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The Principal

Play trailer Poster for The Principal R 1987 1h 49m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
44% Tomatometer 9 Reviews 51% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
The new principal (James Belushi) of a drug-infested high school joins with a security guard (Louis Gossett Jr.) to clean it up.
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The Principal

Critics Reviews

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Michael A. Smith Nolan's Pop Culture Review 03/15/2008
3/5
I'd like to see Morgan Freeman take over THIS school. Go to Full Review
Jake Euker F5 (Wichita, KS) 03/09/2006
1/5
Chuck O'Leary Fantastica Daily 10/09/2005
3/5
An arresting drama starring likable Jim Belushi as an antihero principal trying to clean up a violent, drug-infested high school. Won't be a favorite of ACLU members. Go to Full Review
Robin Clifford Reeling Reviews 11/19/2004
2/5
Matt Kelemen Las Vegas CityLife 04/01/2004
3/5
Carol Cling Las Vegas Review-Journal 08/22/2003
2/5
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Audience Reviews

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Zachary B Aug 9 This movie is a perfect example of how DISCIPLINE AT ALL LEVELS needs to be enforced. Belushi's performance never gets old in this film. Sends a strong message that the parents & teachers of these criminal Radical Leftists whom are currently burning down our cities, committing acts of violence & intimidation in schools & on the streets need to hear. See more Feb 15 La película realmente es muy entretenida de ver, tiene una historia que aunque no sea muy compleja se las arregla para criticar ambos lados de una misma problemática, las escenas se ven muy bien trabajadas para la época, la calidad de la imagen es decente, la música y su uso es simplemente genial y empatizas con los personajes muy fácilmente, para mí se merece las 5 estrellas See more Jeffrey P 08/25/2024 There were a lot of these types of movies in the mid to late 1980's and early 1990's that dealt with inner city blight and urban decay and getting the rest of America to sympathize and work with it. As far as movies go, it’s an average movie of average quality, that’s amusing enough to loosely keep viewer attention. See more Michael W @mawilps 02/11/2024 This dramedy was great. James Belushi, Louis Gossett Jr., Michael Wright, Rae Dawn Chong, Jacob Vargas, and the rest of the cast did a great job in this movie. The plot of the movie was intense, dramatic, and humorous. It's about fighting to save a school that is suffering from drugs and crime. If you haven't seen this movie yet, check it out sometime. Don't listen to the bad reviews this movie has gotten. Those people have terrible tastes in movies. See more Mon B 10/06/2023 I'd forgotten the violent high school movies of the 80's- they seem very cliched and stereotype now. But it's still a fun look back. You love the buddy cop friendship of Lou Gossett and Jim Belushi, you love the bad kid that turns it all around in the end, and the music was the worst of the 80's. We ate these up for some reason. See more Sean M 05/08/2023 Pretty good 80s movie. Very cheesy at times. The ending seemed rushed though. See more Read all reviews
The Principal

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Movie Info

Synopsis The new principal (James Belushi) of a drug-infested high school joins with a security guard (Louis Gossett Jr.) to clean it up.
Director
Christopher Cain
Producer
Thomas H. Brodek
Screenwriter
Frank Deese
Production Co
TriStar Pictures
Rating
R
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Streaming)
Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA)
$18.8M
Runtime
1h 49m
Sound Mix
Surround
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