When an inner-city Miami schoolteacher gets her knee broken after standing up to the school's gang leader, her mercenary combat specialist boyfriend goes undercover as a substitute teacher to take down the punk. Soon he discovers a conspiracy of criminals at work, and must reassemble his team from his last jungle raid to stop them.
There's a sense of shrewd observation throughout The Substitute that makes it come alive and seem quite a few cuts above such usual genre fare.
– Kevin Thomas,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Feb 2001
rotten:
Aside from a lot of only moderately-satisfying violence, The Substitute comes across as rather lame.
– James Berardinelli,
ReelViews,
1 Jan 2000
fresh:
Those who appreciate the irony of a killing machine turned loose on a pack of nasty students will find The Substitute a source of nonstop delight.
– Mick LaSalle,
San Francisco Chronicle,
1 Jan 2000
rotten:
The title changes, the actors change, and the superficial details of the story change, but it is always about exactly the same thing: heavily armed men shooting at one another.