Dangerous Minds

"She broke the rules... and changed their lives."

1995 1h 39m EN

👍

7.0

SOLID

★7.0TMDB · 1,353

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

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.

“She broke the rules... and changed their lives.”

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Cast

Michelle Pfeiffer
Louanne Johnson
George Dzundza
Hal Griffith
Courtney B. Vance
Mr. George Grandey
Robin Bartlett
Mrs. Carla Nichols
Beatrice Winde
Mary Benton
John Neville
Waiter
Lorraine Toussaint
Irene Roberts
Renoly Santiago
Raul Sanchero

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John N. Smith
Writers: Ronald Bass
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 7.8× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

31 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John N. Smith, shot by Pierre Letarte. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Lisa Coleman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Tom Rolf shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Michelle Pfeiffer and George Dzundza and Courtney B. Vance carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "She broke the rules... and changed their lives.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0112792 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John N. Smith directs. Pierre Letarte behind the camera. Lisa Coleman scores. Tom Rolf cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Made its money back 7.8× over at the box office.
231 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by John N. Smith, shot by Pierre Letarte. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Lisa Coleman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Tom Rolf shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Michelle Pfeiffer and George Dzundza and Courtney B. Vance carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "She broke the rules... and changed their lives.".
8IMDB entry: tt0112792 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 9 themes, including "high school", "california", "rap music", "karate".

The technical file

Cinematography: Pierre Letarte
Original score: Lisa Coleman
Editing: Tom Rolf
Production design: Donald Graham Burt
Costume design: Bobbie Read
Makeup / hair: Robert L. Stevenson
Runtime: 99 min · 1h 39m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $23,000,000
Box office: $179,519,401
Return: 781% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Dangerous Minds (1995)

Also by

John N. Smith

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Community reviews

What people are saying

talisencrw2016-05-20
★ 7/10
This would have only been ordinary because it's simply adequately directed, has an entire cast of unknowns save for the star, and is from a cliché-riddled script, but this is honestly one of Michelle Pfeiffer's more interesting performances. While she's not entirely convincing as a career-Marine, she's certainly more so than Demi Moore, who tried the stunt not long afterwards, and she's certainly believable as a caring teacher. An intriguing film for Simpson and Bruckheimer to be associated with, this was back in the day, after her career-defining 'Catwoman' role in 'Batman Returns' that she was still getting great starring roles (I greatly look forward to checking her out opposite Daniel Day-Lewis in 'The Age of Innocence'). My favourite work of hers will always be in 'Scarface', but this is right up there IMHO--some really fine acting by her. It's simply a shame only one note was asked of her--had it been a more multi-dimensional character (ie., love or family interests--I've read a possible romance scene with Andy Garcia was left on the cutting room floor so they could focus on her interaction with the students), it would have been even more inviting to watch.
r96sk2021-05-07
★ 7/10
So cheesy, but still fairly good mind you. I did find myself cringing a decent amount throughout <em>'Dangerous Minds'</em> though, not necessarily in a negative way but just due to some rather sickly scenes. I found Michelle Pfeiffer's performance to be, for the most part, pleasant, though there are a few scenes where she overacts ever so slightly - in my opinion, of course. Away from Pfeiffer, there isn't much to shout about. George Dzundza (Hal) has a few moments, as do the likes of Renoly Santiago, Bruklin Harris and Wade Dominguez. The lead is the only one who keeps things interesting, though. The plot is fine, as is everything else really. They use "Gangsta's Paradise" (at least?) three times which is undoubtedly, absolutely three times too little - what a banger of a song that is from Coolio and L.V.