Summary
The movie begins with Jake Huard (Franco) waking up after being knocked down during a boxing match. After returning to his feet and beating his opponent, he returns to the home he shares with his distant father (Brian Goodman), who is also his employer at a naval shipyard, building vessels for the Navy. It is revealed that his mother died an unspecified time ago, and his father doubts his ability to be anything.
The next day, Jake is visited by LCDR Burton (Wahlberg), who reveals that his application to the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland has been recently accepted. At a bar where Jake and his friends are celebrating his acceptance, his friends introduce him to a young woman named Ali (Brewster), who they claim is a prostitute hired as a going-away present. Huard's attempts to seduce Ali are unsuccessful, and his farewell with his father leaves him frustrated.
On his first day at the Academy, Huard discovers that one of his instructors is Ali, a Midshipman 2nd Class (an upperclassman) and the same woman that his friends introduced him to. She and her fellow instructor, Whitaker, begin hazing Jake's class of plebes, and it is revealed that Jake in particular is behind academically. Their company commanding officer, Midshipman Lieutenant 1st Class Cole (Gibson), is revealed to be an enlisted Marine, and announces his intent to run out any midshipman he feels will not become a worthy officer. Jake's roommates include Nance (Shannon) (nicknamed Twins because he is too overweight to complete the obstacle course), Loo (Fan), and Estrada (Calderon), who is being singled out by Whitaker because of his race.
As time goes on, Estrada is kicked out for lying to Whitaker and attempting to assault Loo when he informs on Estrada to Cole. Huard's class becomes increasingly frustrated from suffering due to his failures, as evidenced by Loo moving out of the room. Nance explains his refusal to leave by noting that the instructors are so focused on Huard that they are leaving him alone. Returning home on winter leave, he intends not to return until he discovers that his father made a wager, expecting him to fail. Upon his return, the class begins instruction in boxing, and it is announced that a midshipman tournament, the Brigades, will occur at the end of the year. After Huard angers the boxing instructor with some unsportsmanlike conduct toward Cole in the ring, he is forced to train by himself.
After an after-hours match with Burton, Huard swallows his pride and admits he needs help training, enlisting Ali and Burton for physical training, and Nance for academics and to gain enough weight to be in Cole's weight class. In his match with Loo, he endures some taunting and returns with a single-punch knockout, earning him Loo's respect and support, along with the rest of his class when he proves capable of performing academically. He progresses through the tournament and defeats Whitaker in the semifinals, leaving Huard and Cole for the final match.
After Nance fails by just four seconds to successfully complete the obstacle course within five minutes, Cole informs Nance that he will be separated from the Academy. Nance attempts suicide, which prompts Jake to tackle Cole in anger. Expecting to be kicked out, Jake begins to pack up and leave, until Cole approaches him and informs him that he has requested more time from the disciplinary board in order to delay the hearing until after the final Brigades match. After some encouragement from the recovering Nance, Jake steps into the ring to fight Cole, lasting a full three rounds. Although Cole wins by decision, Jake's boxing ability earns him the respect of the entire Academy, as well as his father (who has come to see the fight despite being behind schedule on the current ship he is building).
At his subsequent hearing, the disciplinary board decides to retain Jake, based on Cole's recommendation. The class of 2008 celebrates the end of their Plebe year, while Jake and Ali finally express their mutual attraction openly. Jake approaches newly-commissioned Second Lieutenant Cole to ask who would have won if the fight had continued, to which Cole challenges Jake to join the Marines to find out.
Read more about this topic: Annapolis (film)
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