Review of The Class (2007) by Kyle A — 01 Apr 2013

Taken from my 'Debra Granik Essential Viewing' independent study:

The Class is the newest film included Debra Granik's European Essential Viewing list. The 2008 Palme d'Or winning French film is classic neo-realist storytelling. The film, which is shot entirely in one school, follows a French language teacher (Francois Begaudeau) who teaches low income teenagers from a diverse background. The film doesn't have a story-based conflict, rather it allows its moody characters to build a tension by pitting the school's students against its forgiving and level-headed teacher, Mr. Marin. Through the conversations between the pupils & Mr. Marin, Mr. Marin & the rest of the teaching staff, and the brief moments when parents interact with the teachers & students we get a sense of the socio-political atmosphere that surrounds our characters... without ever leaving the school!

While most of the teachers buckle under the pressure of teaching students who 'don't seem to want to make an effort', Mr. Marin gives his students the benefit of the doubt. He allows students to push both him and their classmates around at times, electing to encourage students in their successes instead of punishing them when their sense of moral conduct falls to the wayside. At first, it seems like a technique that will work. Troubled students Souleymane (Franck Keita) and Carl (Carl Nanor) find interests within Mr. Marin's teachings, and show light for their future, if only for a minute. Instead of reveling in these small successes, director Laurent Cantet reminds us that teaching isn't a one-note job. Rather, today's successful day of teaching can turn into tomorrow's failure of a bitch fest. The clash of French immigrant culture and the changing hormones of the students are carefully represented, causing Mr. Marin to lash out at two students who use his words against him. The clash snowballs as the students gang up on Mr. Marin, which leads to the film's climax: an expulsion of potentially life-changing proportions for Souleyane, a Mali Muslim immigrant. We are never out-right given Mr. Marin's vote in the expulsion hearing, but the complex characters that Cantet brings to life let us know that the decision is haunting indeed.

The Class is above all else fair to every one of its characters and I can't help but feel that is the primary reason as to why it's included on this list. No one character is all evil, nor all good. They are sympathetic shades of grey, living in a tough environment and doing their best to get by and understand why education (and the teaching of one) is relevant to lives that seem destined to live in poverty. The Class is not interested in being sentimental. It gives glimmers of hope that the education the students receive will make a difference, but it does not promise it. The film knows the limits of being set entirely in a school. School has obvious effects on a student's life, but its reach can only go so far. The same is true for a teacher's.

The Class is Arpke Approved at 5 out of 5 stars.