Okay, but overrated
Added 9/24/2009
"Half Nelson" is a 2006 independent film starring Ryan Gosling as Mr. Dunne, a white school teacher in an inner-city Brooklyn middle school. Mr. Dunne has noble ambitions of being a positive force in the lives of his students but he's bogged down by a crack habit. He strikes up a much-needed friendship with one of his students, a latchkey 13 year-old black girl named Drey, who accidently discovers his drug problem.
Richard Roeper and Kevin Smith's review on At The Movies called "Half Nelson" a masterpiece that everyone should seek out, view and relish; unfortunately it's not even close to being that good.
Yes, the acting is great across the board, especially Gosling, but acting itself does not a movie make. What's wrong with this film? For one thing, the story plays out in a dreary monotone its entire length (106 minutes) and ends on an unresolved note. Yet, even this doesn't explain why the film fails to be truly good or great; after all, 2004's "The Woodsman" also plays out in a flat, realistic manner and ends somewhat unresolved, but that film is great. So where does "Half Nelson" go wrong?
Although Ryan Gosling is an excellent actor, his character in this film, Mr. Dunne, is lifeless, unlikable, hypocritical and unrepentant; by contrast, Keven Bacon in "The Woodsman" may be lifeless and unlikable, but at least he wasn't hypocritical or unrepentant.
By "lifeless and unlikable" I mean that he lacks vibrancy and inspiration, even when he's in his glory teaching his kids about dialectics & history. There's simply no charisma that would compel anyone to want to seek him out, learn from him or befriend him, like, say, Robin Williams' character in "Dead Poets Society."
By "hypocritical" I mean the obvious: How much of a positive impact could he possibly have on inner-city youths if he himself is addticted to drugs? This brings to mind the absurd scene where Mr. Dunne confronts a drug dealer who's using Drey as a drug deliverer. Dunne doesn't want Drey to be negatively influenced by a drug dealer but it's okay for her to hang out with a pathetic drug addict like himself (?). The scene ends with Dunne having a drink and "candy" with the drug dealer -- lot of good that confrontation did.
By "unrepentant" I mean there's no indication in the story that Dunne desires to or will ultimately choose to detox from his drug habit. He makes the statement that "rehab doesn't work." Okay, that's fine, but do SOMETHING to try to escape your drug problem!
There are other problems with the film:
- The camera bobbles around too much as if to draw attention to itself ("See, this is a realistic slice-of-life picture!") It smacks of pretension.
- The kids in the classroom seem too well-behaved. This is a problem in Anywhere, America, let alone the inner-city.
- Despite Mr. Dunne's monotone dreariness, the viewer does desire to see him escape his addiction and fulfill his noble ambitions. We also come to care about Drey -- will she acquire the wisdom to stay away from drugs (dealing or addiction) and prison or will she too become part of the problem? Unfortunately the film leaves everything up in the air. We don't even know if Dunne still has his job at the end.
I get the points the film is trying to make -- this is an anti-inspirational teacher/mentor movie. There's no by-the-numbers breakthrough for student or teacher. "Half Nelson" isn't concerned with such things; it's concerned with the the simple achievement of going to work every day and accomplishing something beyond oneself, despite a flawed nature and crippling habit. It's a fine point but it could have been done in a much more compelling way.
Don't get me wrong, I don't hate "Half Nelson." I did appreciate quite a few aspects of it, especially Dunne's unlikely friendship with a 13 year-old girl, but the story never rises above its flat dreariness to become anything more than okay.
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Three and a half, really. A Film You Must Have A Little Patience For
Added 9/3/2009
After viewing Lars and the Real Girl, I was so blown away by Ryan Gosling as an actor, I had to pick up another film of his. Half Nelson delivers another stunning performance by Gosling, but the film as a whole doesn't quite live up to Gosling's abilities. No real plot drives the movie, which does provide an interesting character study, but the film does not give the audience enough connection with the characters to keep their attention. It reaches in too many directions, from Dan's addiction to his relationship with various women, to Drey's family life, to her relationship with Frank, to the classroom scenes, that it felt like there was no time to really connect to any of these directions. Too many snapshots tend to blur the overall picture.
The first half of the movie I was so bored with the way it dragged and blurry, unfocused shots with maudlin music to accompany, I contemplated shutting it off. The performances of Shareeka Epps and Gosling were so extraordinary though, they kept me from giving up on this film. I am glad I persevered, because the film picked up steam and asked some interesting questions near the end. The drug-dealer Frank stood out to me as we approached the end as the most complex character, because he seemed to be the only one fleshed out enough to see the complexities of his personality and situation.
The plot of a brilliant, white teacher who teaches at a predominately black inner-city high school immediately conjures up stereotypes from films such as Dangerous Minds or The Principal, and I worried when Half Nelson might plunge into such stereotypes as well. I was pleasantly surprised to discover a richer movie than that, and by the end of the film, I had to applaud the film for not trying to wrap the film up with some overall moral or teaching. I still cannot decide if it completely outweighs the very, very, very slow build-up, but a movie that improves is better than a movie that does not.
Overall, I would recommend this film for anyone with the patience to wait it out. If you're looking for a moderate or fast paced, plot-driven film though, this may not be the movie for you.
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Complete in every way...
Added 6/17/2009
Ok, first thing I'm going to do is address the ending, but before you get all freaked out that I'm going to `say too much', stop worrying. I'm not going to say anything that will spoil the film for you in any way shape or form; I promise.
Many a review will tell you one thing about the ending; it's ambiguous. It leaves the audience at a bit of a cliffhanger, wondering just what is going to happen next. A lot of people have a problem with this kind of an ending; in fact it may have been that very ending that squashed this films hopes of becoming a huge Oscar contender (because, honestly, this film is leagues better than any of the films that the Academy nominated). Our society demands a happy ending. We are so fed up with our own realities that we need to escape into the fabricated happy lives of the Hollywood fairytale where every bad decision leads to a resolve that fixes everything for everyone and makes you feel all warm and fuzzy and ready to face tomorrow. The realist in you tells you that what you are watching is unrealistic but the optimist in you tells you that all you have to do is believe and then `kicking drugs' will really be that easy.
Ha.
Well, `Half Nelson' is not the movie for you if you want a film that will lie to you in the ways most Hollywood films will do. But, if you want a realistic film that broaches a dark subject with some intelligence and compassion then this is the film for you.
`Half Nelson' tells the story of Dan Dunne, a young and energetic teacher who has a knack for reaching his students with his unique teaching style. He also has a really bad drug habit that he uses to cover over the repressed feelings of failure and disapproval he faces in his life. Drey, one of his brightest students, is sweet by nature and sparks something close to curiosity in Dan. Drugs are also a big part of her life, but in a different way. Having seen her brother tossed in prison for dealing you'd think that drugs would be the furthest thing from Drey's mind, but living in a poor neighborhood with little opportunities leaves Drey with only one viable means for escape; drugs. Both Drey and Dan share a common bond; they are both enslaved to the inevitable, but with each others help and understanding they can overcome it.
I got you with that last part, huh? The whole `overcome it' statement. Yeah, I warned you; this is not that type of movie. But, that does not mean that this is not an inspirational film. No matter what the outcome for these characters, their relationship is really a saving grace. The way in which the addict and the inevitable dealer is handled is so beautifully understanding and realistic. These are not your carbon copy junkies and villains; they are real, living, breathing humans with issues that rival yours and mine.
They are you.
They are me.
The acting, as many have already mentioned, is impeccable. It's a shame that Shareeka Epps didn't get more attention for her devastatingly raw portrayal of Drey. She walks toe to toe with Gosling (who managed a deserved Oscar nomination) and delivers a performance that is just as good as his. If only she were a bigger name star (and older, for I'm sure the age thing came up), then she would have garnered an Oscar nomination for sure. I'll admit this too; I was floored by Anthony Mackie. I normally find this actor to be irritating, annoying and the worst part of a movie; but he was stunningly accurate here and exceptionally convincing.
His best performance to date, by a country mile.
From the intimate and realistic script to the intimate and realistic performances, `Half Nelson' is a true independent gem of a film; a movie that gets everything right and then some. One of the best films of the decade and truly one I will remember forever; I recommend this with the highest of praises.
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2.5 stars out of 4
Added 2/3/2009
The Bottom Line:
Half Nelson features a good performance by Gosling, some nice unexpected moments, and a couple of scenes which should be mandatory viewing for wannabe teachers, but it's too slight and brief to be worth recommending as a film.
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Where is the plot?
Added 12/9/2008
This was a weird, weird movie.... At the end my husband and I looked at each other and said, "that was so weird, what was that about?"
As a teacher, I noticed that his role in the movie as a teacher was completely unrealistic and misleading. Two thumbs down!
2 out of 4 people found this helpful.
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Quirky but in a good way
Added 11/3/2009
The Bottom Line:
An endearing independent movie that succeeds by takes a potentially absurd premise (a man not only falls in love with a sex doll, but believes it's an actual woman) and treating it with the utmost seriousness, Lars and the Real Girl is probably the best movie that could ever be made about a relationship between a man and a sex toy and certainly the most charming; if you want a date movie that's neither formulaic nor stupid, rent Lars and the Real Girl instead of some tripe like The Proposal.
3/4
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Unexpected Surprise Hit
Added 10/30/2009
I thought this movie sounded weird. But not only did I find it amazingly great, everyone I know who has seen it also agrees.
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A celebration of life ?
Added 10/11/2009
I am not nearly sensitive enough to appreciate in a positive way anything at all about Lars and the Real Girl. The chain of off-the-wall abstractions is so counter-intuition and counter-experience point after point that it is difficult to attach any significance to any part of it, let alone the connectedness of any sequence of events one scene after another. Why did Lars buy the Real Girl ? Apparently not for any of the reasons hundreds if not thousands of other people buy Real Girls. Why did Lars move her in with his sister ? Why did Lars introduce Bianca to his sister as his "friend" ? What is right with this picture ? There are so many leaps in getting even this far that one must pause before bothering to wonder how it all turns out. Is there a moral here for anyone contemplating buying a Real Doll ? Is there anything positive in the development of this story that could not have been achieved without the doll in nearly every community in America ? If the doll is completely unnecessary then why tell the story in the first place ? How does this completely unnecessary story become a movie ? Does anything that happens in the movie cause us to search our souls ? If so, I wonder if the story and the movie has made any of the right choices. I think that the strongest moral value in the story comes from the example of the community rallying around the troubled Lars and accepting his "friend" into their circle. Certainly this is far-fetched but in the fantasy-upon-fantasy world of the author this has had a socially acceptable impact, restoring the troubled Lars to community-normal behavior. This is good for the community. This appears to be good for Lars, especially in the eyes of his family and friends. Bianca D I E D ! It was Lars that decided that she was sick (After finding out that the girl from the office that he had always had a crush on had broken up with the guy from the office that he didn't like.) Is that healthy ? Is such behavior something that we want to encourage ? It's just another soap opera. A soap opera with a twist, perhaps. Just a Chick Flick. Next week somebody will dig Bianca up and we will be off to the races, again !
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