Inner-city school films seem to follow the same formula, albeit with a few, usually minor, deviations. A new principal (George McKenna) comes to "the worst school in the district" (George Washington High) that is always located in an urban, gang-infested, area. The principal is idealistic and hopes to radically turn the school around, but soon meets with tough resistance from his fellow teachers, who are disillusioned, angry, and are simply there to get paid. Despite this, the principal manages to find a few teachers willing to go the extra mile and a few students willing to learn. The principal also focuses on several problem students, one of which can't read, and works on creating a plan to reform the school, the students, and the community. In doing so, he sacrifices his personal relationships, but his gamble pays off and the school begins to turn around.

The George McKenna Story doesn't break the mold, but, for the most part, it follows the formula fairly well. To my surprise, The George McKenna Story made an attempt at social commentary by saying that if students respected themselves, then they'd want and strive to be better students, and that in turn would improve the school. Several other inner-city school films, The Principal included, avoided social commentary, so it was interesting to see it brought up here. However, The George McKenna Story does tackle a bit more than it can chew in several places. In particular, when McKenna drives home a student and discovers he lives in a car, the student and the situation are never brought up again. McKenna also offers to teach a gang member how to read, but instead of teaching him, a fellow student does. Despite a few drawbacks in the plot and the general familiarness of it all, the film is worth watching on TV one afternoon if you're a fan of the genre and Washington.

Video:
Hard Lessons is presented in 1.33:1 full screen. The transfer has a lot of specks and marks, as well as a few scratches and some grain. The print is also a bit faded in appearance, with colors that are adequate, but never bright or bold. Flesh tones throughout are mostly accurate, with blacks that are a bit too light in several scenes.

Audio:
Hard Lessons is presented in Dolby 2.0 Stereo in English. The 2.0 Stereo track is unimpressive, to put it kindly, with dialogue that sounds flat and hollow and music that is distorted in several places. It gets the job done, as all the dialogue is audible, but it's no aural treat. No optional subtitles are included.

Extras:
No extras.

Summary:
Hard Lessons doesn't bring anything new or particularly thought provoking to the "inner-city school" subgenre. The barebones DVD, with its lackluster audiovisual presentation, isn't too enticing of a purchase, so if you're interested, definitely try it out as a rental first.