Synopsis
Former Marine Louanne Johnson lands a gig teaching in a pilot program for bright but underachieving teens at a notorious inner-city high school. After having a terrible first day, she decides she must throw decorum to the wind. When Johnson returns to the classroom, she does so armed with a no-nonsense attitude informed by her military training and a fearless determination to better the lives of her students -- no matter what the cost.
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Cast
- Michelle PfeifferLouanne Johnson
- George DzundzaHal Griffith
- Courtney B. VanceMr. George Grandey
- Robin BartlettMrs. Carla Nichols
- Beatrice WindeMary Benton
- John NevilleWaiter
- Lorraine ToussaintIrene Roberts
- Renoly SantiagoRaul Sanchero
- Wade DominguezEmilio Ramirez
- Bruklin HarrisCallie Roberts
Recommendations
- 75
Rolling Stone
And Pfeiffer gives a funny, scrappy performance that makes you feel a committed teacher's fire to make a difference. - 75
San Francisco Chronicle
Dangerous Minds doesn't drop the sentimental conventions of the good-teacher Hollywood drama but reconstitutes them with strong performances, sensitive direction by Canadian film maker John N. Smith ("The Boys of St. Vincent") and a firm belief that teachers can and will make a difference in a person's life. - 70
Chicago Reader
Though it lacks the sensational pizzazz of "Blackboard Jungle", the politics here are arguably somewhat better, and the supporting cast -- George Dzundza, Courtney P. Vance, Robin Bartlett, Beatrice Winde -- isn't bad either. - 50
ReelViews
In the case of Dangerous Minds, we get an idealized version of inner city life, where, though problems may require more than the wave of a magic wand to remove, the solutions still seem too facile. - 50
San Francisco Examiner
It's all quite inspiring, but despite the fact that this is based on someone's actual experiences, the whole thing has an unfortunate Hollywood ring to it. - 50
Washington Post
The sweet story turns stickygooey, however, as writer Ronald Bass sprinkles the script with saccharine lines that sound plain dumb coming from high schoolers. - 40
Empire
Pfeiffer's performance supersedes any of the material, but the rest of the film is a seething mass of clich's despite the "true story" origins. - 38
Chicago Sun-Times
The movie pretends to show poor black kids being bribed into literacy by Dylan and candy bars, but actually it is the crossover white audience that is being bribed with mind-candy in the form of safe words by the two Dylans.
