Annapolis

Jake Huard (James Franco) is a young man from a poor family who wins admission to the Annapolis Naval Academy, but finds it tougher than he thought when he finds himself facing a superior officer (Tyrese Gibson) in the Navy boxing competition.

The story is very similar to An Officer and a Gentlemen and there really isn't much of a difference between those two films. Still, Annapolis could have been an entertaining popcorn flick. Unfortunately, its dull and very generic. Almost every scene plays like a scene from a better movie. There is no creativity to be found here at all. It's an empty movie and it has very little to offer. The premise may have seemed like a good idea on paper but it sure didn't turn out that way. It's no surprise that it was released in January.

The acting is not very good and it brings the film down quite a bit. James Franco is an okay actor but I don't think he's good enough to be a leading man. He just doesn't have what it takes and this film proves it. Jordana Brewster gives an awful performance as Ali. She's very pretty but she can't act at all. Tyrese Gibson can be a good actor when he wants to be, like in Four Brothers. Here, he gives a bland, unconvincing performance and he seemed to be reading from the cue cards the entire time. The rest of the cast isn't very good but it's these three that should have carried the film.

There are some good things to be found in Annapolis though. The boxing scenes are actually pretty good. Of course, they occur at the end so sitting through the first 80 minutes or so is probably not worth it. There are also a few supporting characters that are interesting like Twins. That's really all the good I can get from this film. The chemistry between Jordana and James just wasn't there. The story wasn't bad just nothing really new. It's a film that's kind of just there. Its not really worth watching but if its on T.V and there's nothing else on then it may not hurt as much as spending $9 in the theater. In the end, Annapolis is a bland, forgettable film that will be just fine on DVD. Rating 5/10