USA: DEMI MOORE FOLLOWS UP HER CRITICAL AND BOX OFFICE BOMB "STRIPTEASE" WITH "G.I. JANE", THE NEW MILITARY DRAMA

Record ID: 230245

  • Title: USA: DEMI MOORE FOLLOWS UP HER CRITICAL AND BOX OFFICE BOMB "STRIPTEASE" WITH "G.I. JANE", THE NEW MILITARY DRAMA
  • Date: 2nd August 1997
  • Summary: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES (AUGUST 2) (RTV) DEMI MOORE SAYING, "I KNOW THAT THE FIRST DAY I ARRIVED FOR OUR MODIFIED TRAINING...HAD HAD TWO HOURS OF SLEEP, THREW BOOTS AND FATIGUES ON, GOT OUT THERE, KNEW NO ONE AND THEY WERE DOING THE P.T. TEST TO SEE WHERE EVERYONE'S LEVEL WAS AT AND BEING THE ONLY WOMAN I HAD A MOMENTARY, YOU KNOW, FLASH OF DEEP BURNING INSECURITY OF OH GOD...AND IN FACT, I WAS RELIEVED AT THE FINAL OUTCOME" (ENGLISH) RIDLEY SCOTT SAYING, "NO, WE HAD NO MILITARY COOPERATION. BECAUSE THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT ELEMENTS IN THE....THE D.O.D., THEY WERE CONCERNED ABOUT ELEMENTS IN THE SCRIPT LIKE, YOU KNOW, I FRANKLY THOUGHT AT THE END OF THE DAY WERE SILLY. YOU KNOW, WE DON'T HAVE FEMALES SHAVING HEADS, UH, THAT WOULD BE CLASSED AS FADDISH, I SAYING EXCUSE ME? WHAT'S THAT, FADDISH? UH, SHE WANTS A CREW CUT? DISCUSSIONS LIKE THAT, OFFICERS DON'T SWEAR....BULLSHIT. LOTS OF SILL Y THINGS THAT FINALLY I JUST GOT FED UP WITH NEGOTIATING" (ENGLISH) DEMI MOORE SAYING, "IT'S LABELLED A MAN'S WORLD BECAUSE WOMEN AREN'T GIVEN THE PERMISSION YET, WHICH IS JUST A CONDITIONING OF HUNDREDS AND HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF THERE BEING A WAY IT WORKS AND A WAY THAT WAS NEVER EVEN CONSIDERED. I THINK MOST IMPORTANTLY THROUGH THE FILM, AND MUCH TO RIDLEY'S CREDIT, PROTECTION, INSIGHT....I DON'T FEEL I EVER BECOME...OR LOOSE FEMALENESS TO MALENESS...I FEEL I FOUND HUMAN-NESS" (ENGLISH)
  • Embargoed: 17th August 1997 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES AND FILM lOCATIONS
  • Country: USA
  • Reuters ID: LVA1ZIY7WB6ODIQRAF5Z9BL83J9S
  • Story Text: Demi Moore follows up her box office disappointment "Striptease" with a role as a wannabe navy SEAL in the new military drama "G.I. Jane".

    Moore plays a tough-as-nails woman who becomes America's first female to enter the notoriously gruelling training program for the elite Navy SEALs.

    "G.I. Jane" had its world premiere in Los Angeles last week (August 6). Besides Demi Moore and her husband, actor Bruce Willis, other guests included supermodel Naomi Campbell and actors Patrick Swayze and Ellen Degeneres.

    "Pretenders" lead singer Chrissie Hynde, who is featured on the film soundtrack, also attended the premiere.

    Moore plays Navy intelligence office Lt. Jordan O'Neil, who sets an historic precedent when she is recruited as a test case to be the first woman allowed to train for the highly covert operation unit known as the SEALs.

    Selected for her courage and skills, she is determined to succeed in the most demanding, merciless and honoured fighting force in the world.

    Under the relentless command of Master Chief John Urgayle, played by Viggo Mortensen, O'Neil is put through weeks of physical and emotional hell and is not expected to succeed. In fact, military and high-ranking government officials, including her sponsor, Senator Lillian DeHaven (played by Anne Bancroft) are counting on her to fail.

    However, to their dismay, O'Neil perseveres. When the recruits' final training exercise is diverted to help rescue American troops in the Middle East, O'Neil must gather all her leadership experience and courage to save the mission.

    "G.I. Jane" is directed by Ridley Scott, the man who brought other strong female characters to the big screen in films such as "Alien" and "Thelma and Louise." Also starring in "G.I. Jane" is Jason Beghe, who plays Royce, O'Neil's fellow intelligence officer and sometime boyfriend.

    While much was made of Moore's physical preparation for her role in "Striptease," it paled in comparison to her workouts for this film. She went through several weeks of intensive training not too different from the training real-life SEALs are subjected to.

    The actors who play her fellow recruits were cast specifically for their physical abilities. The criteria included being in perfect condition, having the ability to speed run several miles and to run long distances, to swim 400 yards and to do hundreds of sit-ups, push-ups and squat jumps.

    Moore also had to prepare for her new hairstyle in the film.

    After a few days of initial training, Moore threw a "Shave Your Dome" party in a nightclub. The producers roped off one side of the club and wrangled the partygoers into the chair. The regulation cut was an eighth of an inch, so they had to re-cut their hair every four days during production.

    Six weeks after the party, Moore shaved her head during filming of a crucial scene in the film.

    "G.I. Jane's" subject matter is currently contentious in the United States. The four branches of the military have been wrestling with the question of female members within their ranks for the past decade. As well, several recent cases of sexual harassment have put a spotlight on women in the military.

    Although there are currently women serving in all four branches of the U.S. military, policy forbids women from serving in active duty combat situations, such as the Navy SEALs.

    "G.I. Jane" opens in Britain in October.
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