IMDb RATING
5.3/10
8.7K
YOUR RATING
To achieve his dream of attending Harvard, a pampered teen poses as a young black man to receive a full scholarship.To achieve his dream of attending Harvard, a pampered teen poses as a young black man to receive a full scholarship.To achieve his dream of attending Harvard, a pampered teen poses as a young black man to receive a full scholarship.
James Sikking
- Bill Watson
- (as James B. Sikking)
Maree Cheatham
- Mrs. Dorothy Watson
- (as Marie Cheatham)
Wallace Langham
- Barky Brewer
- (as Wally Ward)
David Reynolds
- Ernie
- (as Dave Reynolds)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaC. Thomas Howell had to wear colored contacts when his skin was toned to look black. His eyes are normally a goldish color and really stood out once his skin was darkened.
- GoofsAbout fifteen minutes into the picture, Mark and Gordon are seen traveling up Mass. Ave. in Cambridge, adjacent to the Harvard campus, and suddenly, they're not on Mass. Ave. anymore, they're on Quincy St., a couple blocks away. Then, just as suddenly, they're right back on Mass Ave., again proceeding through Harvard Square, just as they were before.
- Quotes
Professor Banks: You've learned something I can't teach them. You've learned what it feels like to be black.
Mark: No sir.
Professor Banks: Beg your pardon?
Mark: I don't really know what it feels like sir. If I didn't like it, I could always get out. It's not the same sir.
Professor Banks: You've learned a great deal more than I thought.
Featured review
Has its moments, but predictable and pretty lame
This is the type of movie that only could've been made in the 80's, 'cause if it were released in present day the NAACP and other African-American organizations would've fried this movie like an egg.
It's not terribly offensive, but there are moments where racism is condoned, though it doesn't blatantly show it. It tries to show us, in after-school special format, that it is proving some moral by showing us the raunchy stereotypes. Like reverse psychology. But it also tries to get laughs from those stereotypes. So it pretty much loses the point.
I laughed a few times, and I wasn't bored. This is a pretty lame comedy with a plot as predictable as night and day, but it moves along in a slick '80's teen-bopper flick style. The premise is preposterous and the film gets more preposterous by the minute, but some laughs are drawn from that stupidity. However, there are no big laughs. And the whole film plays like a sitcom, trying way too hard, and failing more often than it should.
It's not terribly offensive, but there are moments where racism is condoned, though it doesn't blatantly show it. It tries to show us, in after-school special format, that it is proving some moral by showing us the raunchy stereotypes. Like reverse psychology. But it also tries to get laughs from those stereotypes. So it pretty much loses the point.
I laughed a few times, and I wasn't bored. This is a pretty lame comedy with a plot as predictable as night and day, but it moves along in a slick '80's teen-bopper flick style. The premise is preposterous and the film gets more preposterous by the minute, but some laughs are drawn from that stupidity. However, there are no big laughs. And the whole film plays like a sitcom, trying way too hard, and failing more often than it should.
helpful•713
- mattymatt4ever
- Mar 30, 2001
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $27,820,000
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $4,422,179
- Oct 26, 1986
- Gross worldwide
- $27,820,000
- Runtime1 hour 44 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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