The Principal (1987)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Christopher Cain

Writer:

Frank Deese (writer)

Release Date:

18 September 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Rick Latimer had nothing to lose...until he was given the one job nobody else dared take.

Plot:

A teacher is assigned to be the principal of a violence and crime ridden high school.

Plot Keywords:

School | Teacher | Drugs | Violence | High School

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

James Belushi	...	Rick Latimer
Louis Gossett Jr.	...	Jake Phillips
Rae Dawn Chong	...	Hilary Orozco
Michael Wright	...	Victor Duncan
J.J. Cohen	...	White Zac (as Jeffrey Jay Cohen)
Kelly Jo Minter	...	Treena Lester (as Kelly Minter)
Esai Morales	...	Raymi Rojas
Troy Winbush	...	Baby Emile
Jacob Vargas	...	Arturo Diego
Thomas Ryan	...	Robert Darcy (as Tommy Ryan)
Reggie Johnson	...	Jojo
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Mark Anger	...	Desk Officer
Annabel Armour	...	Mr.s Ripton (as Ann Armour)
Ruth Beckford	...	Mrs. Jenkins
Steve Birger	...	Stevie B. (as Steve W. Birger)
Terry Coleman	...	Student
Frank Deese	...	Mr. Petersen
Leo Downey	...	George Pierce
Richard Dupell	...	Buddy (as Richard Duppell)
Peter Fitzsimmons	...	Buddy
Joe Flood	...	Terhune
Zoltan Gray	...	P.E. Teacher
Rick Hamilton	...	Mr. Harkley
Tony Haney	...	Police Officer
J.J. Johnston	...	Will
Wood Josh	...	Charles Lester
Kathryn Knotts	...	Jan Buchanan
Danny Kovacs	...	Substitute Teacher
Yuri Lane	...	Lance Woodbury
Delores Mitchell	...	Mrs. Coswell
Marty Pistone	...	Security Guard (as Martin Pistone)
Bridgette Rodriguez	...	Girl
Daniel Royal	...	Will
Wat Takeshita	...	Maintenance Man
Sharon Thomas	...	Kimberly
Elliott S. Valderrama	...	Drug Dealer
Joan Valderrama	...	Secretary
Joel Valentin	...	Kid
John Allen Vick	...	Frank Valdis
Doug White	...	Eric
Danny Williams	...	Dangerous Danny
David Williams	...	Gang Student
Jessica Wilson	...	Girl
Tom Winston	...	Principal O'Connor
Bill Yarbrough	...	Rondell

Runtime:

109 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Australia:R | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

Alameda, California, USA

Company:

Dorica Film

Trivia:

In the movie James Belushi (Ricky Latimer) is supposed to be much older than Michael Wright (Victor Duncan). In actuality they are less than 2 years apart in age. Belushi was born in June of 1954 and Wright was born in April of 1956.

Goofs:

Continuity: During the shower scene, Jim Belushi's character is wearing dress shoes. However, in the next scene when it shows his character starting his motorcycle, he's wearing black leather biker boots.

Quotes:

Jake Phillips: ["Screwdriver" Phillips barges into the office of a napping "Rikki-Tikki-Tavi" Latimer] ... You're ever-vigilant, I see.
Rick Latimer: Where I come from, we knock.
Jake Phillips: Where *I* come from, we pick locks. With your permission, I'll replace your old rusty one with a new deadbolt. The kind only .357 Magnums can open up.
Rick Latimer: Thanks, Jake; that's real encouraging. I feel much better now.
Jake Phillips: Do you mind if I ask you a question I ask all imported principals?
[without waiting for an answer]
Jake Phillips: ... What is a fine, white-bread boy like you doing in a place like this?
[...]

Movie Connections:

References Dirty Harry (1971)

Soundtrack:

Set it Off

Revenge of the 80's: James Belushi Superstar.

The Principal (1987) was another star vehicle for James Belushi. This fun film is Blackboard Jungle mixed with Class of 1984. The film is filled with a lot of the minor stars of this era such as Lou Gossett Jr., Rae Dawn Chong, Esai Morales and Kelly Jo Minter to name a few.

J.B.stars as a washed out High School Prep teacher who's personal life begins to fall apart. He snaps one day and his immediately canned. That is until he's given a second chance. He's appointed Principal at a local rundown high school. During his tour he plots out away to change not only the school but his own life around.

A nice movie in the vein of Lean On Me. Who am I kidding, this is a bone crunching exploitive film that features all of the things that we love about these type of movies. If this movie was made today it would be a P.G.-13 flick. Not a classic but a nice exploitive affair.

Recommended.