With a great ensemble of actors, here comes another masterpiece from Tony Kaye, the director of American History X. We are taken to the world of teacher-student relations through the eyes of Henry Barthes (Adrien Brody), a substitute teacher who drifts from one school to another in order to avoid any connection with his students. He doesn't want to commit and believes his only responsibility is "to maintain order, to make sure no one kills anyone in your classroom and then make it to the next period". Yet this stint is unlike any other.
"I'm money, I change hands like dollar bills, that's been robbed by a lamp; then a Jeanie appeared and cried loudly, with volume; but the tears were all for myself and that's when it all went wrong"
As the movie progresses, we see flashes of the "faceless" man's childhood as deep-buried emotions are kindled in him in the presence of two women - a street hooker and a student who doesn't fit in. Haunted by memories of his mother's death since he was just 7, he likes to believe he has gotten used to loss & failure. Yet something within him makes him stand up for the two lost souls as he understands too well how important it is for someone to have guidance, something he didn't have while growing up.
Released during a time of high unemployment and Occupy Wall Street movement, this movie gives us a peek into the lives of teachers and their daily struggles in dealing with students' callousness and the high expectations of parents who are never really there for their kids.
Rating - 7.5/10
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