Class of 1984 Movie Review
New music teacher Andy Norris (Perry King, The Day After Tomorrow, Spin City) finds trouble with a gang of punks at the school, lead by Stegman (Timothy Van Patten). There were several similar movies to this one in the 80’s—a new teacher facing a rowdy school where the kids are violent and out of control, but this is probably one of the first, and probably one of the most influential. The movie has a very nice pace, slowing down only when we get glimpses of Norris at home. The acting actually isn’t too bad either. King does a fine job as Norris, Roddy McDowell (Fright Night) turns in an incredible performance as a teacher at his wits end with the kids, and we even get a glimpse of a very young Michael J. Fox (Back To The Future, Teen Wolf) as one of the few straight-laced kids.
You've got to have FAITH...wait, wrong movie
Lisa Langlois does a good job as the feisty punk Patsy as well. Van Patten seems an odd choice as the leader of the gang (and the school for that matter) as he is probably the preppiest looking “punk” you are likely to see.
Michael J looked more punk than this guy...
...maybe not
Some of the dialogue is really bad at times and some of the shots seem very amateurish. Of course most of the high school students look to be in their mid-twenties, which takes something away from the film, but you take that with a grain of salt as that has been a staple in movies for years. The beginning states this was based on a few incidents throughout the country while pointing out that very few schools were actually like that at the time and wondered if more would be like that in the future--this movie came out in 1982. We then see a scene of the kids passing through metal detectors before entering the school, giving us a chilling vision of the future we actually did get. This is really not a great movie by any stretch, and the end is very predictable, but it is a decent movie that is worth a look, especially if you are a fan of 80’s movies.
On A Scale Of One To Ten: 6
Class of 1984 Movie Trailer
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