Heart of Stone (2009)
Beth Toni Kruvant
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Plot Summary
When Ron Stone becomes the principal in 2001, it is overrun with gangs. Undeterred, he dons a bulletproof vest to engage with the neighborhood and enlists the help of African American and Jewish alumni to raise much-needed money for essential materials. Fearless, he convinces the local leader of the Bloods to help keep kids in school to graduation - and that local leader of the Bloods himself eventually goes on to college. Stone is a modern American hero.
Rotten Tomatoes Movie Reviews
TOMATOMETER
100%- Reviews Counted: 5
- Fresh: 5
- Rotten: 0
- Average Rating: 7.9/10
Top Critics' Reviews
Fresh: Two things keep Heart of Stone from being like every other documentary about a dedicated principal who tries to turn a failed urban high school around.
Fresh: Heart of Stone is a portrait of a dedicated man -- smart, articulate, strong and tough-minded yet warm and compassionate, willing and able to reach out and communicate with his students on an individual basis.
Fresh: Director Beth Toni Kruvant hits incredible highs and a shocking low as she explores the cultures of past and present student bodies that come together in a common cause.
Fresh: Heart of Stone is a heartbreaker: a documentary about an inner-city high school that shows how hard, how necessary, and how infinitely rewarding it can be to open doors for kids who didn't know they were there.
Customer Reviews
Heart of Stone
The director manages to give us a glimpse of life before 1967 at one of New Jersey's finest high schools, Weequahic. She endeavors to explain the great influence of Principal Ron Stone who manages to work with and help inspire many of the troubled youth in the school. Principal Stone turns to the mostly Jewish alumni for financial and other help and soon a partnership begins to grow. Ron Stone should be an inspiration to many of today's principals who work in tough urban environments. Alumni should watch this and remember their high schools and how it shaped them into the adults that they have become. It takes a village......
Outstanding work!!! Five Stars!
Heart of Stone
Such an entertaining movie and makes you feel so good to embrace people of all ethnic and racial backgrounds. I hope this movie does wonders for bridging relationships amongst all types of people of different socio - economic backgrounds. The movie is a great model for what a community can do to improve the school system and relationships amongst school children and alumni.
Great for Educators!
I currently work in a leadership role in urban education and this film hit home. It captures the social aspect that school leaders have to deal with, within an urban settings. It also captures the effects of white flight and how traditionally great schools have never recovered from the effects of poverty and violence on a community. I recommend the film to all in education regardless of your setting. Indian Pride!
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