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The Principal

The Principal

Action · Adventure · Crime · 1987

Burglary. Drugs. Assault. Rape. The students at Brandel High are more than new Principal Rick Latimer bargained for. Gangs fight to control the school using knives - even guns - when they have to. When Latimer and the head of security try to clean up the school and stop the narcotics trade, they run up against a teenage mafia. A violent confrontation on the campus leads to a deadly showdown with the drug dealer's gang, and one last chance for Latimer to save his career... and his life.

Movie details

The Principal

“He's teaching the students at Brandel High two words... NO MORE.”

1987 Action · Adventure · Crime 1h 49m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.4 / 10

Community rating

Burglary. Drugs. Assault. Rape. The students at Brandel High are more than new Principal Rick Latimer bargained for. Gangs fight to control the school using knives - even guns - when they have to. When Latimer and the head of security try to clean up the school and stop the narcotics trade, they run up against a teenage mafia. A violent confrontation on the campus leads to a deadly showdown with the drug dealer's gang, and one last chance for Latimer to save his career... and his life.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Principal?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Christopher Cain

Written by

Frank Deese

Jim Belushi

Jim Belushi

Rick Latimer

Louis Gossett Jr.

Louis Gossett Jr.

Jake Phillips

Rae Dawn Chong

Rae Dawn Chong

Hilary Orozco

Kelly Jo Minter

Kelly Jo Minter

Treena Lester (as Kelly Minter)

Michael Wright

Michael Wright

Victor Duncan

J.J. Cohen

J.J. Cohen

White Zac

Esai Morales

Esai Morales

Raymi Rojas

Court is in session

Put The Principal on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Adrenaline Seeker

“Momentum is a formal choice.”

The velocity sharpens instinct and tension, making every beat land before self-importance can settle in.

The prosecution The Cool Ironist

“Speed as an alibi.”

The film races past its weak spots and hopes acceleration will keep the audience from inspecting the evidence.