Synopsis
The dedicated but tyrannical Joe Clark is appointed the principal of a decaying inner-city school he is determined to improve by any and all means.
Scores
Overall Score
76.3
Popularity Percentile (Year)
71.6%
Box Office Percentile (Year)
82.3%
Review Aggregate
76.7
Critic Consensus
Critic reception is largely positive, with 77% of 13 logged reviews marked Fresh. Across reviews, critics repeatedly emphasize emotional, character-driven, visually striking. Most critics frame the film as an effective delivery of its core style and intent.
emotionalcharacter-drivenvisually strikingthought-provokingrealistic
Cast
| Cast | Year | Reported Salary | Inflation Adjusted | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morgan Freeman | 1989 | $962,000 | $2,434,000 | (est) |
| Beverly Todd | 1989 | $592,000 | $1,498,000 | (est) |
| Robert Guillaume | 1989 | $446,000 | $1,128,000 | (est) |
Aggregated Reviews
Rotten Tomatoes critic score71.0
RT critic review count21
Rotten Tomatoes audience score85.0
RT audience rating count25,000
IMDb rating7.4
IMDb votes24,070
Box Office ?
| Category | Year | Reported | Inflation Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic | 1989 | $31,906,454 | $80,718,182 |
| International | 1989 | N/A | N/A |
| Worldwide | 1989 | $31,906,454 | $80,718,182 |
Earnings / Profitability
| Category | Year | Reported | Inflation Adjusted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenues | |||
| Theatrical Net Revenue | 1989 | $15,953,227 | $40,359,091 |
| Digital Rentals ? | 1989 | N/A | N/A |
| Digital Purchases ? | 1989 | N/A | N/A |
| Physical Rentals ? | 1989 | $37,061,000 | $93,758,352 |
| Physical Purchases ? | 1989 | $20,551,000 | $51,990,715 |
| TV & Streaming Revenue | 1989 | $7,976,614 | $20,179,546 |
| Total Revenues | 1989 | $81,541,840 | $206,287,705 |
| Expenses | |||
| Budget ? | 1989 | $10,000,000 | $25,298,387 |
| Print & Advertising (P&A) ? | 1989 | $7,861,000 (est) | $19,887,062 (est) |
| Participations | 1989 | $6,523,000 | $16,502,138 |
| Residuals ? | 1989 | $4,637,000 | $11,730,862 |
| Interest & Overhead | 1989 | $2,000,000 | $5,059,677 |
| Total Expenses | 1989 | $31,021,000 | $78,478,127 |
| Movie Net Profit or Loss | 1989 | $50,520,840 | $127,809,578 |
Similar Movies
| Poster | Movie | Year | Match | Overall | Est. Profit |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Coach Carter | 2005 | Shared genres: 5 | 87.0 | $-22,474,471 |
 | Freedom Writers | 2007 | Shared genres: 5 | 83.7 | $21,544,031 |
 | Dangerous Minds | 1995 | Shared genres: 5 | 81.4 | $83,103,133 |
 | The Great Debaters | 2007 | Shared genres: 5 | 78.1 | $23,574,305 |
 | Stand and Deliver | 1988 | Shared genres: 5 | 72.5 | $31,708,241 |