The tough principal

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Movie
German title The tough principal
Original title Lean on Me
Country of production United States
original language English
Publishing year 1989
length 124 minutes
Age rating FSK 16
Rod
Director John G. Avildsen
script Michael Schiffer
production Norman Twain
music Bill Conti
camera Victor Hammer
cut John G. Avildsen
John Carter
occupation

The tough principal (original title: Lean on Me; alternative title: Lean on me - Joe Clark does not give up ) is an American film by John G. Avildsen from 1989 . It is based on a true story and tells the story of school principal Joe Louis Clark , who is being brought back to his former school to improve the disastrous circumstances there. His methods earn criticism from parents and teachers, while students stand up for him.

action

The plot is based on real events at the East Side High School in Paterson , New Jersey . The main character is the teacher and school principal Joe L. Clark. He is brought back to the school when a teacher was beaten almost to death by students there. The school is in a catastrophic state that makes orderly teaching almost impossible.

Joe Clark takes the position of principal at the request of his old friend Frank Napier, who asserts him with the mayor. The background to the decision is the state's threat to take over the school from the sponsorship of the city if the results of the students in a national test do not improve significantly. The film shows the period from when Clark took over the position until the results of the test were announced.

  • Morgan Freeman (2006)

  • Ethan Phillips (2003)

  • Tony Todd (2003)

  • Robert Guillaume (1980)

Clark enters the school with new security guards armed with a megaphone and a baseball bat at the beginning of the film . Teachers, parents and students get to feel the new hard tone. One of his first measures is to expel all students who have come into contact with drug trafficking from school. Among other things, this ignites harsh criticism from some parents, which can only be resolved at the end of the film.

The film shows the improvements that have come about at the school as a result of the crackdown. Among other things, the lives of two students - Thomas Sams and Kaneesha Carter - are followed, whose private problems are described in detail to the viewer. Clark exerts a strong influence on both biographies with his peculiar mixture of loving care and strict discipline. The focus is also on Clark's conflicts with his friend and superior Dr. Napier and his deputy Mrs. Joan Levias. In both cases, Clark has to realize that he cannot work with his methods alone. After another attack on a student, Clark has the entrances to the house secured with chains so that no single dealer can enter the school. This gives him the criticism of the local fire chief.

After the fire chief managed to gain access to the school unnoticed, Clark was temporarily arrested. He is accused of having put the safety of his students at risk in the event of a fire. At the same time, the school council meets, to which a mother demands that Clark be removed from school. She receives support from the mayor, who distances himself from Clark’s controversial methods due to the upcoming election. Only a loud demonstration by the students in front of the building changes the situation fundamentally. Clark is taken from his cell to calm the students down and send them home. However, these do not obey, but continue to put pressure on the school board. After Mrs. Levias was able to hand over the positive test results, the students and teachers celebrate on the streets with Director Clark.

Reviews

"There's not really much of a story to speak of. Freeman shows up and begins cleaning up the school. That's about it. Much of the film sees Freeman encountering a problem, solving it, and then moving on to the next problem. (German translation: "There's really no particular story arc to speak of. Freeman appears and starts cleaning up the school. That's all. For most of the movie, we see Freeman encountering a problem, solving it, and goes to the next problem. ") "

- Review from www.reelfilm.com

" Lean on Me has aged incredibly poorly, though. Filmed in the early '90s and looking every bit as cheesy as an old episode of Beverly Hills 90210, the film is so obviously a part of its time it's hard to view it critically without thinking about how silly that period was. (German translation: "The badass principal is unfortunately incredibly out of date. It was filmed in the early 1990s (sic!) and looks just as cheesy as an old episode of Beverly Hills 90210. The film is so obviously part of its time that it's hard to look at him critically without thinking how silly this one was. "

- Review from www.reelfilm.com

“Cinematic memorial for the combative teacher Joe Clark, who overshots the target; only initially exciting, then full of clichés and questionable in the statement that democratic attitudes open the door to chaos. "

- Lexicon of international film

Awards

1991 NAACP Image Award

  • Best Actor - Morgan Freeman
  • Best Picture - Director: John G. Avildsen

1990 Young Artist Award

background

  • The absolute historicity of the film is debatable. Elements such as the use of a megaphone or a baseball bat agree with reality, but the fact that Clark shouted every conversation can be doubted.
  • The performance of the East Side High School students actually improved. To what measure Clark's this can be traced, was the subject of numerous debates.
  • Clark's engagement made it on the front page of the news magazine Time .
  • The origin of the original title Lean on Me is the song of the same name Lean on Me by Bill Withers . In the scene of a school meeting it is intoned by the music teacher, all students join in the singing.
  • The role of Joe Clark is the first film-bearing leading role for Morgan Freeman.
  • Due to some drastic dialogues and the treatment of topics such as B. Teenage pregnancy and drug use, the film received criticism from parent associations.
  • The film deals with racial discrimination in many scenes, which is exacerbated by the lack of education of black youth.
  • With Tony Todd ( Star Trek: TNG and Star Trek: DS9 ) and Ethan Phillips ( Star Trek: VOY ) two actors have a supporting role in the film, who later became known as actors in the Star Trek franchise .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.filmsprung.ch/?p=2583 , accessed on March 20, 2012.
  2. ↑ a b from www.reelfilm.com , accessed March 20, 2012.
  3. ↑ The tough principal. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed March 2, 2017 .Template: LdiF / Maintenance / Access used 
  4. ↑ https://content.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19880201,00.html , accessed on March 20, 2012.