Review of The Class (2008) by Klei R — 17 Aug 2009
This was a movie I could appreciate a little more than say that I liked. Here's what I learned from this movie:
1. Teaching 13-15 year olds has to be one of the most thankless jobs a human being can undertake.
2. Schools in France don't seem to be much better than schools in the USA (at least in the inner city).
3. France has the added issue of being a very multi-cultural country, which presents lots of challenges.
The movie is essentially about a class in the inner city of France. There are about 20 some odd kids in the class. They are all in their early teens. Some are well behaved and others are not. It seems like a pretty typical class. The movie follows them all throughout the school year. All of the action takes place in the school, and most of it is in the classroom.
The teacher is the main character, but all of the kids take on personalities of their own throughout the movie. There is a real ebb and flow to it. Disagreements come and then they are smoothed over through time. Being that my Dad was a teacher my entire adolescent life, this movie seemed at least somewhat familiar.
In the end, there is an incident, and it all plays not out not for dramatic effect, but the way things actually would. There is a lot of healthy debate, as there almost always is when students and teachers are involved.
I think this movie just reinforced my opinion that being a teacher is one of the most honorable and least appreciated occupations out there. I don't know how my Dad did it for 25 years.
This review of The Class (2008) was written by Klei R on 17 Aug 2009.
The Class has generally received very positive reviews.
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