A few weeks ago, I fully expected to go to the theater tonight to review Won't Back Down. I figured I'd have to see it, because the debate about public education was going to center around the premise of the film.
But a funny thing happened this week: the movie is a critical flop. Almost every major critic finds it cloying and simplistic (if decently acted). Reports are it will gross around $5 million, even though it cost $19 million to make. I doubt any of the stars will be nominated for an Oscar, let alone the film itself.
Well, if WBD is failing on its own terms, I don't see why I should pay for a ticket just to pile on. The more money this piece of propaganda loses, the less money producer Philip Anschtz will have to donate to anti-gay, anti-union, and creationist causes.
There's no need for anyone to see this load of crap; the debate about the film was over before it even began. Kudos to Leonie Haimson and others for calling the people behind this movie out on their nonsense.
If you want to see a good film about teaching, stay home tonight and rent Mr. Holland's Opus. But don't give your hard-earned money to people who are trying undermine the profession - willingly, naively, or otherwise.
Right. Mr. Holland's Opus, where Richard Dreyfuss teaches Alicia Witt how to blow a flute, which enables her to become Governor and eviscerate the education budget for the State (of NJ, iirc; I remember thinking Witt's character was a slimly-disguised Christine Whitman at the time), leading to Mr. Dryface having to retire.
ReplyDeleteAnd she comes back to fete his (being forced into) retirement, which is the purest "I got mine so effewe, Jack" moment in an upbeat film not staring Sally Field.
It will be 99 cents in Red Box soon or on Lifetime...making into a drinking game and take a sip of your favorite beverage every time they bash a union teacher.
ReplyDeleteKen, you make a fair point.
ReplyDeleteThere's a wonderful French film about education called The Class. It's probably the best fictionalized film I have seen about education. And of course, there's always Season 4 of The Wire
ReplyDeleteEnough of this evaluating teachers in order to find a scapegoat for why kids are underachieving. It's time to apply the same metric to everyone who has a significant "effect" on student learning and as far as I'm concerned this starts AT HOME!!!!
ReplyDeleteWell Teresa Ruiz, how about proposing that we start evaluating parents? Let's evaluate parents and pay for schooling their children according to how good and 'involved' a parent they are. If they are highly effective, the public pays 100% of their child's way-->effective, public pays 67%, partially ineffective and the public pays only 33% of their kid's education. NOW if the parent is INEFFECTIVE then they have to pay for 100% of their kid's tuition.
Oh, whats that? Your kid has a learning disability or ADD? You better work harder or it will cost you more!!!!!
If you think this is ridiculous, WELCOME TO THE WORLD YOU'VE CREATED FOR US!!! Funny how people think that teachers have MORE control of their children than they do........
Fair is fair, let's make it happen!!!!!