Dangerous Minds
| Dangerous Minds | |
|---|---|
| File:Dangerous Minds.jpg DVD cover of Dangerous Minds | |
| Directed by | John N. Smith |
| Written by | Ronald Bass Novel by LouAnne Johnson |
| Produced by | Don Simpson Jerry Bruckheimer |
| Starring | Michelle Pfeiffer |
| Music by | Wendy & Lisa |
| Distributed by | Hollywood Pictures |
Release dates |  August 11, 1995 November 24, 1995 January 16, 1996 |
Running time | 99 min. |
| Languages | English Spanish |
Dangerous Minds is a 1995 drama film based on LouAnne Johnson's autobiographical account of her experience as a Marine who left her career to become an English teacher at a well-off high school attended by bussed-in students from a ghetto. The film, starring Michelle Pfeiffer, focuses on the challenges of growing up in the inner-city of East Palo Alto, California and of the efforts of a dedicated teacher to allow her class to learn to believe in themselves.
Synopsis
Template:Spoiler When a retired U.S. Marine, LouAnne Johnson, arrives at "Parkmont High School" with poor, angry minorities from East Palo Alto, California, she finds a class of tough, street-wise kids, involved in gangs and drugs, whom Johnson quickly dubs the "rejects from hell." Her initially meek demeanour, small stature, and white skin earn her the nickname "white bread" from her students. Determined to have them trust and respect her, she quickly changes her presentation, wearing leather jackets, teaching karate to her students and cursing in the classroom. Creating her own curriculum for her "socially challenged" but otherwise extremely bright class, she starts having them read college-level texts, using Bob Dylan lyrics to teach poetry. Johnson rewards her students for hard work by giving them chocolate bars, toy prizes and trip to an amusement park. Along with helping her students with school work, she also provides emotional support to several students, including a pregnant girl, a boy who's in debt, and a teen who's caught in gang trouble. Although she intends to leave at the end of the year, the students quote the lyrics of the songs that they learned and insist that she's their "light" and refuse to let her leave. Touched, she agrees to stay. Template:Spoilerend
I am LouAnne Johnson, the author of My Posse Don't Do Homework, which was adapted for the movie Dangerous Minds. The movie is a fictionalized version of my book. I would recommend that you read the book if you want the real story. Briefly, I will list some of the things that are not true. The entire entry above was written by somebody who saw the movie, but clearly didn't read the book or any of my other books. If you want to know how I teach, read Teaching Outside the Box: how to grab your students by their brains. Okay, here goes: 1. I NEVER ever referred to any student as a reject, and never would call students 'rejects from hell.' I find that offensive. 2. Nobody ever called me "white bread." I find that even more offensive. I have only one rule in my classroom: respect yourself and everybody else in this room. I never disrespected my students and they didn't disrespect me -- oh, they gave me all kinds of grief and flak, but that was their job as obnoxious teenagers. 3. I never used the lyrics of Bob Dylan or held a poetry contest. I used the lyrics from Public Enemy's "911 is a Joke" in order to spark a conversation about poetry. Then we took on The Poetry Project where students were allowed to bring in the lyrics from their favorite songs to share with the class, if they could explain why they admired those lyrics as poetry. It was a great experience and we all learned that we had pre-judged certain kinds of music because we didn't relate to the beat. But when we read the words, we found that there were some universal human desires -- the desire to be respected, for example, and accepted. 4. I didn't quit after one year. I stayed with that program for 5 years, beginning as a part-time English teacher and ending as the director of the program for 250 at-risk kids. 5. The scene with the black grandmother calling Miss Johnson a nasty name never happened. Nobody of any color ever said anything to me except, "thank you for trying to help my child." I think it's important that we focus on the things we have in common and not try to create separation and fear and hate between people because of skin color. As I tell my students, "Lack of respect for other stems from a lack of self-respect. So learn to respect yourself and you will have a new view of the world. People who disrespect you should be pitied because they haven't evolved to a high enough level to be able to display tolerance and compassion for other people." Okay, that's the short list of corrections. There are many more. Oh, yes, I almost forgot. Emilio didn't really die. He was nearly killed by a lunatic but an off-duty cop saved him. He spent four years in the Marines and now lives in CA with his wife and two daughters. Happy ending for that story. And I'm happy to say that Raul is now working on his family's ranch and Gusmaro is making lots of money as a software developer. So much for standardized tests that predict who will be successful in this life. Our school system needs help!
Production
The school in the film is based on Carlmont High School, but was filmed at Burlingame High School, 15 miles from the school where Johnson originally taught.
Music
The rap-based music score is written by Wendy & Lisa, who also wrote one of the theme songs, "This Is The Life." The movie also featured the hip-hop Grammy Award winning song "Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio.
Legacy
The film became a box office success grossing a total of US$179,519,401.00 in its worldwide revenues and went on to inspire a number of films including Freedom Writers, High School High and One Eight Seven. It also spawned a short-lived spinoff TV series, which features Johnson's further adventures at the school.
The appearance of Skye Bassett, playing the minor character Jodie, in the movie, and her eventual death some time after its premiere, is described in Dave Eggers' novel A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.
Box office
- Total Domestic Grosses - $84,919,401.00
- Total Overseas Grosses - $94,600,000.00
- Total Worldwide Grosses - $179,519,401.00[1]
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Michelle Pfeiffer | LouAnne Johnson |
| George Dzundza | Hal Griffith |
| Courtney B. Vance | George Grandey |
| Robin Bartlett | Carla Nichols |
| Wade Domínguez | Emilio Ramírez |
| Renoly Santiago | Raúl Sachero |
| Bruklin Harris | Callie Roberts |
| Richard Grant | Durrell Benton |
| Roberto Álvarez | Gusmaro Rivera |
| Marisela Gonzales | Angela |
| Toni Nichelle Buzhardt | Nikki |
| Paula Garcés | Alvina |
| Norris Young | Kareem |
| Rahman Ibraheem | Big 'G' |
| Desire Galvez | Taiwana |
| Wilson Limpo | Roderick |
| Raymond Grant | Lionel Benton |
| Veronica Robles | Stephanie |
| Marcelo Thedford | Cornelius Bates |
| Michael Archuleta | Oso |
| Deshanda Carter | Tanyekia |
| Ebony Jerido | Deanne |
| Brandi Younger | Grip |
| Asia Minor | Pam |
| Karina Arroyave | Josy |
| Ivan Sergei | Huero |
| Mark Prince Edwards | PJ |
| Ismael Archuleta | Lalo |
| Skye Bassett | Jody |
| Beatrice Winde | Mary Benton |
| Gaura Vani Buchwald | Warlock |
| Cynthia Avila | Mrs. Sanchero |
| Roman J. Cisneros | Mr. Sanchero |
| Camille Winbush | Tyeisha Roberts |
| John Neville | Waiter |
| Al Israel | Mr. Santiago |
| Brian Anthony | Joey |
| Jason Gutman | Adam |
| Lara Spotts | Dianna |
See also
References
- ^ "Boxofficemojo.com". Dangerous Minds Box office Gross.
