Underclassman
By Cynthia Fuchs,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Even charming Nick Cannon can't save this movie.
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Underclassman
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What's the Story?
Tre (Nick Cannon) is a young L.A. cop who wants to live up to his much-respected cop father's legacy. Reassigned to go undercover in a preppy L.A. high school where a student has died suspiciously, Tre maneuveres himself near the cool-kids-on-campus clique. As he angles to inside this group, he learns that said cool kids are stealing cars to support a drug trade for their shadowy adult boss-man. To fit in, Tre plays the "black kid" cliché, a slacker student with decent basketball skills, apparently passing well enough to fool students and faculty. Tre is assisted in this case by two other detectives, Brooks (Kelly Hu) and Gallecki (Ian Gomez).
Is It Any Good?
An unoriginal action comedy, UNDERCLASSMAN has little to recommend it save young Nick Cannon's charisma. But even his considerable energy -- on display most recently in his summer hit MTV show, Wildin' Out -- can't keep the movie afloat. As Tre, Cannon is sometimes charming and mostly obnoxious. Tre's adventures include repeated run-ins with the captain, the headmaster (Hugh Bonneville), and his alpha-boy classmates. Tediously, he always brings the gaudy "urban" patter but never has much to say.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about Tre's desire to live up to his father's legacy as an L.A. cop. How does this put pressure on his own ambitions as a cop? When Tre goes undercover as a high school student, how does his flirtation with his teacher lead to questions about propriety (hers as well as his)? How does his relationship with his captain lead to tension (over material objects, like cars and property)? What might Tre do to change his status in the department, short of sneaking out without his captain's permission? That is, how does his misbehavior mirror that of the criminal kids he's supposed to arrest?
Movie Details
- In theaters: September 2, 2005
- On DVD or streaming: January 17, 2006
- Cast: Kelly Hu , Nick Cannon , Roselyn Sanchez
- Director: Marcos Siega
- Inclusion Information: Latino directors, Female actors, Asian actors, Indigenous actors, Polynesian/Pacific Islander actors, Black actors, Latino actors
- Studio: Miramax
- Genre: Comedy
- Run time: 95 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG-13
- MPAA explanation: violence, sexual references, drug material and some teen drinking
- Last updated: January 25, 2023
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