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Believe it or not, this forgotten film is even stupider than its title. Filmed in 1976, it obviously had a hard time getting its initial release which was early in 1978. The story was written by A Jewish/Canadian author, Mordecai Richler. Never heard of him. It borrows very much from the CS Lewis theme "Alice's adventures in Wonderland. Unfortunately, it's not as charming or engaging as the famed CS Lewis' classic. It contains many creepy and sinister characters that are so laughable you can't take them seriously. The cast is nearly all Canadian with the exception of ex-Pro Wrestler, Alex Karras. His portrayal of the 'Hooded Fang' is so awkwardly overacted that he's more of a caricature than a real serious villain. Sounding just like the Lion in Wizard of OZ and mugging uncontrollably, It was painful to watch him. And instead of having a little girl, we have a little Boy, Jacob Two Two, who is traumatized by people, because he often repeats his phrases. I like if a story can show how bullied children stand strong within themselves in the face of adversity, but the rest of the story is so demented that we hardly ever appreciate and buy into it. And whoever did the music for this movie needs to never work again in show business. It's absolutely excruciating.

This is a poorly designed story based on some Semi-Legendary Western character. I'm not sure how much of this is even true, but I am certain, based on other comments, that this is far from factual. I am not a John Huston fan and I will watch Paul Newman if there is some other attraction or great storyline. In my case, it's the former, a very young Victoria Principal.

This off-beat Western that cannot decide whether it wants to be a comedy or a serious Drama. It flagellates its tone quite rampantly without giving us any directive purpose. This story of a lowly outlaw who exacts revenge on the people who wronged him gets off to a promising start. However, the main character commits his own form of vigilante justice, takes over the town and instills his unorthodox malicious justice all in honor of his idol, Lily Langtry (ava Gardner). I can't accept Paul Newman as a real tough guy. He could play brave or crazy, but never a Hard-core badass. This screenplay is as odd is the title with inserts of unnecessary scenes. Schizophrenic and frenetic is the pace, but it still seems to drag. The music is also execrable. When a film attempts to establish the premise in a prologue, it has already failed. That is an enormous error a film maker makes, because it's a cop-out from having the screenplay and acting do that for itself. There are also characters breaking the fourth wall and addressing the audience which evokes weak storytelling. It looks annoying and stagy. The constant narrative throughout the screenplay grows redundantly dull and monotone.

Our tall, blonde and most handsome star ever in the world, Paul Newman, is matched with the captivating and very young Victoria Principal. Their on-screen chemistry is palpable. In her movie debut, Principal proves to be, not only a stunning young lady, but also a fine actress capable of showing emotions without even trying. Every time she looks up at him, you can see her genuine adoration and nubile desire for him.

The film is a sprawling mess of weird characters, a poor background score, uneven plot and some action scenes. But the presence of Victoria Principal is by far the best asset and maybe, the only asset to this forgotten film.

I know this is a work of fiction and that movies about High School are here to entertain or edify us in some way, but Teachers gets almost everything wrong in how it presents the high school experience. From the basic rules, regulations, staff propriety, and the overall continuity of what the teacher's role is. Having taught in 7 school districts myself, I can attest that in no way, shape or form, does this movie accurately depict high school. Not even remotely.

To begin, for a teacher to drive a student to an abortion clinic would not only be highly scandalous, it would cost him his job, put the school at liability and he could possibly face some criminal punishment. It is a very serious matter that is both illegal and dangerous. Even more egregious, is the fact that the main character, a supposedly upstanding moral figure, is facilitating this. Secondly, for a female teacher to perform some bizarre strip tease in a hallway is not only career suicide, it's just never done. Teachers and administrators behave very unprofessionally in this to the point where the overacting hits a breaking point at times. The lunatic substitute teacher, Richard Mulligan, is a comedic relief role that gets lost in the mayhem and looks unnecessary. Lots of dramatic tirades get displayed without proper constraint. The wasted talents of Morgan Freeman, Nick Nolte, Jobeth Williams, Ralph Macchio and Judd Hirsch cannot save this abysmal disaster.

This film is rife with numerous slapstick moments that jar against the serious tone of the story which undermines any credibility. Is it suppose to be a Black comedy, a parody, or some inspiring drama about reaching teenagers? While it makes a half-ass attempt to do the latter, the movie is a crashing failure at all of them.

Wasted talent and effort.