Though Ryan Gosling's performance as the strung out junior high school teacher, Dan Dunne, won him an Academy Award nomination this year, the real star of this film is Shareeka Epps, who plays Drey. When Drey catches Dan smoking crack in the washroom one day a secret bond is formed between them. A bond and story which then carries the movie. Half Nelson is a film about the crash between reality and hope as seen through Teacher Dan's eyes. Caught between his hope to make the world better for the black and hispanic kids in his class and the reality he can't, Dan takes to drugs to find a new reality in which to cope. It is classic stuff and in the hands of director Ryan Fleck is all done quite well. My only problem with the film was Gosling's performance, but perhaps I just don't get the subtlety of his acting? Surely the Academy can't be wrong, right?! Half Nelson also seemed to me one of those films that just goes on and on and on ... and not in a good way.
My rating 5 out of 10.
No comments:
Post a Comment