mischievous johnny bane ( scrappy dion gossett ) have an unfortunate knack for get into all kind of trouble represent he smoke and lie and steal and rudely disrupts class and doesn not do his schoolwork and and even mug an old guy for his money . bad yet and johnny vain struggle actress mother denise ( nicely play by sandy reed ) and hard work insurance salesman stepfather phil ( a strong and likable performance by renny roker ) spend more time squabble with each other than they do with johnny . writer or director horace jackson concoct a somewhat clumsy and but well meaning and insightful social drama that pertinently address how severe parental neglect contribute substantially to juvenile delinquency . moreover and jackson toss in occasional what the hell . unexpected oddball moment represent denise give johnny a rubdown in a scene that simmer with incestuous undertone and in one especially startle sequence a creepy pedophile assault a little girl in a bathroom . the jolt downbeat end pack a pretty potent punch and too . the kid actor be all appealingly natural ( gossett in particular impress a the moody and unhappy johnny ) . rich holmes be memorably hateful a stern history teacher mr. bishop . dennis coffey funky and syncopate score and mark rasmussen plain and no frill cinematography further enhance the gritty realism of this moving and effective picture .