From: Reviews and Criticism of Vietnam War Theatrical and Television Dramas (http://www.lasalle.edu/library/vietnam/FilmIndex/home.htm) compiled by John K. McAskill, La Salle University ([email protected]) O5855 187 [ONE EIGHTY-SEVEN] (USA, 1997) Credits: director, Kevin Reynolds ; writer, Scott Yagemann. Cast: Samuel L. Jackson, John Heard, Kelly Rowan, Clifton Gonzalez Gonzalez. Summary: Detective/mystery film set in contemporary New York City and Los Angeles. Dedicated New York science instructor Trevor Garfield (Jackson) is a man with a passion for learning. Garfield is skilled, smart, committed: the total package as a teacher. But what he confronts in a school turned increasingly into a battlefield may be more than he can bear. When he is attacked by a psychotic student, he leaves New York for Los Angeles and resumes teaching in a Latino neighborhood. When a vicious student there is found murdered, Garfield falls under suspicion. The Vietnam connection stems from the Russian roulette scene in The Deer Hunter which plays on a television in the background with an implied link to a student’s suicide. Adams, Lisa J. “Samuel L. Jackson plays a teacher in new movie” Chattanooga free press (Jul 27, 1997), p. N1. Addiego, Walter. “To sir with blood: Relentlessly pessimistic plot of ‘187’ paints hopeless picture of inner-city schools” San Francisco examiner (Jul 30, 1997), p. B1. Andersen, Soren. “Movie review: ‘187’ long on ugly, short on hope” News tribune (Jul 30, 1997), SoundLife, p. SL3. Arnold, Gary. “‘187’ adds up to very realistic drama” Washington times (Jul 30, 1997), p. C11. Baltake, Joe. “Disturbing ‘187’ exploits our basic fears” Sacramento bee (Jul 30, 1997), p. F3. Beifuss, John. “‘187’ exploits schools for contemporary horror story” Commercial appeal [Memphis, TN] (Jul 29, 1997), p. C4. Boyar, Jay. “Gritty teacher-in-a-tough-school drama” Orlando sentinel (Jul 30, 1997), p. E1. Buchet, Jean-Marie. “187” Grand angle n. 208 (Oct 1997), p. 3-4. Bunke, Joan. “ABCs of violence in schools” Des Moines register (Aug 7, 1997), Datebook, p. 4. Butler, Robert W. “‘187’ means homicide” Kansas City star (Jul 30, 1997), p. F7. Byrge, Duane. “Teaching becomes a test of courage” Rocky Mountain news (Jul 30, 1997), p. 9D. Carr, Jay. “Script’s fury fuels an incoherent ‘187’” Boston globe (Jul 30, 1997), Arts & film, p. D3. Dougherty, Robin. “187” Sight and sound 7 (Sep 1997), p. 52-3. [Reprinted in Film review annual 1998] Dudek, Duane. “Jackson’s acting carries ‘187’: Dark film presents images of educational system in disarray” Milwaukee journal sentinel (Jul 30, 1997), p. 8. Ebert, Roger. “‘187’ ultimately fails to satisfy” Chicago sun-times (Jul 30, 1997), p.48. Elliott, David. “Generic inner-city plot foils even Jackson’s talent” San Diego union- tribune (Jul 30, 1997), p. E7. Farber, Stephen. “Men behaving madly” Movieline 9 (Sep 1997), p. 50+ [2 p.] Gire, Dann. “Jackson’s ‘187’ takes a look at who really rules public schools” Chicago daily herald (Jul 30, 1997), p. FoodPlus, p. 9. Guthmann, Edward. “Really dangerous minds in ‘187’: Samuel Jackson fine as terrified ghetto teacher” San Francisco chronicle (Jul 30, 1997), Daily datebook, p. E1. Harris, Erich Leon. “Kevin Reynolds resurfaces” Moviemaker n. 26 (Aug/Sep/Oct 1997), p. 39-41. Hartl, John. “‘187’: Ok, class, let’s tackle the subject again” Seattle times (Jul 30, 1997), p. E1. Hershenson, Karen. “‘187’ exploits problems of school violence” Times union [Albany, NY] (Jul 30, 1997), p. D6. Hewitt, Chris. “Failing the grade” News and observer [Raleigh, NC] (Jul 31, 1997), p. E10. Howe, Desson. “‘187’: Stay after school” Washington post (Aug 1, 1997), Weekend, p. N30. Hunter, Stephen. “‘187’: The blackboard bungle” Washington post (Jul 30, 1997), p. C2. Johnson, Malcolm. “Poor character development mars ‘187’” Hartford courant (Jul 31, 1997), Calendar, p. 15. Kaltenbach, Chris. “Depressing ‘187’ is like nails across a chalkboard” Baltimore sun (Jul 30, 1997), p. 3E. Kehr, Dave. “Readin’, ‘ritin’ & retaliatin’: Tough teacher outclasses low-grade punks in ‘187’” Daily news [New York] (Jul 30, 1997), p. 36. Kimmel, Daniel M. “High school flick deserves D-minus” Telegram & gazette [Worcester, MA] (Jul 30, 1997), p. C5. Leslie, Dwayne E. “187” Boxoffice 133 (Sep 1997), p. 119. Mac Reamoinn, Loise. “Jackson powers drama about school violence” Times- picayune (Aug 3, 1997), p. E8. Maslin, Janet. “Film review: Ideals running scared in high school” New York times (Jul 30, 1997), p. C15. Mathews, Jack. “SATS: Students attack teachers: ‘187s’ post-apocalyptic view of education” Newsday (Jul 30, 1997), p. B2. [Reprinted in Film review annual 1998] McCarthy, Todd. “187” Variety 367 (Jul 28-Aug 3, 1997), p. 57+ [2 p.] McDonagh, Maitland. “187” Film journal 100 (Sep 1997), p. 52. McGurk, Margaret A. “Mixed messages in ‘187’ kill sympathy” Cincinnati enquirer (Jul 30 1997), p. E9. Medved, Michael. [187] New York post (Jul 30, 1997), p. 36. [Reprinted in Film review annual 1998] Millar, Jeff. “Gritty teacher’s tale rings true” Houston chronicle (Jul 30, 1997), Houston, p. 1. Morales, Ed. “Numbers game” Village voice 42 (Aug 12, 1997), p. 72. [Reprinted in Film review annual 1998] Navarro, Antonio Jose. “187” Dirigido por n. 263 (Dec 1997), p. 22. Neman, Daniel. “‘187’ rehashes ‘To sir, with love’” Richmond times dispatch (Jul 31, 1997), p. D12. “187” Film review annual 1998 Englewood, N.J. : J.S. Ozer, 1981- (p. 1009-1015) O’Sullivan, Eleanor. “Tale out of school a failure” Asbury Park press [Neptune, NJ] (Jul 30, 1997), p. 3. Pearson, Mike. “‘187’ a rough ‘n’ riveting ordeal” Rocky Mountain news [Denver, CO] (Dec 26, 1997), p. 1D. Persall, Steve. “Rod not spared, movie nearly spoiled” St. Petersburg times (Jul 30, 1997), p. 1D. Peterson, Deborah. “Inside the urban jungle called a school, with Samuel L. Jackson” St. Louis post-dispatch (Aug 1, 1997), Everyday magazine, p. 3E. Philpot, Robert. “‘187’ struggles to be more than a blackboard bungle” Fort Worth star-telegram (Jul 30, 1997), Life & arts, p. 1. Reed, Katherine. “Great visually, but not thoughtful enough” Roanoke times & world news (Aug 1, 1997), p. 1. Riley, Phil. “One eight seven” Motion picture guide annual (edited by Jay Robert Nash and Stanley Ralph Ross) Chicago : Cinebooks, 1987-2000. (1998, p. 313-14) Ringel, Eleanor. “Movie review: ‘187’” Atlanta journal and constitution (Jul 30, 1997), p. ? Rodriguez, Rene. “Bleak drama offers no easy solution to school violence” Miami herald (Jul 30, 1997), p. D1. Rosen, Steven. “Brutal lessons: True outrage of ‘187’ slips into melodrama” Denver post (Jul 30, 1997), p. F8. Ross, Bob. “‘187’: Another study of dangerous minds” Tampa tribune (Jul 30, 1997), p. 1. Ryan, Desmond. “‘187’ presents a casualty in war zone of urban schools” Philadelphia inquirer (Jul 30, 1997), p. D4. Scaduto, Anthony. “Hard lessons for a teacher: Samuel L. Jackson tackles a tough role in 197” Newsday (Jul 29, 1997), p. B3. Schwan, Gary. “‘187’ has more than a ring of truth in plot” Palm Beach post (Jul 30, 1997), p. 4D. Sheehan, Henry. “‘187’ not just by the numbers: The darkly compelling tale of a teacher’s revenge and the price of vengeance reaches beyond cliche” Orange County register (Jul 30, 1997), p. F3. Simmons, Sheila. “Terror in class: ‘187’ a compelling thriller about a teacher’s world, but mysterious crimes stretch viewer’s credulity” Plain dealer [Cleveland] (Jul 30, 1997), p. 5E. Simon, Jeff. “‘187’ gives a poor lesson in violence as the solution” Buffalo news (Jul 30, 1997), p. 5C. Soergel, Matt. “To Sir, with 1990s’ classroom realities” Florida times-union [Jacksonville, FL] (Jul 30, 1997), p. C6. Sragow, Michael. “Flunking out: 187 is a real blackboard bungle” New times Los Angeles (Jul 31, 1997), p. ? Stark, Susan. “Samuel L. Jackson’s precise, fastidious portrayal takes ‘187’ beyond the numbers” Detroit news (Jul 30, 1997), Accent, p. F5. Sterritt, David. [187] Christian Science monitor (Aug 1, 1997), p. 12. [Reprinted in Film review annual 1998] Turan, Kenneth. “Movie review: Even Jackson can’t save ‘187’” Los Angeles times (Jul 30, 1997), Calendar, p. 1. [Reprinted in Film review annual 1998] Verniere, James. “Movies: Blackboard bungle: As an inner-city school drama, ‘187’ fails to make the grade” Boston herald (Jul 30, 1997), p. 31. Vice, Jeff. “Genre overworked to death in ‘187’” Deseret news [Salt Lake City, UT] (Jul 30, 1997), p. C1. Vincent, Mal. “Familiar film leaves us disturbed, puzzled” Virginia-pilot [Norfolk, VA] (Aug 4, 1997), p. E5. Voorhees, Sara. “‘187’ is a dark (literally) look at urban schools” The Stuart news/Port St. Lucie news [Stuart, FL] (Aug 1, 1997), p. C7. Weeks, Janet. “Violent ‘187’ assaults movie believability” Daily news of Los Angeles (Jul 29, 1997), L.A. life, p. L3. Weiskind, Ron. “‘187,’ a sobering movie, teaches a lesson in despair” Pittsburgh post-gazette (Jul 30, 1997), p. D3. Wilmington, Michael. “Samuel L. Jackson’s ‘Dirty Harry’-style teacher isn’t enough to save loony ‘187’” Chicago tribune (Jul 30, 1997), Tempo, p. 1. Wilson, Brandon. “School of hard knocks” American cinematographer 78 (Aug 1997), p. 82-4+ [9 p.] Wuntch, Philip. “‘187’ is promising drama, but has a number of flaws” Dallas morning news (Jul 30, 1997), p. 1C. Wyatt, Gene. “Samuel Jackson brings depth to ‘187’” The Tennessean (Jul 30, 1997), p. 3D. c2005 J.K.M. Enterprises .