An alternate ending was secretly filmed without the knowledge of Disney/Hollywood Pictures Executives. When Ridley Scott first screened the film for execs, he shocked and surprised them with the ending in which Demi Moore dies. Both endings were test screened simultaneously and although the darker ending scored higher with audiences, the happier ending was chosen by executives. Similar to the surprise ending for "Thelma and Louise", the alternate ending for "G.I. Jane" was a dark yet bittersweet one. Jordan (Moore) is killed when she risks her life to save her Commander (Viggo Mortensen) then eulogized on television by the tough Senator (Ann Bancroft). Later, the camera pans through a fresh group of SEAL recruits, among them are three women.
When Command Master Chief Urgayle is sitting with his sniper rifle and watching Cortez helping Jordan over the wall, the angle is wrong. When Cortez drops Jordan, Urgayle sees this from O'Neil's vantage point.
When the first trainees are jumping out of the helicopter into the water for the S.E.R.E. training course, the sun is shown just rising over the horizon. However, the shadow cast by the helicopter's tail (viewed from inside the helicopter) indicates that the sun is instantly much higher.
In the closing combat sequence, the Cobra gunships use totally unrealistic tactics against the pursuing Libyan troops. Rather than use the Gatling cannons, which are most effective against individual troops, they fire rockets, which are better suited for use against tanks, hardened defensive positions, and large gatherings of troops.
McCool: I had a grandfather who wanted to be a Navy man. He wanted to fire them big-ass guns off those big-ass battleships. Navy says to him "No. You can only do one thing on a battleship, son. That's cook." You know the reason they gave him. The reason they told my grandfather he couldn't fight for his country. "'Cause negroes can't see at night. Bad night vision."
"Dropped On Request". Urgayle and his command staff use it on their roster board to refer to anyone who leaves the training program before completing it -- hence the few trainees we see ringing the bell. The US Navy SEAL program has a very high dropout rate, as we hear explained at the beginning of O'Niel's training. The program is deliberately tough to complete because the Navy wants recruits that can handle the hard demands of the work they do.
Q
Showers and 'head'
A
After Demi joins the men's barracks, Viggo's character asks one of the soldiers to draw up a roster for sharing showers and head. I was just wondering what the 'head' meant in this context?"Head" is a Navy term for toilet. It's also used by the Marine Corps.
Q
What are the giant barrels the trainees are pushing up & down the sand dunes?
A
They're ship fenders: they're hung between Naval vessels as bumpers to prevent damage from ships docked next to each other that would collide if the fender weren't there.