As a former teacher, I see a lot of useful information from this movie. It shows many stereotypes that you see in everyday classrooms and schools: absent minded principals, matronly secretaries that truly run the school, highly idealistic teachers that have burned out, paper-hogs like Ditto and buttinski superintendents that won't let school progress like it should. For the comment by another poster about Ditto being absurd, not so fast my friend. I did my student teaching with a real life Ditto. That's all he had his students do and that's all he would let me do. These teachers do exist. Are they good? No, but they do still exist. I agree with many here that say it could be a good teaching tool for aspiring educators. I also think, today's educational institutions that prepare teachers would be too afraid to show it to prospective teachers because they are trying to make the "perfect" teacher. I think this would be a good example of showing different stereotypes of teachers that we saw in school and how to keep from falling into one of those holes as educators.

This off-the-wall film, unrealistic at times, is absolutely terrific. Why? It brings forth the blame of the urban school system on where it belongs- the administration, uncaring parents, and even the teachers to some degree.

Judd Hirsch is perfect as the lousy English teacher who got out of the classroom and is now some stinker as an assistant principal.

The always terrific Lee Grant shines as the District Superintendent, desperately trying to save her rear end and those of her administrators at the expense of the students who attend this school of utter failure. Of course, we must remember that it is the student population that will make or break a school.

Nick Nolte, as the frustrated burned out teacher, is perfect for the part. He reaches the point where he is no longer able to work under a miserable system.

While the section dealing with the teacher who died while reading a newspaper may be over the top, the sequence just shows you how bad our schools can be.

Jo Beth Williams is stunning as a former graduate, an attorney, who is fighting the school for its inability to educate.

James Dean could move over thanks to a towering performance by Ralph Macchio, as a student going nowhere but to disaster. Macchio conveys the frustrated, out of control kid, who is almost doomed by uncaring parents and an administration in school. This film is great on detail. Madeleine Sherwood plays the role of the school secretary just as I've observed many a secretary. School secretaries think that they run the schools and they're not entirely wrong. Principals have given them such authority. William Schallert, who portrays the principal in this film, conveys the idea of the figure head. He is there in name only. Afraid of scandal and to step on toes, he is the typical principal leading an urban school-while counting the days to retirement. This film is definitely thought provoking as it attempts to establish what is going on in our urban school system. It a rousing success.

This is a pretty good movie to watch. It manages to combine drama with typical '80's comedy and entertainment. It however is not a movie that is without it flaws and it still does make some bad choices.

It's a bit weird. On the hand I really liked this movie but on the other I'm also still able to recognize it as a not so great movie. Problem is really with its story. It's main plot line just isn't the best one thinkable and it besides makes the movie unnecessarily difficult and serious at times. Besides, the overall movie gives you the feeling it has a bit too many different plot lines going on at times and the movie features 2 or 3 too many characters in it. It also makes the balance between its comedy and drama a bit uneven at times, though most of the time it still works out fine and refreshingly original, luckily.

Still its main premise and original intentions were just fine. Really, having an high school movie that is focusing on the teachers instead is more interesting and fun than it might sound to you. Besides, I really feel the movie managed to do a great job capturing the atmosphere at an high school and the tensions and relationships between teacher and students and the teachers among each other.

It's also a movie that is not afraid to criticize the system. It shows some of the things that are wrong with the school system and how flawed it actually is. And really, it's 28 years later and what has changed? This movie might had just as well been released last week.

But before I'm starting to give the impression this movie is a serious or heavy one, it only is so for half of it's time, or probably even less than that. The rest of the time it really is being filled by some '80's trademark comedy, that is going over-the-top with some of its events and certainly with its characters.

And the movie does really have a surprisingly big cast in it, with Nick Nolte in the main lead. But it's further more starring JoBeth Williams, Judd Hirsch, Ralph Macchio (the Karate Kid himself), Lee Grant, Morgan Freeman(!), Steven Hill and a still very young Laura Dern and Crispin Glover as well, among many others of course. And yes, all of the actors truly help to make this movie worthwhile to watch as well.

I just can't give it a very high rating though. It's just too flawed with its story for that and it doesn't always manage to keep its focus on the main subject and what the movie was all supposed to be about, which is a bit of a missed opportunity. That however doesn't mean that I can't recommend this movie to you as well. On the contrary quite really. It's still a perfectly watchable and unique little movie, you probably won't regret watching.

6/10

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