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Teachers

Play trailer Poster for Teachers R 1984 1h 46m Comedy Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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62% Tomatometer 34 Reviews 46% Popcornmeter 1,000+ Ratings
High school teacher Alex Jurel (Nick Nolte) has gone from idealistic to pessimistic. His classroom methods come under scrutiny when a former pupil sues him for not ensuring student literacy, and the arrival of Lisa Hammond (JoBeth Williams), the lawyer assigned to the case, only makes things worse -- she's one of Alex's former star pupils. When Alex tries to help his other students, he just gets into more trouble with timid principal Horn (William Schallert) and the school board.
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Teachers

Teachers

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Critics Consensus

With moments of stinging satire undermined by jarring tonal shifts, Teachers offers an education in the limits of a strong cast's ability to prop up uneven writing.

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Critics Reviews

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Peter Stack San Francisco Chronicle Dec 8, 2025
2.5/4
The comedy doesn't pay off in this story that has pretensions to deal with serious issues. Still, the thing may be worth seeing, if only because it's the only movie that attempts to look behind the scenes of an urban high school. Go to Full Review Kathleen Carroll New York Daily News Oct 3, 2021
2.5/4
Fails to communicate its message of social concern and it winds up looking as frenzied and juvenile as every other teen exploitation flick. Go to Full Review Mike Ritchey Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com Oct 3, 2021
2.5/4
Nolte is always interesting to watch. Had they not been detained with an elementary-school script, both he and the picture would have fared better. Go to Full Review Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Jan 26, 2026
3/4
It’s too often painfully obvious in its implications and heavy-handed in its delivery, but that’s countered by the assembly of an exceptional cast as well as the prevalence of themes that remain relevant. Go to Full Review Eddie Harrison film-authority.com Nov 30, 2023
3/5
…aims for the black comedy of the The Hospital but ends up with sitcom parabolising… Go to Full Review Laurie Horn Miami Herald Oct 3, 2021
2/4
It's not the comedic touch that's the problem, it's that the touch doesn't sting. Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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thiago S @Thiagostone Jun 17, 2026 Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom See more May 11, 2019 My dad, he was in the movie for about 4-5 secs his time of fame See more ashley h @ashleyhobgood87 Dec 31, 2018 Teachers is an okay film. It is about a well meaning but burned-out high school teacher tries to maintain order against the backdrop of a pending lawsuit. Nick Nolte and JoBeth Williams give decent performances. The script is a little slow in places. Arthur Hiller did an alright job directing this movie. I liked this motion picture because of the humor and drama. See more Aug 29, 2015 Yeah, this is no 80's classic, but it's still a pretty nice film. Interesting look at the day to day dilemmas in education. See more Jun 11, 2014 (**): [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon13.gif[/img] See more Oct 11, 2013 When this first came out critics gave this film a lot of hate. Fast forward a couple decades later I wonder if they would feel the same way. This is exactly how most schools are these days. The last thing schools care about is education for our children. This film captures the politics of school perfectly! See more Read all reviews
Teachers

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Cast & Crew

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Arthur Hiller

Director

Nick Nolte

Alex Jurel

JoBeth Williams

Lisa Hammond

Ralph Macchio

Eddie Pilikian

Allen Garfield

Carl Rosenberg

Lee Grant

Dr. Donna Burke

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Teachers

Teachers (1984) Teachers (1984) Teachers (1984) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis High school teacher Alex Jurel (Nick Nolte) has gone from idealistic to pessimistic. His classroom methods come under scrutiny when a former pupil sues him for not ensuring student literacy, and the arrival of Lisa Hammond (JoBeth Williams), the lawyer assigned to the case, only makes things worse -- she's one of Alex's former star pupils. When Alex tries to help his other students, he just gets into more trouble with timid principal Horn (William Schallert) and the school board.
Director
Arthur Hiller
Producer
Aaron Russo
Screenwriter
W.R. McKinney
Rating
R
Genre
Comedy, Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 5, 1984, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 16, 2008
Runtime
1h 46m
Sound Mix
Surround
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