This review contains spoilers
Jamie (Maggie Gyllenhaal) is a poor single mom who's daughter Malia attends the neighborhood elementary school. The school has been failing for
19 years, her daughter (a 3rd grader) can't read and has a
teacher who completely ignores her class to shop on the internet.
Nona is a teacher at the same school. Former teacher of the year is
teaching a class of bored disengaged students. She's become world
weary, her marriage is falling apart, and her son who she has
enrolled in a different public school across town is failing
miserably. They couldn't be more different, based on how they dress,
their homes, how they raise their children Nona for instance doesn't
allow candy or TV on weekdays, Jamie brings Malia over with a DVD
player so they can be entertained and is shocked that Nona doesn't
allow such a thing. The movie does a great job at pointing out just
how different they are.
The reason they get together is because
Jamie can't get her daughter into a better school or class and just
happens to learn about the parent trigger law where a school that is
failing can be taken over by the teachers and parents. The movie is
set in Pittsburgh which doesn't have a parent trigger law. The only
state where such a law exists in California. The two band together,
Nona requires a ton of coaxing, and decide to see if they can get the
support they need to get it in front of the board, like Hollywood
magic of course they get it done in a few months instead of the years
it realistically should take, even the people who explain what they
need say it takes years to get to that point but you know its
Hollywood. The thing is the movie can't decide who's the villain in
the film, the school board who won't pass it or the teacher's union
who is very much against it. The movie isn't completely anti-union.
There's a scene with Jamie's boyfriend, Michael also a teacher at
Adam’s Elementary and probably the most well liked person in the
school where he explains who unions exist when they helped a good
teacher keep his job. He's the voice of reason even if Jamie is more
interested in making out with him than listening.
The movie is clearly trying to make a
point but it gets lost along the way. It's great at pulling the heart
strings, when Nona's son comes home with blood on his shirt after
being pushed around by the other kids at his school where they call
him slow she makes so hard choices and the woman sitting next to me
was hysterical crying. When the teacher's union launches a smear
campaign against Nona and we see why she is so overprotective of him
you get how she got to where she was. Viola Davis plays this part
with heart and you feel her emotion, as a person the explore her
character but leave so many others cliches of themselves. I couldn't
make myself like Jamie no matter how hard I tried, she's headstrong,
she seems to want to help her daughter but she doesn't see the
“greater good” or how not everyone wants what she wants. Even her
Malia's absolutely horrible teacher who everyone hates, Jamie doesn't
see why she wouldn't want these changes. You do at least feel for
Nona, she's liked by her coworkers till they find out she's helping
Jamie with the school takeover plan. She has a principal she can't
stand one who gets it in his head she's aiming for his job, more
magic, but hey we aren't taking prisoners here. Ving Rhames has a
tiny part as the Principal of the coveted Charter school, Holly
Hunter who plays the Head of the teacher’s union although later she
seems to not be, daughter of union parents, Evelyn tries to make all
these issues go away, she offers to give Malia a full scholarship to
the fancy private school that half of the board sends their children
to, She's got some board members in her pocket but of course she
experiences a crisis of conscience when the attacks on Nona happen
without her consent.
Now these being a Hollywood movie, they
of course in a gripping vote manage to get it passed, Jamie makes
this startling revelation that she's dyslexic just like her daughter,
and they open their school where sure enough Malia can magically
read. At that point I totally want to throw my hands up and slap my
neighbor.
I give this movie a Redbox. Its not
amazing, but I can see why some love it. It didn't make me cry or
even feel overwhelmingly moved because I could see the pandering a
mile away. I was more moved by The Lottery which is an excellent
documentary about the character school system and the lives of a set
of families who all try for the well regarded NYC charter school.
This is dressed up to push an agenda but its clumsy. They had lots to
work with but just didn't feel like bothering its unfocused and thats what keeps it from being a must see.
