Cheaters (2000) (TV)

User Rating:

6.8/10   

Director:

John Stockwell

Writer (WGA):

John Stockwell (written by)

Release Date:

20 May 2000 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

Putting The System To The Test

Plot:

Eleven students conspire with their teacher to cheat on an academic competition.

Plot Keywords:

Teacher | Cheating | Competition | Chicago Illinois | Motivation

Awards:

Nominated for Primetime Emmy. Another 3 nominations

Cast

Jeff Daniels	...	Dr. Gerard Plecki
Jena Malone	...	Jolie Fitch
Paul Sorvino	...	Constantine Kiamos
Luke Edwards	...	Darius Bettus
Blake Heron	...	Matt Kur
Dov Tiefenbach	...	Irwin Flickas
Dan Warry-Smith	...	Paul Kurgan
Anna Raj	...	Agnieska Maryniarczyk
Dominik Podbielski	...	Dominik Wesolowski
Ned Eisenberg	...	Robert Clifford
Robert Joy	...	Larry Minkoff
Lenka Peterson	...	Mrs. Plecki
Alex Poch-Goldin	...	Jerry Marconi (as Alex Poch Goldin)
Karen Glave	...	Corrine Davis
Marcia Bennett	...	Joan Isenberg

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

108 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | USA:R | Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Central Tech. High School, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Company:

De Passe Entertainment

Trivia:

Director John Stockwell and the film's producers hired a private investigator to track down the real Dr. Gerald Plecki. It took nearly half a year to convince Plecki to sell his rights and become involved in the production.

Goofs:

Continuity: Although the scandal took place in 1995, the bottom of the page of the Chicago Sun-Times that Irwin Flickas is looking at clearly states "Vol. 53 No. 11 2000".

Quotes:

Irwin Flickas: It was a multiple choice test. Nobody told me you could only pick one answer!

Movie Connections:

References Rocky (1976)

Brilliant - Seek Out This Movie!

I was so stunned by the power of this movie that I had to watch it a second time to give it a more objective assessment. I came away from the second viewing every bit as impressed.

We learn from the opening scene of the movie that things will turn out badly for the cheaters, the kids who made up the 1994-95 Academic Decathlon team for Chicago's working-class Steinmetz High, and that their downfall was of their own making. But this movie refuses to be a simple morality play. It looks at the scandal from the viewpoint of the participants, and examines why they cheated and how they came to justify their actions. It's a refreshingly honest look at how effectively the mind can blur the distinction between right and wrong. Each character's moment of decision is captured so effectively that the viewer may very well find himself rooting for the teacher and his students as they exult in their short-lived triumph.

The whole story plays out in a realistically-portrayed inner city school, and succinctly presents the values that flourish in such an environment, where ideas of what's fair are colored by the feeling that life hasn't been very fair to these kids from the very beginning. One comes to realize that the central characters' greatest triumph came not in their ill-gotten victory, but in simply wanting to overachieve against all odds in such an environment.

The acting in this movie is top-notch across the board, from Paul Sorvino, Jeff Daniels, and each of the seven kids. But special mention has to go to Jena Malone for her memorable portrayal of Jolie, the brilliant and sharp-tongued inspirational leader of the team who remains defiant to the very end.

I give this movie a 10!