Renaissance Man (1994)

A down-on-his-luck businessman desperately takes the only job offered - a teacher in the U.S. Army. His mission: keep a ragtag bunch of underachieving misfits from flunking out of basic ... See full summary »

Director:

Penny Marshall

Writer:

Jim Burnstein

Stars:

Danny DeVito, Gregory Hines, James Remar

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Danny DeVito	...	Bill Rago
Gregory Hines	...	Sergeant Cass
James Remar	...	Captain Tom Murdoch
Ed Begley Jr.	...	Jack Markin
Lillo Brancato	...	Pvt. Donnie Benitez (as Lillo Brancato Jr.)
Stacey Dash	...	Pvt. Miranda Myers
Kadeem Hardison	...	Pvt. Jamaal Montgomery
Richard T. Jones	...	Pvt. Jackson Leroy
Khalil Kain	...	Pvt. Roosevelt Nathaniel Hobbs
Peter Simmons	...	Pvt. Brian Davis, Jr.
Gregory Sporleder	...	Pvt. Melvin (as Greg Sporleder)
Mark Wahlberg	...	Pvt. Tommy Lee Haywood
Cliff Robertson	...	Colonel James
Ben Wright	...	Private Oswald
Ann Cusack	...	Bill's Secretary

Storyline

A down-on-his-luck businessman desperately takes the only job offered - a teacher in the U.S. Army. His mission: keep a ragtag bunch of underachieving misfits from flunking out of basic training! Be on alert as this unlikely new teacher and his underdog class unexpectedly inspire each other to be all they can be!

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Plot Keywords:

teacher | u.s. army | army | basic training | advertising | 

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Taglines:

There's only one man big enough to take them on...

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for some language

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 June 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

By the Book

Filming Locations:

Detroit, Michigan, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$40,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$24,332,324 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Cinergi Pictures Entertainment, Parkway Productions, Touchstone Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

128 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Throughout the movie, the recruits treat 'Mark Wahlberg''s character as if he has no rhythm, leaving him out of their rap song and making fun of him when he is trying to keep a beat on the desk. In real life Mark Wahlberg was a professional rapper.

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Goofs

The police car picking up Hobbs has only blue lights but the reflections show flashing red lights

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Quotes

[Bill writes "oxymoron" on the board]
Pvt. Jamaal Montgomery: You can't say that. That is a diss. I ain't no ox moron.
Bill Rago: No, no, no not ox moron, schmuck; oxymoron.

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Connections

References The Elephant Man (1980)

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Soundtracks

"LISTEN TO THE RAIN"
Performed by Stevie Nicks

User Reviews

Great works of art transcend cultural barriers.

This film is about educating the most unlikely people so that they will be able to appreciate beauty of the classical works. For me, it's very moving because enjoying good works of art are fully part of enjoying life. Besides, the film is well done and funny. And last but not least, education is properly shown as a two-way process: the teacher will learn a lot from his students during the very time he teaches them. In summary, I loved the story and sent everyone I met to see it. And most of them were happy too.