Kristin and I actually went to a movie on Saturday afternoon, since we couldn't get away for our real date on Friday night. We saw a recent French film called "The Class" (Entre les Murs). It's one of those teacher movies that come around, but this one was different--it was real. It was almost too much to watch--the dialogue, personalities, and interactions reminded me of daily events when I taught at Glendale Middle School, only in French.It portrayed a "year in a life" of a young French teacher in a troubled inner-city Parisian school, where he tried his best to connect and teach these "at-risk" multi-cultural students. In the larger sense it was an interesting view and commentary on France's troubled (and getting worse) race relations, but I loved it for the view of an educator's work.
Unlike other teacher movies (Dangerous Minds-duh, etc.) there are no clear heroes nor villains. No Holland Opus moments or Pretty-white-lady Freedom writers to save the day in the end. Just a human being giving and giving, failing and succeeding at the same time and all within the larger context of a system that had basically failed these kids.
The film raises fundamental issues in education such as discipline, authority, and learning but doesn't claim to have any easy answers (sorry, Buttars). And, after a glimpse into the somewhat insulated world "between the walls" of the classroom, we learn there are no happy endings--very different from the Dead Poets glory of American films.
Without fawning over teachers it makes room for a realistic respect for the grinding challenges teachers face daily without judging them. With its subtle documentary style it's easy for some American viewers to dismiss the "plot", but just like real life, for a teacher the plot isn't anything more than September and June and whatever may happen in between.
Check out more info and clips at IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1068646/
5 comments:
If you need a third job, you are awesome at writing movie critiques. Actually, any writing you do is awesome!!!!
duh, go be a writer Senor Homer! So I'm assuming there's subtitles? for the English only speakers....
Of course, there are subtitles. I think you would like it. It's really aggravating and fun a the same time--like teaching middle school.
I liked it too. It was not at all what I was expected certainly not your typical feel good teacher movie. And it was just fun to go on a date with Keith.
I do not think I will be seeing the movie, but I did understand what you were saying. There is no happy ending, it is just one struggle that goes on and on.
Keith, I like to read your writings. Most of the time I understand them.!!! Just a kidding.
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