The system bred terror and brutality - And one man with the guts to fight back.

Starring: David Keith, Robert Prosky, G. D. Spradlin, Rick Rossovich, Michael Biehn, Mark Breland, Bill Paxton

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★☆☆ - great

"The Institute's code of honor is a simple one. A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate those who do. It is a simple code, but it is a stern code." - Gen. Bentley Durrell

Why watch this? A real leader fights for the "different" person who others hate.

Plot Summary: Set in a Southern military academy in the 1960s, a senior cadet named Will McLean is asked to mentor the school's first Black cadet, Tom Pearce. Will, along with his roommates, navigates the academy's brutal hazing rituals and the deeply ingrained racism prevalent within the institution. As Will endeavors to protect Pearce and uphold his own sense of honor, he uncovers the existence of a powerful and secretive organization determined to maintain the academy's traditions at all costs.

Dad's Preview: This is a powerful film about a military academy in the Deep South, where racial tensions still run high. Here we are exposed to a secret group and its brutal cadet hazing, which is silently condoned by most of the administrators. One Cadet, at considerable risk to himself, chooses to stand up to them. David Keith's short lived film career had its moments and this is one of them. I also really loved the performance by Robert Prosky, as the gruff, cigar-chewing Lt. Col. they all call "The Bear". The film is intense and complicated, but a pleasure to watch as it unravels.

Herb Jaffe, Gabriel Katzka; Paramount Pictures