The Top 10 Best Movie Teachers
5. Detective John Kimble- Kindergarten Cop
Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a tough cop who’s about to face the biggest challenge of his career: 5-year-olds. Sure he’s faced hardened terrorist, ruthless criminals, even killer androids, but nothing can compare to the chaos and terror a herd of unruly kindergartners can unleash Perhaps it’s just the fond memories of Kimble shouting, “It’s not a Tumor!” Or asking the children, “Who is your daddy and what does he do?” Or maybe it’s just the image of him shaking a child out of anger. But I imagine that if I were forced to be a teacher I’d do the same thing. It’s this ability to relate to him that brings him in at No. 5 on this list of movie teachers.
4. Glenn Holland- Mr. Holland’s Opus
Looks like we have another music teacher joining this list, though he might be considered to be just a tad bit more legitimate. Richard Dreyfuss stars as the titular Mr. Holland, who finds himself reluctantly forced into a teaching career. Of course, it doesn’t turn out to be the worst thing that’s ever happened to him, and over the years he even seems to start to enjoy it. Mr. Holland touches a lot of lives and seems like a pretty righteous dude, so it would be hard not to have included him among the great movie teachers of all time. What sets him apart from the others is that we get to see Mr. Holland through his entire career from first to last semester. It touching watching him slowly come to embrace his role as a teacher and see how his love of music managed to touch so many lives.
3. Professor Henry Jones, Jr.- The Indiana Jones Films
When he’s not saving the world from Nazis, running from giant boulders and freaking out about snakes, Dr. Jones is a respected professor of archeology. That’s right, one of Harrison Ford’s greatest characters had a day job teaching at a university. While on school grounds he’s a nerdy guy in a tweed suit, but when the weekend comes, he transforms into Indiana Jones. The thing is, he usually runs off at the drop of a hat (get it?), which leaves us wondering what happens to his students for the rest of the semester? Then again, maybe this spot should go to the more deserving TA who had to take over his syllabus every time he hops on a plane to go chasing after artifacts.
2. John Keating- Dead Poets Society
Carpe Diem! This man is perhaps the most overzealous of all the movie teachers to grace this list, but what else would you expect from Robin Williams (especially during the 80s)? While the message behind the film might be a little impractical, kids have to learn those sweet, sweet cliches somewhere. Subsequently, the character has become a pop culture icon and is as mocked as he is beloved. While the idea of John Keating might have been beaten like a dead horse, I still have to pay my respects because when he hit the big screen his enthusiasm and dedication to his students was incredibly refreshing. So to him, I say, “O captain, my captain.”
1. Jaime Escalante- Stand and Deliver
Hey, look, more inner-city kids… From California, no less. Edward James Olmos (also known as William Adama to all you geeks) played a balding math teacher who actually inspires troubled teens to apply themselves, and even pass AP exams. The fact that he gets a state-funded bonus for each student that passes had nothing to do with his efforts, I’m sure. The only problem is that they’re troubled teens, so everyone thinks they cheated. While he might not be the prettiest teacher or the funniest, he is based on a real teacher and Olmos earned an Oscar nomination for his performance, which means he kinda deserves the title of the best of the best when it comes to movie teachers.
Those were some of the best movie teachers of all time. However, like IRL teachers, I’m sure there are a lot of incredible ones that didn’t get the recognition they deserved. So if there are particularly movie teachers that you think deserved to be on this list, be sure to leave a comment below. In the meantime, be sure to check back on this list from time to time to see if any new movie teachers manage to earn a spot on this list.