The History Boys
Before I saw it I was afraid that The History Boys would be a stodgy, stagy film adaptation of an award winning play. I am happy to report that it is anything but. The film is one of the best transfers from stage to screen that I have seen.
The story takes place in Yorkshire at a school for boys. As they are approaching university a group of boys are gearing up for taking admissions tests for Oxford and Cambridge. Guiding the boys is their general studies teacher Hector (Richard Griffiths), who happens to have a special fondness for the boys, and their history teacher Mrs. Linott (Frances de la Tour). But the cranky headmaster (Clive Merrison) thinks that the boys need some fresh blood in their quest for higher education so he hires Irwin (Stephen Campbell Moore) to help them meet their goals. It helps that Irwin is closer to the boys age than the other teachers
The film is filled with wonderful quotes from literature, poetry and cinema. And for the this we have the brilliant writer Alan Bennett to thank. He is also responsible for the intelligent dialog that is many times absent from films these days. For the wonderful transfer from stage to screen we have director Nicholas Hytner to thank. The acting by the adults is all right on target with Griffiths and de la Tour being especially outstanding. All of the boys are wonderful as well.
I was particularly impressed with Dominic Cooper as Dakin, a boy who is questioning his sexuality as he is attracted to both males and females and Samuel Barnett as the sensitive Posner, who is certain of his attraction to males and also happens to be Jewish.
There are gay themes running throughout the film. But for me the film is mostly about the love of learning. The film takes place in the 1980s and things have changed since then. The love of learning for the sake of knowledge has flown out the window and now we have learning for the sake of being better than everyone else. It is certainly a sad statement about modern education.
The History Boys is a highly intelligent film and the people in the theater that I saw it in seemed to agree. I only heard positive things about the film after it ended. However, it is for only a select audience because, unfortunately, many people will not be able to comprehend its essence. But I am glad that there are still filmmakers out there who are making films that make us think and broaden our horizons.
The story takes place in Yorkshire at a school for boys. As they are approaching university a group of boys are gearing up for taking admissions tests for Oxford and Cambridge. Guiding the boys is their general studies teacher Hector (Richard Griffiths), who happens to have a special fondness for the boys, and their history teacher Mrs. Linott (Frances de la Tour). But the cranky headmaster (Clive Merrison) thinks that the boys need some fresh blood in their quest for higher education so he hires Irwin (Stephen Campbell Moore) to help them meet their goals. It helps that Irwin is closer to the boys age than the other teachers
The film is filled with wonderful quotes from literature, poetry and cinema. And for the this we have the brilliant writer Alan Bennett to thank. He is also responsible for the intelligent dialog that is many times absent from films these days. For the wonderful transfer from stage to screen we have director Nicholas Hytner to thank. The acting by the adults is all right on target with Griffiths and de la Tour being especially outstanding. All of the boys are wonderful as well.
I was particularly impressed with Dominic Cooper as Dakin, a boy who is questioning his sexuality as he is attracted to both males and females and Samuel Barnett as the sensitive Posner, who is certain of his attraction to males and also happens to be Jewish.
There are gay themes running throughout the film. But for me the film is mostly about the love of learning. The film takes place in the 1980s and things have changed since then. The love of learning for the sake of knowledge has flown out the window and now we have learning for the sake of being better than everyone else. It is certainly a sad statement about modern education.
The History Boys is a highly intelligent film and the people in the theater that I saw it in seemed to agree. I only heard positive things about the film after it ended. However, it is for only a select audience because, unfortunately, many people will not be able to comprehend its essence. But I am glad that there are still filmmakers out there who are making films that make us think and broaden our horizons.
posted by Film Fanatic | 2:23 PM
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