval Academy on the other. He’s a longshot to begin with and even more so when his superior officer, Lieutenant Cole (Tyrese Gibson), decides he's not right for the academy and goes about weeding him out. But Gibson is no Louis Gossett Jr., and the plot and director Justin Lin (Better Luck Tomorrow) engage him only as a vacuous albeit majestic menace. A spunky Jordana Brewster and Donnie Wahlberg throw in as Naval officers in Jake’s corner, and Brewster, of course, doubles as love interest. Clichés abound, some witty banter finds its mark, and a bravura boxing match caps this propaganda extravaganza, which is really a pissing contest between two male egos trying to assert themselves.

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Topics: Capsule Reviews , James Franco, Donnie Wahlberg, Jordana Brewster, More

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Watch the trailer for Annapolis (QuickTime)

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