Want to know the best Teaching Movies? How about the worst Teaching Movies? Curious about Teaching Movie box office grosses or which Teaching Movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Teaching Movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place….because we have all of that information and lots more.
The following table has 74 Teaching movies ranked Best to Worst in 6 different categories. This is part of a two part series on Teaching Movies. This is the statistically ranking part. At our Teachers’ Favorite Teaching Movies page you can see a survey/poll/vote on what teachers actually say are their favorite Teaching Movies. There are obviously a lot more teaching movies…..this table just represents the movies that actual teachers name. See a missing Teaching Movie….and we can add it to this table.
Teaching Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort movies by stars of the movie
- Sort movies by adjusted domestic box office using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Teaching movies by yearly domestic box office rank
- Sort movies by how they were received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort movies by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each movie received.
- Sort movies by Ultimate Movie Ranking (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
- Blue link in Co-star column takes you to that star’s UMR movie page
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review | Oscar Nom / Win | UMR Score | S |
| 1 | A Beautiful Mind (2001) AA Best Picture Win |
Russell Crowe & Directed by Ron Howard |
170.70 | 355.1 | 652.10 | 11 | 82 | 08 / 04 | 99.8 | |
| 2 | The Graduate (1967) AA Best Picture Nom |
Dustin Hoffman & Anne Bancroft |
103.50 | 1,004.8 | 1,878.80 | 1 | 85 | 07 / 01 | 99.4 | |
| 4 | Good Will Hunting (1997) AA Best Picture Nom |
Robin Williams & Matt Damon |
138.40 | 354.4 | 578.40 | 7 | 83 | 09 / 02 | 99.4 | |
| 3 | The Song of Bernadette (1943) AA Best Picture Nom |
Jennifer Jones & Vincent Price |
13.40 | 526.0 | 526.00 | 4 | 77 | 12 / 04 | 99.2 | |
| 6 | Dead Poets Society (1989) AA Best Picture Nom |
Robin Williams | 95.90 | 283.7 | 698.10 | 11 | 84 | 04 / 01 | 99.0 | |
| 5 | Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1939) AA Best Picture Nom |
Robert Donat & Greer Garson |
6.90 | 288.2 | 545.90 | 12 | 79 | 07 / 01 | 99.0 | |
| 7 | To Sir, with Love (1967) | Sidney Poitier | 47.80 | 463.7 | 463.70 | 7 | 83 | 00 / 00 | 97.9 | |
| 8 | Blackboard Jungle (1955) | Sidney Poitier & Glenn Ford |
15.60 | 352.4 | 352.40 | 13 | 75 | 04 / 00 | 96.8 | |
| 9 | Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) | Daniel Radcliffe & Emma Watson |
316.60 | 658.4 | 2,025.10 | 1 | 74 | 03 / 00 | 96.4 | |
| 11 | The Karate Kid (1984) | Ralph Macchio & Noriyuki 'Pat' Morita |
90.80 | 317.6 | 317.60 | 5 | 75 | 01 / 00 | 96.4 | |
| 11 | Monsters University (2013) | Helen Mirren & John Goodman |
268.50 | 388.0 | 1,075.60 | 7 | 76 | 00 / 00 | 96.3 | |
| 13 | Mr. Holland's Opus (1995) | Richard Dreyfuss & Glenne Headly |
82.60 | 223.0 | 287.10 | 14 | 74 | 01 / 00 | 96.0 | |
| 15 | School of Rock (2003) | Jack Black | 81.30 | 158.3 | 255.80 | 36 | 82 | 00 / 00 | 94.4 | |
| 14 | The Cider House Rules (1999) AA Best Picture Nom |
Michael Caine & Charlize Theron |
57.50 | 133.6 | 205.60 | 41 | 76 | 07 / 02 | 94.3 | |
| 14 | Remember the Titans (2000) | Denzel Washington | 115.70 | 252.1 | 298.00 | 18 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 94.0 | |
| 16 | The Breakfast Club (1985) | Judd Nelson & Emilio Estevez |
45.90 | 151.8 | 170.50 | 16 | 82 | 00 / 00 | 93.7 | |
| 16 | The Miracle Worker (1962) | Anne Bancroft & Patty Duke |
7.10 | 111.9 | 111.90 | 37 | 86 | 05 / 02 | 93.0 | |
| 18 | The Rookie (2002) | Dennis Quaid | 75.60 | 153.2 | 163.50 | 36 | 78 | 00 / 00 | 92.3 | |
| 19 | Mean Girls (2004) | Lindsay Lohan & Tina Fey |
86.10 | 162.8 | 247.30 | 28 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 91.7 | |
| 19 | Precious (2009) AA Best Picture Nom |
Gabourey Sidibe & Mo'Nique |
47.60 | 74.5 | 99.70 | 63 | 85 | 06 / 02 | 91.0 | |
| 20 | Dangerous Minds (1995) | Michelle Pfeiffer | 84.90 | 229.4 | 484.90 | 13 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 91.0 | |
| 21 | Kindergarten Cop (1990) | Arnold Schwarzenegger & Angela Bassett |
91.50 | 254.0 | 561.00 | 11 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 90.9 | |
| 22 | Hoosiers (1986) | Gene Hackman | 28.60 | 90.6 | 90.60 | 34 | 86 | 02 / 00 | 89.1 | |
| 25 | Up The Down Staircase (1967) | Sandy Dennis | 12.50 | 121.4 | 121.40 | 26 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 88.1 | |
| 26 | Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982) | Sean Penn | 27.10 | 108.3 | 108.30 | 28 | 74 | 00 / 00 | 86.4 | |
| 27 | Easy A (2010) | Emma Stone | 58.40 | 87.0 | 111.60 | 59 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 85.6 | |
| 30 | Coach Carter (2005) | Samuel L. Jackson & Channing Tatum |
67.30 | 123.5 | 140.80 | 37 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 85.5 | |
| 29 | Finding Forrester (2000) | Sean Connery | 51.80 | 112.9 | 174.50 | 49 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 85.5 | |
| 28 | October Sky (1999) | Chris Cooper & Laura Dern |
32.50 | 75.6 | 80.50 | 63 | 81 | 00 / 00 | 84.7 | |
| 30 | Sky High (2005) | Kurt Russell | 63.90 | 117.4 | 158.60 | 40 | 66 | 00 / 00 | 84.0 | |
| 30 | Patch Adams (1998) | Robin Williams | 135.00 | 338.3 | 506.80 | 9 | 38 | 01 / 00 | 83.5 | |
| 31 | Rushmore (1998) | Bill Murray | 17.10 | 42.9 | 47.80 | 92 | 88 | 00 / 00 | 83.3 | |
| 32 | The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) | Maggie Smith | 5.70 | 47.3 | 47.30 | 47 | 82 | 02 / 01 | 82.5 | |
| 34 | Lean on Me (1989) | Morgan Freeman | 31.90 | 94.4 | 94.40 | 37 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 82.3 | |
| 36 | Bad Teacher (2011) | Cameron Diaz & Justin Timberlake |
100.30 | 148.6 | 320.30 | 29 | 52 | 00 / 00 | 81.9 | |
| 35 | Educating Rita (1983) | Michael Caine | 14.60 | 54.6 | 54.60 | 49 | 77 | 03 / 00 | 81.0 | |
| 37 | Matilda (1996) | Danny DeVito | 33.50 | 88.9 | 88.90 | 45 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 80.4 | |
| 39 | The Faculty (1998) | Josh Hartnett | 40.30 | 100.9 | 100.90 | 50 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 80.3 | |
| 38 | McFarland, USA (2015) | Kevin Costner | 44.50 | 62.0 | 63.70 | 60 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 79.5 | |
| 40 | The Edge of Seventeen (2016) | Hailee Steinfeld & Woody Harrelson |
14.40 | 19.6 | 25.50 | 125 | 87 | 00 / 00 | 79.1 | |
| 40 | Freedom Writers (2007) | Hilary Swank | 36.60 | 62.5 | 62.50 | 74 | 74 | 00 / 00 | 79.0 | |
| 43 | The Great Debaters (2007) | Denzel Washington | 30.20 | 51.6 | 51.60 | 85 | 75 | 00 / 00 | 77.4 | |
| 42 | The Perks of Being a Wallflower (2012) | Emma Watson & Paul Rudd |
17.70 | 26.2 | 49.30 | 112 | 82 | 00 / 00 | 76.5 | |
| 45 | The Man without a Face (1993) | Mel Gibson | 24.80 | 70.3 | 70.30 | 61 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 75.8 | |
| 47 | Teachers (1984) | Morgan Freeman & Nick Nolte |
27.80 | 97.1 | 97.10 | 35 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 75.7 | |
| 46 | Mona Lisa Smile (2003) | Julia Roberts & Kirsten Dunst |
63.90 | 124.4 | 275.40 | 46 | 49 | 00 / 00 | 74.6 | |
| 47 | Stand and Deliver (1988) | Edward James Olmos & Gary Sinise |
14.00 | 40.0 | 40.00 | 68 | 74 | 01 / 00 | 74.1 | |
| 48 | Radical (2023) | Eugenio Derbez | 8.70 | 9.5 | 22.40 | 99 | 84 | 00 / 00 | 74.1 | |
| 48 | Half Nelson (2006) | Ryan Gosling | 2.70 | 4.8 | 8.30 | 202 | 84 | 00 / 00 | 72.3 | |
| 50 | Summer School (1987) | Mark Harmon | 35.70 | 107.2 | 107.20 | 32 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 72.2 | |
| 50 | Conrack (1974) | Jon Voight | 6.10 | 38.1 | 38.10 | 60 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 71.8 | |
| 52 | Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969) | Peter O'Toole | 2.90 | 23.6 | 23.60 | 74 | 76 | 02 / 00 | 71.7 | |
| 52 | The Gambler (1974) | James Caan | 3.00 | 19.0 | 19.00 | 88 | 78 | 00 / 00 | 70.6 | |
| 54 | Major Payne (1995) | Damon Wayans | 29.40 | 79.4 | 79.40 | 62 | 57 | 00 / 00 | 69.1 | |
| 53 | Gifted (2017) | Chris Evans | 24.80 | 32.5 | 50.50 | 90 | 71 | 00 / 00 | 68.1 | |
| 54 | To Be and to Have (2003) | Mr. Lopez | 0.80 | 1.5 | 1.50 | 193 | 81 | 00 / 00 | 67.6 | |
| 57 | Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit (1993) | Whoopi Goldberg & James Coburn |
57.30 | 162.7 | 162.70 | 19 | 30 | 00 / 00 | 67.5 | |
| 58 | The Principal (1987) | Jim Belushi | 19.70 | 59.3 | 59.30 | 56 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 66.7 | |
| 59 | Heaven Help Us (1985) | John Heard | 6.10 | 20.1 | 20.10 | 109 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 65.0 | |
| 58 | World's Greatest Dad (2009) | Robin Williams | 0.20 | 0.3 | 0.30 | 248 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 64.6 | |
| 59 | Music of the Heart (1999) | Meryl Streep | 14.90 | 34.5 | 34.50 | 100 | 64 | 02 / 00 | 61.6 | |
| 64 | Pay It Forward (2000) | Kevin Spacey & Haley Joel Osment |
33.50 | 73.1 | 121.40 | 74 | 52 | 00 / 00 | 58.9 | |
| 63 | Gross Anatomy (1989) | Matthew Modine | 11.60 | 34.3 | 34.30 | 74 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 56.9 | |
| 64 | Super 30 (2019) | Hrithik Roshan | 2.30 | 2.9 | 31.70 | 159 | 72 | 00 / 00 | 55.2 | |
| 65 | Chalk (2006) | Christopher Guest | 0.30 | 0.5 | 0.50 | 265 | 71 | 00 / 00 | 53.0 | |
| 67 | The Substitute (1996) | Tom Berenger | 14.80 | 39.4 | 39.40 | 99 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 52.6 | |
| 65 | The Emperor's Club (2002) | Kevin Kline | 14.10 | 28.6 | 28.60 | 128 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 52.3 | |
| 66 | The Man Who Knew Infinity (2015) | Dev Patel & Jeremy Irons |
3.90 | 5.4 | 17.10 | 145 | 68 | 00 / 00 | 49.2 | |
| 68 | Spare Parts (2015) | George Lopez | 3.60 | 5.0 | 5.00 | 148 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 46.8 | |
| 69 | Detachment (2011) | James Caan | 0.10 | 0.1 | 5.50 | 252 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 44.0 | |
| 70 | Critical Thinking (2020) | John Leguizamo | 0.10 | 0.1 | 0.10 | 206 | 65 | 00 / 00 | 39.4 | |
| 71 | Billy Madison (1995) | Adam Sandler | 25.60 | 69.1 | 71.60 | 66 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 38.9 | |
| 72 | Renaissance Man (1994) | Mark Wahlberg & Danny DeVito |
24.30 | 70.1 | 70.10 | 57 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 37.8 | |
| 73 | Light it Up (1999) | Forest Whitaker & Judd Nelson |
6.00 | 13.9 | 13.90 | 143 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 31.0 | |
| 74 | Fist Fight (2017) | Ice Cube | 32.20 | 42.2 | 53.80 | 76 | 42 | 00 / 00 | 20.9 | |
| 75 | Teaching Mrs. Tingle (1999) | Helen Mirren | 9.00 | 20.8 | 20.80 | 130 | 41 | 00 / 00 | 9.9 |
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Radical and CODA both featuring Eugenio Derbez has a teacher need to be on this list