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Paprika Steen, Ulrich Thomsen, Jonas Wandschneider, Sofie Gråbøl, Sonja Richter ... see more see more... , Olivia Stenderup Garre , Michael Larsen

When a sixth grade class gets a malevolent new substitute who aims to train her students for an upcoming international competition in Paris, the suspicious students attempt to uncover the truth about ... read more read more...their strange new substitute. The parents all seem to love the newly arrived educator, but the students know better. No only does this strange new arrival have a sadistic streak a mile wide, but she also seems to possess telekinetic powers in addition to having the ability to read minds. Paprika Steen stars in a sci-fi flavored thriller directed by Ole Bornedal (Nightwatch). ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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50% liked it

1,073 ratings

R, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: Ole Bornedal

Release Date: February 12, 2007

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DVD Release Date: October 14, 2008

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Stats: 156 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (156)

  • creepfreak
    May 30, 2012
    creepfreak
    The Substitute is a cool little sc-fi/horror film part of the "Ghosthouse Underground" productions, which released a string of horror films, many which are being released to DVD just in time for the Halloween season. Among the Ghosthouse Underground production films is the atroci... read moreously bad "Dance of the Dead". Being that Dance of the Dead was so horrible I was extremely skeptical about The Substitute being an even remotely satisfying film. Because I'm a very open minded person I give every horror film a chance, and even though Dance of the Dead sucked, I'm not going to exclude all Ghosthouse Underground films from my viewing pleasures. Yes, I was indeed worried about The Substitute being total crap, but let me tell you...I'm sure glad I watched it!

    A good way to describe The Substitute would be saying it's like "The Faculty" meets "The Goonies". Yes, it's rated R, but don't expect and any gore or any hard violence. There's not even any blood, no nudity, or anything extreme at all. It earned it's R rating simply for just a few "F" words. The Substitute plays more like a kid film. As a matter of fact, without the few scenes of profanity, The Substitute would feel more like a soft PG-13 horror film.

    Plot:
    "6th Grade gets a new substitute teacher. She wants to train the class for an international competition in Paris. But something isn't right. How is she able read kids' minds? Why is she so mean? And how does she manage to convince everyone's parents she is so great when the whole class knows she is really an alien?"


    The performances here are all solid, even from the kids. Each kid is very likeable and fun. The whole damn movie is fun! An interesting and unique story to go with it as well. The humor isn't laugh out loud funny, but let me tell you, it's very sharp and it's smart. The dialogue is intelligently playful and cool. The movie is faced paced and witty. The Substitute is like the films you watched as a kid that hold a special place in your heart. It's actually more like a kid film that's for adults.

    There is nothing scary about The Substitute, that isn't the point of the film. It's simply just a fun and enjoyable horror movie! Nothing more.

    And just for a heads up...you should watch this movies in subtitles. Being that the language is in Danish, the movie is dubbed in English. Watching this one dubbed makes everything seem way too cheesy, which in fact this is not a cheesy movie. If you watch The Substitute with subtitles you'll enjoy it more. It won't come off that corny.
  • kiriyamakazou
    May 30, 2012
    kiriyamakazou
    A wonderfully made little Danish gem. A class of 6th graders discover that the new substitute is an alien. Of course, the parents don't believe them and the teacher is an expert at manipulation. It puts aside the usual, alien conquers the world story and goes for one of an alien ... read moretrying to understand love and empathy. It's actually a way of saving her own species, rather than dooming ours, though she doesn't go about it in the best way. It looks good, but also plays it a bit too serious.
  • thefog1331
    March 28, 2009
    thefog1331
    Comedic coming-of-age story with a sci-fi twist.
    Enjoyably offbeat film from Denmark that should be watched in its original form since the english language dub is horribly laughable.
  • nadyajoensen
    May 30, 2012
    nadyajoensen
    This movie was ok and pretty creepy at times, this is definetely not a childrens movie. This is a Danish movie about a 6th grade class who gets a new substitute teacher as their old teacher has got sick. She shows some weird and evil sides alread from the beginning and the childr... read moreen are afraid. When she wants to take the class to Paris the children begin to panic because they don't want to be taken away by her. The parents of course don't believe the children when they try to reveal her.
  • John2223
    May 30, 2012
    John2223
    The Ghost House Underground presents an entry from Denmark with not a lot of special effects, but it sustains suspense and anxiety. It is a very entertaining movie; part social commentary, part black comedy, part horror with stunning performances by virtually all the actors and a... read more very effective script.
  • cacutshaw
    May 30, 2012
    cacutshaw
    The best from the Ghosthouse Underground boxset so far. A great film for kids and adults alike, filled with lots of laughs and some fantastic imagery. The kids are very endearing and charming, reminding me of a lot of the "kids movies" I've liked in the past (Monster Squad, Goo... read morenies, etc). The scene when the kids are being taken to a bus heading to Paris is classic. Really good stuff.
    So lets see. So far in the Ghost House Underground boxset we have 2 excellent films, 2 good ones and 1 okay one, with 3 more to go. Fuck Rue Morgue magazine.
  • silentbob66
    May 30, 2012
    silentbob66
    When 6th grade gets a new teacher something seems really odd about her that the kids cant really figure out she is mean rude able to read there minds then they find out just what sets her apart from the other teachers except no one will listen the parents and school think there c... read morerazy now its up to this 6th grade class to stop her. Really good sci fi/horror film shouldnt be missed but dont look for blood or gore here there isnt any and some of the dubbing makes you wanna laugh but still with all that i would for sure recommend it.
  • urfavoritegirl
    May 30, 2012
    urfavoritegirl
    when I saw the preview I didn't really liked the way it looked. I gave the movie a try and it was actually really good. Love the chicken eating scene!! The kids were really cool. It was actually good.
  • katangel13
    May 30, 2012
    katangel13
    not even that bad as one would think. Granted there are a couple really cheesy moments, it's still well done
  • kcddck
    May 30, 2012
    kcddck
    This is a pretty decent sci fi flick that really depends on good performances from the cast. The story got a little slow at times and slightly flawed, but this was still a decent movie to watch.

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The Substitute Trivia

  • In the movie the Waterboy, they actually used a substitute for water, because water was too heavy and didn't work well on film.  Answer »
  • "Your son has been pretending to be a substitute teacher, lecturing the students, uh, giving out homework, uh. Mrs. Glasser has been ill, there was some confusion with the real sub." If Leonardo Di Caprio is the son, who's the father?  Answer »
  • Sometimes you just gotta say 'What the fuck!'." Porsche. There is no substitute Joel, go to school. Go learn something. name this 1983 movie starring tom cruise and rebecca de mornay  Answer »
  • Name the movie this quote is from: Joel: Porsche... there's no substitute. Miles: Fuck You.   Answer »
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