Frank Dudley Berry, Jr. I don't know if it matters to anyone, but the 'real life' model for this picture is supposedly Sarah Holcomb, a luminous young actress of the late 70's and early 80's. She played the 13 year old check out girl in 'Animal House' who befriends Tom Hulce (and passes out naked after dropping the bombshell of her age), and later played the Irish waitress Maggie in 'Caddyshack'. After that, she disappeared. I guess the movie explains why.A Danny Holcomb is cast in the movie, and the credits thank an anonymous 'S.H.' Ms. Holcomb these days lives in deliberate obscurity far away from show business.

the_dude_5446 I Just finished watching Stateside and I got to say that I really enjoyed it. The plot really hit home for my girlfriend and I because I'm going to be going to boot camp for the Marines in a month, so we just happened to pick it up and were instantly locked in. Val Kilmer gives an amusing and extremely different performance as a Marine DI, he steals all of his scenes and his dialog with the recruits is hilarious. While I liked the film i'll admit i'm being a little biased since i'm going to enlist in the Marines, this movie is not for everybody. It's a good movie for men and women in the military who have to deal with being able to see the ones they love not as often as they'd like to. It's just a sweet romance movie that has real and down to earth dialog, that will remind anybody about those little dorky moments that lovers have and always remember.

TxMike It is said that everyone is able to play one good role, themselves. I suppose it can also be said that every screen writer has one good story, their own life. That is, if they have had an interesting life. As he says in the DVD extras, this movie "Stateside", set in the early 1980s, is about 90% accurate, based on the writer/director's own life in the early 1980s. It is a very unconventional love story, I enjoyed it, however it may not be for everyone's tastes.Mark (Jonathan Tucker) is a fairly typical rich high school graduate with too much time on his hands, he is involved in an incident where a girl riding in his car was badly injured, plus Father Conoff (Ed Begley Jr.) who was in another car. Beer was found in Mark's car, in court he was given the choice to join the Marines and all charges would be wiped away after he was honorably discharged. So, "Stateside" is the story of what happened as a result. Paying a visit to the injured girl, he quite accidentally meets up with Dori (Rachael Leigh Cook) who gets hit with an errant drinking fountain stream as she walks by him. Her reaction? "Do it again", smiling. Dori was an actress and rock band member, but a bit skitzoid, so she was hospitalized. However, Mark took an instant liking to this kookie Dori, and she also was fond of him. I have been a fan of Cook's, who has mainly played teenage fluff roles, but here as the troubled Dori shows that she is much more than a pretty face.The middle of the movie shows us Mark's basic training, the tough drill Sergent Skeer (Val Kilmer in a very good role) gets word that Mark is a rich kid there to avoid jail time, so is especially tough on him, but Mark takes everything in stride, and becomes a good Marine. He eventually gets an assignment to Beirut (not "Stateside") where 20% of his company died.SPOILERS. Mark returns to the States wounded, and with only one eye. Dori goes in and out of the hospital. The two of them keep their affection for each other, against the odds. Mark apologizes to Father Conoff for the injuries, who responds with "Go in peace." Joe Mantegna has a good role as Marks' caring father (mom had died). In the end Dori seems to be outgrowing her illness, appears to be stabilizing, she and Mark are destined to be together. I only wish I knew what happened to the real "Dori."

zsray Having shared many conversations with Reverge Anselmo, I found him to be the honorable person portrayed in this wonderful film based on a time in his life. Both he and his film deserve high praise. With "Stateside" R. Anselmo brings the audience an intimate story with the ring of universal truth. Jonathan Tucker captures what I would imagine the young Anselmo to be, a young man of honor who grew up to be an honorable adult. I look forward to seeing future films from this talented writer/director, who presents glimpses of his interior with each project and who will meet with continued success telling stories that resonate with audiences.