Reviewed by Stuart O'Connor
Stars Hilary Swank, Patrick Dempsey,
Scott Glenn, Imelda Staunton
Written by Richard LaGravenese
UK Certification 12A
Runtime 117mins
Retail price £15.99
Directed by Richard LaGravenese
American civil rights actvist Martin Luther King had a dream — that one day, black and white people would all live in harmony. Idealistic (some would say naive) young English teacher Erin Gruwell has a similar dream — that the pupils in her classroom can survive a day without killing each other. Or her.
Set in a Long Beach high school not long after the Los Angeles riots of 1992, Freedom Writers is an inspiring story of dreams, hope and respect. Hilary Swank plays Erin, the teacher who is so inexperienced she turns up to her first day wearing a suit and pearls. Her class is reminiscent of the Sweathogs from Welcome Back, Kotter — a mix of races, creeds and colours. But they all have two thing in common: low levels of academic achievement a bad attitude. For Erin, the first few days are a struggle. The class is divided along racial or gang lines, and none of her students wants to listen to her; as they say, why should they show her any respect? What has she done to earn it? But a classroom prank — a cruel caricature of one of the black pupils that is being passed around to barely stifled giggles — leads her to compare her students' actions to those of the Nazis in world war two. And so begins the breakthrough as Erin teaches her class about the Holocaust, comparing the gang warfare going on in the streets of LA to the Nazi "gang" that ran riot through Europe.
It's not just the students that make life hard for Erin; she has to fight educational beauracracy and a backlash from her jaded colleagues at the school, led by the rather anal Mrs Campbell (beautifuly portrayed by Imelda Staunton), who believe that her students are a bunch of no hopers who deserve little or no effort expended upon them. Erin sacrifices her spare time (taking on two part-time jobs) and, ultimately, her marriage for what becomes for her a labour of love, as she forms a familial bond with her students. Based on a true story, Freedom Writers shows that hope sometimes can pay off, and that intolerance can be overcome. It's a warm, human tale with superb performances all round — especially from Swank, but the young actors that play her pupils also shine. And if you don't find yourself shedding a tear once or twice, you have no heart at all.
EXTRAS*** Basic, but adequate.The disc features an audio commentary with director RIchard LaGravenese and actor Hilary Swank, deleted scenes, the theatrical trailer, a photo gallery and three featurettes: Making a Dream, Freedom Writers Family and The Story Behind The Story. And we get to meet the real Erin Gruwell. Which is nice.