Recommended movies for classroom viewing
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- DirectorPeter WeirStarsRobin WilliamsRobert Sean LeonardEthan HawkeMaverick teacher John Keating returns in 1959 to the prestigious New England boys' boarding school where he was once a star student, using poetry to embolden his pupils to new heights of self-expression.
- DirectorNicholas HytnerStarsDaniel Day-LewisWinona RyderPaul ScofieldA Salem resident attempts to frame her ex-lover's wife for being a witch in the middle of the 1692 witchcraft trials.
- DirectorFranco ZeffirelliStarsLeonard WhitingOlivia HusseyJohn McEneryWhen two young members of feuding families meet, forbidden love ensues.
- DirectorRamón MenéndezStarsEdward James OlmosEstelle HarrisMark PhelanThe story of Jaime Escalante, a high school teacher who successfully inspired his dropout-prone students to learn calculus.
- DirectorJohn FordStarsJohn WayneMaureen O'HaraBarry FitzgeraldA retired American boxer returns to the village of his birth in 1920s Ireland, where he falls for a spirited redhead whose brother is contemptuous of their union.
- DirectorJohn SturgesStarsSteve McQueenJames GarnerRichard AttenboroughAllied prisoners of war plan for several hundred of their number to escape from a German camp during World War II.
- DirectorGillian ArmstrongStarsSusan SarandonWinona RyderKirsten DunstThe March sisters live and grow in post-Civil War America.
- DirectorPeter JacksonStarsElijah WoodIan McKellenOrlando BloomA meek Hobbit from the Shire and eight companions set out on a journey to destroy the powerful One Ring and save Middle-earth from the Dark Lord Sauron.
- DirectorRobert MulliganStarsGregory PeckJohn MegnaFrank OvertonAtticus Finch, a widowed lawyer in Depression-era Alabama, defends a Black man against an undeserved rape charge, and tries to educate his young children against prejudice.
- DirectorJohn HustonStarsGregory PeckRichard BasehartLeo GennThe sole survivor of a lost whaling ship relates the tale of his captain's self-destructive obsession to hunt the white whale, Moby Dick.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsHenry ThomasDrew BarrymorePeter CoyoteA troubled child summons the courage to help a friendly alien escape from Earth and return to his home planet.
- DirectorStephen HerekStarsRichard DreyfussGlenne HeadlyJay ThomasA frustrated composer finds fulfillment as a high school music teacher.
- DirectorChris ColumbusStarsDaniel RadcliffeRupert GrintEmma WatsonAn orphaned boy enrolls in a school of wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world.
- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsC. Thomas HowellMatt DillonRalph MacchioIn a small Oklahoma town in 1964, the rivalry between two gangs, the poor Greasers and the rich Socs, heats up when one gang member accidentally kills a member of the other.
- DirectorHerbert RossStarsKevin BaconLori SingerJohn LithgowA city teenager moves to a small town where rock music and dancing have been banned, and his rebellious spirit shakes up the populace.
- DirectorCary Joji FukunagaStarsMia WasikowskaMichael FassbenderJamie BellA mousy governess who softens the heart of her employer soon discovers that he's hiding a terrible secret.
- DirectorHoward ZieffStarsAnna ChlumskyMacaulay CulkinDan AykroydVada is obsessed with death. Her mother is dead, and her father runs a funeral parlor. When Vada's father hires Shelly, a makeup expert, and begins to fall in love, Vada is outraged and does everything in her power to split them up.
- DirectorFrank CapraStarsJames StewartDonna ReedLionel BarrymoreAn angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.
- DirectorDavid AnspaughStarsSean AstinJon FavreauNed BeattyRudy has always been told that he was too small to play college football. But he is determined to overcome the odds and fulfill his dream of playing for Notre Dame.
- DirectorJohn Lee HancockStarsEmma ThompsonTom HanksAnnie Rose BuckleyAuthor P.L. Travers reflects on her childhood after reluctantly meeting with Walt Disney, who seeks to adapt her Mary Poppins books for the big screen.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsEmma ThompsonKate WinsletJames FleetRich Mr. Dashwood dies, leaving his second wife and her three daughters poor by the rules of inheritance. The two eldest daughters are the title opposites.
- DirectorJoe WrightStarsKeira KnightleyMatthew MacfadyenBrenda BlethynSparks fly when spirited Elizabeth Bennet meets single, rich, and proud Mr. Darcy. But Mr. Darcy reluctantly finds himself falling in love with a woman beneath his class. Can each overcome their own pride and prejudice?
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDaniel Day-LewisSally FieldDavid StrathairnAs the Civil War rages on, U.S President Abraham Lincoln struggles with continuing carnage on the battlefield as he fights with many inside his own cabinet on his decision to emancipate the slaves.
- DirectorRon MaxwellStarsTom BerengerMartin SheenStephen LangIn 1863, the Northern and Southern forces fight at Gettysburg in the decisive battle of the American Civil War.
- DirectorJerome RobbinsRobert WiseStarsNatalie WoodGeorge ChakirisRichard BeymerTwo youngsters from rival New York City gangs fall in love, but tensions between their respective friends build toward tragedy.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsMichael J. FoxChristopher LloydLea ThompsonMarty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown.
- DirectorRon HowardStarsTom HanksBill PaxtonKevin BaconNASA must devise a strategy to return Apollo 13 to Earth safely after the spacecraft undergoes massive internal damage putting the lives of the three astronauts on board in jeopardy.
- DirectorBoaz YakinStarsDenzel WashingtonWill PattonWood HarrisIn 1971 Virginia high school football was everything to the people of Alexandria. But when the school board was forced to integrate an all-black school with an all-white one, the very foundation of football's tradition was put to the test.
- DirectorJohn Lee HancockStarsQuinton AaronSandra BullockTim McGrawThe story of Michael Oher, a homeless and traumatized boy who became an All-American football player and first-round NFL draft pick with the help of a caring woman and her family.
- DirectorJoe JohnstonStarsJake GyllenhaalChris CooperLaura DernThe true story of Homer Hickam, a coal miner's son who was inspired by the first Sputnik launch to take up rocketry against his father's wishes.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsHenry FondaLee J. CobbMartin BalsamThe jury in a New York City murder trial is frustrated by a single member whose skeptical caution forces them to more carefully consider the evidence before jumping to a hasty verdict.
- DirectorWilliam DieterleStarsPaul MuniJosephine HutchinsonAnita LouiseThe biography of the pioneering French microbiologist who helped revolutionize agriculture and medicine.Unfortunately it's not out on DVD
- DirectorJohn MaddenStarsGwyneth PaltrowJoseph FiennesGeoffrey RushThe world's greatest ever playwright, William Shakespeare, is young, out of ideas and short of cash, but meets his ideal woman and is inspired to write one of his most famous plays.WARNING: It's rated R. The last 20 minutes though are a great example of how Elizabethan Theater was performed.
- DirectorSteve MinerStarsGabrielle AnwarMichael SchoefflingCliff RobertsonThrilled by a performance she sees at a fair, Sonora Webster tries to land a spot as a daredevil who rides horses off of high dives.
- DirectorJeremy KaganStarsMeredith SalengerJohn CusackJedIn the 1930s, a tomboy runs away from her guardian to join her single father who is 2,000 miles away, where he has found work.
- DirectorSean McNamaraStarsHilary DuffJohn CorbettRebecca De MornayTerri Fletcher is a small town girl with the voice of a big-time singer. When personal tragedy interrupts her steady life, Terri defies her father's wishes and secretly heads off to spend a summer at a Los Angeles performing arts academy.
- DirectorJon TurteltaubStarsNicolas CageDiane KrugerJustin BarthaA historian races to find the legendary Templar Treasure before a team of mercenaries.While not very educational, it's a fun watch with little bad language and features many historical cities and monuments.
- DirectorHarry WinerStarsKate CapshawLea ThompsonKelly PrestonThe young attendees of a space camp find themselves in space for real when their shuttle is accidentally launched into orbit.Hard to find on DVD, but great teen movie!
- 20131h 25mNot Rated6.9 (193)DirectorApril WrightStarsCharles BrussRiley CookeRoger CormanOnce a vibrant part of American culture, drive-ins reached their peak in the late 50s with almost 5,000 dotting the nation. Although drive-ins are experiencing a resurgence, today less than 400 remain. In a nation that loves cars and movies, why haven't they survived?
- DirectorJules BassArthur Rankin Jr.StarsJeff BridgesMia FarrowAngela LansburyA beautiful unicorn sets out to learn if she truly is the last of her kind in this sparkling animated musical.
- DirectorKatja von GarnierStarsHilary SwankMargo MartindaleAnjelica HustonA little known, yet integral piece of American history: based on the lives of Alice Paul and Lucy Burns, two young radical women who were instrumental in getting women the right to vote in America.
- DirectorTheodore MelfiStarsTaraji P. HensonOctavia SpencerJanelle MonáeThe story of a team of female African-American mathematicians who served a vital role in NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program.