Lean on Me (1989)

The dedicated but tyrannical Joe Clark is appointed the principal of a decaying inner-city school and he is determined to improve by any and all means.

Director:

John G. Avildsen

Writer:

Michael Schiffer

Stars:

Morgan Freeman, Beverly Todd, Robert Guillaume

4 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Morgan Freeman	...	Principal Joe Clark
Beverly Todd	...	Ms. Levias
Robert Guillaume	...	Dr. Frank Napier
Alan North	...	Mayor Don Bottman
Lynne Thigpen	...	Leonna Barrett
Robin Bartlett	...	Mrs. Elliott
Michael Beach	...	Mr. Darnell
Ethan Phillips	...	Mr. Rosenberg
Sandra Reaves-Phillips	...	Mrs. Powers
Sloane Shelton	...	Mrs. Hamilton
Jermaine 'Huggy' Hopkins	...	Thomas Sams
Karen Malina White	...	Kaneesha Carter
Karina Arroyave	...	Maria
Ivonne Coll	...	Mrs. Santos
Regina Taylor	...	Mrs. Carter

Storyline

An arrogant and unorthodox teacher returns as principal to the idyllic high school from which he had earlier been fired to find it a den of drug abuse, gang violence, and urban despair. Eventually his successful but unorthodox methods lead to a clash with city officials that threatens to undo all his efforts. Based on a true story.

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Plot Keywords:

african american | title based on song | high school | fired from the job | high school principal | 

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Taglines:

Eastside High never had a principal this tough...or one who cared this much about its students.

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Genres:

Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English Spanish Portuguese

Release Date:

3 March 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Apóyate en mí

Filming Locations:

Eastside High School, Paterson, New Jersey, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,000,000, 5 March 1989, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$31,906,454

Company Credits

Production Co:

Norman Twain Productions, Warner Bros.

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Half the cast, including Morgan Freeman, are left-handed.

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Goofs

After Mr Clark is done keeping the Fire Chief out, on his way back into the school he tells Mr Darnell its good to have him back. Mr Darnell says "You should have never fired me in the first place". He never fired him. He suspended him.

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Quotes

Joe Clark: [in a conference room at city hall] Don't talk to me about saving those kids. The mayor wants to save his budget. And you wanna save your ass!
Dr. Frank Napier: Well, so what? You want the truth?
Joe Clark: Yeah, Frank. Let's have some truth.
Dr. Frank Napier: The truth is that for all your talking, all your 'Crazy Joe' routine, what have you ever done? Nothing. You're nothing but an insignificant man. It's like you were never born. Your life hasn't made one bit of difference, and neither has mine. Wanna take that to the grave?

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Connections

References Batman (1989)

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Soundtracks

LEAN ON ME
Performed by Sandra Reaves-Phillips and the Cast
Produced by Brooks Arthur and Michael Schiffer
Also Performed by Club Nouveau
Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records Inc.
by arrangement with Warner Special Products

User Reviews

One of the most inspiring movies i've seen....

I recently rented this movie because I am a huge Morgan Freeman fan, and I was amazed at how inspiring it was. Freeman is truly amazing in this movie. He is perfect for this strong part of principal at Eastside High. His disciplined yet loving authority was fun to watch. Also in the cast, Mr Darnell(Michael Beach) and Dr. Frank Napier(Robert Guillaume) along with Joe Clark(Morgan Freeman) were probably the most dominant actors. There was also a great supporting cast as listed above. Mayor Don Bottman(Alan North) played the perfect power hungry politician for this movie.

I would recommend this movie to anyone out there. I truly believe it belongs in the top 250.