''The Teacher'' is a 1974 American

coming-of-age Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a child to being an adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place varies between societies, as does the nature of the change. It can be a simple legal convention or can ...

erotic thriller film written, produced, and directed by Hikmet Avedis in 12 days for an estimated $65,000 and released by

Crown International Pictures Crown International Pictures (CIP) was an independent film studio and distribution company formed in 1959 by Newton P. Jacobs. History Jacobs was a branch head of RKO Pictures until 1947, when he formed Favorite Films, an organization which relea ...

. The film is Avedis'

grindhouse A grindhouse or action house is an American term for a theatre that mainly shows low-budget horror, splatter and exploitation films for adults. According to historian David Church, this theater type was named after the "grind policy", a fil ...

homage to 1967's ''

The Graduate ''The Graduate'' is a 1967 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Mike Nichols and written by Buck Henry and Calder Willingham, based on the 1963 novel of the same name by Charles Webb, who wrote it shortly after graduating from W ...

''. The film stars

Angel Tompkins Angel Tompkins is an American actress. She appeared in several films and television shows, and is a Golden Globe nominee. Career Angel Tompkins was a model in the Chicago area before being discovered by Woody Allen, who sent her to Universal Pic ...

Jay North Jay North (born August 3, 1951) is an American actor. His career as a child actor began in the late 1950s with roles in eight TV series, two variety shows and three feature films. At age 7 he became a household name for his role as the well-mean ...

, and Anthony James, and tells the story of an 18-year-old's first relationship with his alluring teacher, and the hidden danger awaiting them in the shadows.

Plot

It is summer, and obsessed Ralph Gordon (Anthony James) stalks a high-school teacher, 28-year-old Diane Marshall (Angel Tompkins). He watches her from an old warehouse while she is relaxing in her swimsuit on one of the boats. One of Diane's students, 18-year-old Sean Roberts (Jay North) and Ralph's younger brother Lou (Rudy Herrera, Jr.), also watch her strip naked and exercise. An angry Ralph yells at them, brandishing a bayonet. Shocked at this, Lou falls over the railing to his death, for which Ralph falsely blames Sean. Later that night, Ralph confronts Sean again, threatening to cut the boy's tongue out should he reveal anything. The sheriff questions Sean, who lies due to seeing Ralph eyeing him. The next day, Sean meets with Diane, who invites him to have tea. Diane reveals that she knows about Ralph stalking her. On their way home, Sean and she see Ralph watching them. Diane invites Sean into her house for a drink. This soon escalates into a moment of passionate lovemaking while Ralph, unknown to them, watches jealously. Diane invites Sean to her boat the next day. Ralph arrives and threatens Sean with a handheld

harpoon A harpoon is a long spear-like instrument and tool used in fishing, whaling, sealing, and other marine hunting to catch and injure large fish or marine mammals such as seals and whales. It accomplishes this task by impaling the target animal ...

. However, upon seeing Diane, he flees. Diane later asks Sean to dinner, after which Ralph again threatens him with the bayonet. Diane then tells Sean's parents about Ralph's threats. The next day, Sean drives Diane home and they have a

pool party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

together, then make love. Diane receives a phone call from her

drifter A drifter is a vagrant who moves from place to place without a fixed home or employment. Drifter(s) or The Drifter(s) may also refer to: Films and television Films * ''The Drifter'' (1917 film), an American film directed by Fred Kelsey * ''Th ...

husband telling her that he is coming back, but Diane tells him she is divorcing him. As Sean gets into his van to drive home, he is held at bayonet point by Ralph and ordered to drive to the warehouse. Sean manages to get away and arms himself with a rifle, but Ralph reveals that the gun is loaded with blanks. Ralph gets him in a

chokehold A chokehold, choke, stranglehold or, in Judo, shime-waza ( ja, 絞技, translation=constriction technique) is a general term for a grappling hold that critically reduces or prevents either air (choking)''The New Oxford Dictionary of English'' ( ...

, which ends up killing him. Diane arrives on the scene, where Ralph tells her that he killed Sean so he can be with her. A horrified Diane pleads tearfully with him. Ralph, overcome with anger and jealousy at Diane's love for Sean over himself, tries to strangle her. Diane manages to stab him with his own bayonet and flees crying, leaving Ralph to bleed to death. Diane finds Sean's body, breaks down and weeps.

Cast

... Diane Marshall *

... Sean Roberts * Anthony James ... Ralph Gordon *

Marlene Schmidt Marlene Schmidt (born 11 November 1937) is a German control engineer, actress, TV host and beauty queen who won Miss Universe 1961. Born in Breslau, Germany and raised in East Germany, where she earned a master's degree in engineering, in 1960, ...

... Alice Roberts *

Barry Atwater Garrett "Barry" Atwater (May 16, 1918 – May 24, 1978) was an American character actor who appeared frequently on television from the 1950s into the 1970s. He was sometimes credited as G.B. Atwater. Life and career The son of the landscape pai ...

... Sheriff Murphy *

Med Flory Meredith Irwin Flory, known professionally as Med Flory (August 27, 1926 – March 12, 2014), was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader, and actor. Early years Flory was born in Logansport, Indiana, United States. His mother was an organist a ...

... Joe Roberts *

Rudy Herrera Jr. Rudy or Rudi is a masculine given name, sometimes short for Rudolf, Rudolph, Rawad, Rudra, Ruairidh, or variations thereof, a nickname and a surname which may refer to: People Given name or nickname *Rudolf Rudy Andeweg (born 1952), Dutch poli ...

... Lou Gordon *

Quinn O'Hara Quinn O'Hara (January 3, 1941 – May 5, 2017), born Alice Jones, was a Scottish-born American actress and nurse. Early life O'Hara was born in Edinburgh. Later, she and her mother moved to Cardiff where she attended a convent school, then to ...

... Margaret Parker * Sivi Aberg ... Bonnie Nelson * Richard Winterstein ... Russell Marshall * Katherine Cassavetes ... Gossiping Lady 1 * Lady Rowlands ... Gossiping Lady 2 * Cassandra Lucas ... Waitress

Reception

Although 22 years old during principal production, North was still largely known to audiences as the impish child he had played 10 years before on the CBS family series '' Dennis the Menace''. Prior to the release of the film, columnist

Jack O'Brian John Dennis Patrick O'Brian (August 16, 1914 – November 5, 2000) was an entertainment journalist best known for his longtime role as a television critic for ''New York Journal American''. Career After the death of Dorothy Kilgallen, his co ...

reported of the "vulgarity" of North's first adult feature film role: "Nice little Jay North (TV's Dennis the Menace only a few smiles ago) has a bang-up role in 'The Teacher' flick -- an explicit porn-scene with Angel Tompkins." While not impressed with what he deemed to be a "ludicrous" storyline, ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' critic Kevin Thomas expressed appreciation for the portrayal of the film's two lead characters, writing:

The plot of 'The Teacher' isn't worth outlining, yet it develops a relationship between a 28-year-old woman and an 18-year-old high school boy with sensitivity and credibility unusual for an exploitation film. .. Avedis displays much concern for his people and allows Miss Tompkins and North plenty of room to give fresh, spontaneous performances.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Teacher 1974 films 1970s coming-of-age films 1970s erotic thriller films 1970s exploitation films 1970s psychological drama films 1970s psychological thriller films 1970s erotic drama films Adultery in films American coming-of-age films American erotic thriller films American exploitation films American psychological thriller films Crown International Pictures films American erotic drama films Films about murderers Films about stalking Films about scandalous teacher–student relationships Films about virginity 1974 drama films 1970s English-language films 1970s American films

Plot

Cast

Reception

See also

References

External links