Underclassman (2005)

A young detective goes undercover at an elite private school to destroy an international stolen car ring.

Director:

Marcos Siega

Writers:

Brent Goldberg (story), David Wagner (story),

Stars:

Nick Cannon, Kelly Hu, Shawn Ashmore

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nick Cannon	...	Tracy 'Tre' Stokes
Adrian Young	...	Jose
Art Bonilla	...	Cuervo
Bart McCarthy	...	Earl the Bum
Kelly Hu	...	Lisa Brooks
Ian Gomez	...	Detective Gallecki
Cheech Marin	...	Captain Victor Delgado
Ryan Beil	...	Warren Williams
Peter Bryant	...	Michael Barry
Angelo Spizzirri	...	David Boscoe
Sam Easton	...	Oliver Horn
Shawn Ashmore	...	Rob Donovan
Mary Pat Gleason	...	Ms. Hagerty
Kaylee DeFer	...	Des
MyCale Guyton	...	April (as MyCale)

Storyline

A young detective goes undercover at an elite private school to destroy an international stolen car ring.

---

Plot Keywords:

private school | undercover | police | basketball | drug dealer | 

---

Taglines:

Get Ready To Be Schooled

---

Genres:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Drama | Thriller

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, sexual references, drug material and some teen drinking

Details

Official Sites:

Miramax [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 September 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Aprendiz de detective

Filming Locations:

Camarillo, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$64,808 (South Africa) (18 August 2006)

Gross:

$109,022 (South Africa) (25 August 2006)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Underclassman Films Ltd., Miramax Films, Tapestry Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Originally set for a US theatrical release in 2004. Then two massive waves of layoffs were sustained at Miramax and Dimension, and the infamous Disney and Miramax split reached it's height. This film thus remained in the Miramax vaults unreleased during this time of uncertainty. When the Disney and Miramax divorce was finally completed, numerous films under the Miramax and Dimension label were finally released theatrically.

---

Quotes

[from trailer]
Tracy Stokes: [at a five-star restaurant with Rob] I'm telling you, in my old neighborhood, gettin' crab is something totally different.

---

Connections

References Finding Nemo (2003)

---

Soundtracks

"Maybe Then Someday"
Written by Tommy Walter
Performed by Abandoned Pools
Courtesy of Tommy Walter

User Reviews

trying to balance this out

I don't usually give praise to many movies - am too critical. However, like a few others viewers who cared to remark, I'm shocked that so many on IMDb gave this flick such a low rating, so I have to retaliate.

The reason I give this props is twofold: (1) I usually hate sophomoric humor and many films directed at a teen audience. However, Cannon's quick-witted, disarming lines made me laugh the whole way through. His dry, comic delivery is underrated and unpredictable, to say the least. As for the racism observations, I'm white, and I think that charge is ridiculous. Sure, there's racial humor, but get a funnybone - it's a joke. can't you laugh at yourself? We whites tend to have a stick up our butts - the characters played off each other. Why react with such sensitivity? The comedy definitely shines.

(2) At least 4-6 of the characters develop to some extent. It's a kind of coming of age story for Cannon who proves not only his professional sense and skills but his interpersonal growth with peers. He's not sensitive to the rejection and pushes through, adapting his behavior until he wins confidence. A lesson for most of us. While it's true that most characters are foils by comparison to Cannon, the lead, the supporting cast are NOT completely flat characters. The Captain, two other police officers and at least two students and one teacher come to put things in new perspective or grow up, in one way or another.

In short, this is not just the mindless fluff other viewers seem to see. Yes, there were clichés, and the script was often predictable, but welcome to 95% of big or small screen writing in America, these days. If you like sardonic wit, humorous ghetto-talk and a bit of silliness with some serious undercurrents, growth and bonding - lessons of friendship - ignore the dissing and take a look for yourself. It made me chuckle for over an hour and made my day.