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The Lords of Discipline

Play trailer Poster for The Lords of Discipline R,  1983,  1h 50m,  Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist 40% 10 Reviews Tomatometer 56% 500+ Ratings Popcornmeter
40% Tomatometer 10 Reviews 56% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
A well-regarded senior at a Southern military academy, Will McLean (David Keith) is assigned to keep an eye on the school's first African-American cadet, Tom Pearce (Mark Breland), so that no harm comes to him. Determined to protect Tom, Will discovers that there is a secret group within the academy out to recruit the new student. However, their motives aren't honorable, and they aren't concerned about taking their violent initiation too far, leading Will to step into a dangerous situation.

Critics Reviews

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Matt Brunson Film Frenzy Sep 13, 2025
3/4
The film’s examination of covert fascism masked as red-blooded patriotism resonates more strongly than ever. Go to Full Review
Nick Rogers Midwest Film Journal Sep 2, 2025
2.5/5
While modestly engaging, "The Lords of Discipline" never ascends in rank to the upper echelon of military-academy stories due largely to some crucial miscasting and excision of key material from Pat Conroy's source novel. Go to Full Review
Lori Hoffman Atlantic City Weekly Jan 5, 2007
2/5
David Cornelius DVDTalk.com Mar 20, 2006
2.5/5
To get to the fine moments, we must wade through some sloppy melodrama, clunky characterizations, and a hackneyed, clumsy final act. Go to Full Review
Chuck O'Leary FulvueDrive-in.com Aug 31, 2005
B+
A riveting drama. Go to Full Review
Emanuel Levy EmanuelLevy.Com Jul 28, 2005
2/5
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Audience Reviews

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Oct 17, 2018 One of the best movies of all time
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The Lords of Discipline

My Rating

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Cast & Crew

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Franc Roddam

Director

David Keith

Will McLean

Robert Prosky

Col. "Bear" Berrineau

G.D. Spradlin

Gen. Bentley Durrell

Barbara Babcock

Abigail St. Croix

Michael Biehn

John Alexander

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The Lords of Discipline

The Lords of Discipline (1983) The Lords of Discipline (1983) The Lords of Discipline (1983) View more photos

Movie Info

Synopsis A well-regarded senior at a Southern military academy, Will McLean (David Keith) is assigned to keep an eye on the school's first African-American cadet, Tom Pearce (Mark Breland), so that no harm comes to him. Determined to protect Tom, Will discovers that there is a secret group within the academy out to recruit the new student. However, their motives aren't honorable, and they aren't concerned about taking their violent initiation too far, leading Will to step into a dangerous situation.
Director
Franc Roddam
Producer
Herb Jaffe, Gabriel Katzka
Screenwriter
Thomas Pope, Lloyd Fonvielle
Distributor
Paramount Pictures
Rating
R
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Feb 18, 1983, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Nov 12, 2014
Runtime
1h 50m
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