G.I. Jane (1997)

Starring Demi Moore, Viggo Mortensen, Morris Chestnut, and Anne Bancroft.  Cinematography by Hugh Johnson. Editing by Pietro Scalia.  Produced by Roger Birnbaum, Demi Moore, Ridley Scott, and Suzanne Todd.  Written by David Twohy and Danielle Alexandra.  Directed by Ridley Scott.

Lieutenant Jordan O’Neil (played by Demi Moore) is a highly decorated and respected Navy veteran.  But because of military regulations against women in combat she was not able to participate on the battlefield during the Gulf War. She pleads for equal rights and with the backing of Senator Lillian DeHaven (played by Anne Bancroft), she is about to get them. O’Neil has been chosen to participate as a test case in a female integration program. 

She is entered into the Navy’s SEAL training; a grueling course that boasts a sixty plus percent dropout rate.  Needless to say, when she reaches the camp her reception is less than warm. She is rejected and ostracized by both the SEAL instructors and her fellow trainees. But she is determined to earn the respect she deserves and will stop at nothing until she has it.

The screenplay for G.I. Jane originated with writer/producer Danielle Alexandra who was inspired by recent debates surrounding women’s participation in the armed forces.  The project soon found the support of Demi Moore and she quickly signed on as the film’s lead character and producer. It was Moore that brought the script to Ridley Scott, who was immediately intrigued with the story. 

In his youth Scott had considered joining the Royal Marines and the military element of Alexandra’s story appealed to him. He had also made a career of putting strong female characters up on the screen and Lieutenant Jordan O'Neil certainly seemed to fit in the same pantheon as Ripley from Alien and Louise and Thelma from Thelma & Louise.  And so Scott jumped on board and G.I. Jane was soon in production.

In effort to maximize the realism in their film, Scott and Moore hoped to enlist the cooperation of the Department of Defense. Support from the US government would potentially give them access to training facilities and combat equipment that would be difficult or impossible to replicate on their own. But despite an initial interest in the project, the Navy eventually refused to back G.I. Jane citing that they objected to the film’s connotations regarding women.

So that left Scott and his team searching for a suitable home for their picture. They eventually stumbled across Camp Blanding in Florida; a former Navy base now occupied by the National Guard.  After a bit of remodeling, Blanding made a convincing SEAL training camp. Scott also had a convincing SEAL team after putting his actors through a rigorous two week “boot camp” led by former SEAL and respected Hollywood military technical advisor Harry Humphries.  G.I. Jane ended up being a fairly solid box office success.

It will surly not be heralded as one of Scott’s most memorable cinematic achievements, but it’s a respectable film none the less.

Budget: $50,000,000

Total US Gross: $48,169,156

Genre: Action

Runtime: 124 Minutes

US Release Date: 8/22/97

Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1

Awards: none

Tagline: Failure Is Not An Option.

Quote: “Pain is your friend, your ally, it will tell you when you are seriously injured, it will keep you awake and angry, and remind you to finish the job and get the hell home.”