Category Archives: DVD

To Sir With Love

This is one of my favorite movies of all time. Great message presented in a pleasant, and entertaining, package.

Ideological changes in post-Civil Rights movement America were at the heart of legendary African-American actor Sidney Poitier’s films in the late 1960s. One such film is this powerful drama, which stars Poitier as Mark Thackery, an unemployed engineer who applies for a teaching job because he needs the paycheck. He lands a job at a school in London’s East End that’s full of unruly teenagers who are profoundly uninterested in learning. After several failed attempts to reach the students, Thackery abandons the textbooks and conventional teaching methods and, treating them as young adults, he prepares his students for the job market. His unorthodox style is effective–the students begin to respect Thackery and absorb his lessons. But his substantial accomplishments are weighed in the balance when he is finally offered the engineering job he had been waiting for.

Poitier’s proud, defiant figure stands tall against the rowdy, aimless swinging-sixties London teens, but one of the film’s strengths is the respect that is paid to the disruptive students as human characters worthy of a better future. Lulu, who delivers a strong student portrayal, also sings the popular theme song.

One of Poitier’s greatest strengths is his ability to command respect in his roles. Neither he, nor any character he portrayed, demanded respect as a black man – he made it clear he deserved respect simply as a man. And he got it. He was truly a role model for all young men of the time and this movie was a wonderful accompaniment. Add a great supporting cast and you have a movie I recommend to everyone in my circle.

Amazon.com essential video
Novelist James Clavell wrote, produced, and directed this 1967 British film (based on a novel by E.R. Braithwaite) about a rookie teacher who throws out stock lesson plans and really takes command of his unruly, adolescent students in a London school. Poitier is very good as a man struggling with the extent of his commitment to the job, and even more as a teacher whose commitment is to proffering life lessons instead of academics. The spirit of this movie can be found in such recent films as Dangerous Minds and Mr. Holland’s Opus, but none is as moving as this one. Besides, the others don’t have a title song performed by pop star Lulu. -~-Tom Keogh

Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 100%, Users 89%

Reign Over Me

Tagline: “Let in the unexpected”

Alan Johnson has everything he needs to get through life: a good job, a beautiful and loving wife, and their wonderful children. Yet he feels isolated because he finds having a hard-working job and managing a family too much to handle and has no one to talk to about it. Charlie Fineman, on the other hand, doesn’t have a job or a family. He used to have both until he lost his family on the fateful day of 9/11, and the grief he felt caused him to quit his job and isolate himself from everyone around him. As it turns out, Alan and Charlie were roommates in college, and a chance encounter one night rekindles the friendship they shared. But when Charlie’s problems become too much to deal with, Alan is determined to help Charlie come out of his emotional abyss.

I am going to point you to the review by babubhaut, an IMDB user, which sums up my feeling of the movie nicely.

I am not quite sure why Sandler went with the Bob Dylan impersonation for this role but, that quirk not-withstanding, his performance is quite moving. Don Cheadle is always great. Jada Pinkett Smith is generally irritating, but her role here is small enough that I didn’t mind her.

Yes, it’s a message film – and it’s predictable. But it is still lovely and I know my family and friends will enjoy it.

Rotten Tomatoes: critics 63%; users 86%