Dead Poets Society

Well good afternoon!

 This weeks addition to my blog is the film Dead Poets Society. I have always been a great admirer of the work of Robin Williams ever since seeing his wonderful portrayal of the Genie in Aladdin. As with many people it was hugely upsetting to hear of his passing, he was genuinely one of the most influential and wonderful actors of his generation and he shall be remembered fondly for his bubbly personality and vibrant characters. I have a few of Williams' films on my list and so I thought it appropriate to start with one I have been meaning to watch for years. Safe to say I was not disappointed.

 The first thing which struck me were the similarities between the school portrayed in the film - Welton Academy - and my own secondary school. Although mine was not as strict and severe it especially hit me in the first scene when the headmaster was discussing the grades that his students achieved and how many of them went to 'Ivy League' schools. It seemed all too familiar. The tagline of the school was 'religion, honour, discipline, excellence' which is strangely similar to a certain latin motto of a certain all girls school... Anyway the reason I am mentioning these resemblances is because it made it so much easier to connect with this film, I could relate to what these boys were going through and the stage that they were at in their lives on a personal level because I've just been through it in a similar environment. This effect is just brilliant and made the film even more enjoyable to watch.

 Ultimately the film was completely refreshing, I understand wholeheartedly the impact that a single teacher can have on the lives of impressionable young students. All you need is one interesting and original teacher and that can change the lives of teenagers forever and that certainly happened in this film. All the boys came out of themselves during the course of the film especially Neil played by Robert Sean Leonard. By means of John Keating, Neil was able to realise his dream of being an actor and seemed so happy when he was on stage. He was able to escape, just for a second, the clutches of his overbearing father and do something for himself.

 All the boys resurrected the Dead Poets Society something which Keating was a part of in his youth. They snuck out of school at night to read poetry to eachother, in my opinion it made the boys feel part of something for a change and this rebellious side allowed them to live their lives to the fullest. In Keating's first less he urged the boys to be extraordinary asserting 'seize the day, boys. Make your lives extraordinary'. The underlining messages in this film are utterly inspiring, Keating talks about not conforming, to be different and individual. This is something I try and strive for and it's such an important lesson to teach children from a young age. Welton Academy tried to teach the boys that order and orthodoxy was the right way to educate, but Keating believed that the use of education was allowing children to think for themselves. This juxtaposition between the orthodoxy and Keating was very effective.

 The performances by the actors themselves were incredibly good with Robin Williams an obvious stand-out. His portrayal of the unconventional teacher John Keating was graceful and filled with humility and yet he brought comedy into it as well. The way he interacted with the boys was almost like he had been their friend for years. I've always liked Robert Sean Leonard and I have to say I was a massive fan of House and his portrayal of the 'trapped' Neil in this film was mesmerising. He filled the character with almost fanatical passion and it was a complete shock to me the way the film ended. I felt so emotionally involved in the characters, especially the young boys because I could relate to them, and it shook me a lot when Neil committed suicide. It just shows how important it is to let your children be themselves and do what they want. The student-teacher bond between Neil and Keating is also a wonderful thing to see unfold and I understand how sometimes children just need to speak to their teachers and not their families about personal issues. 

 If there was one thing that I could criticise it would be the cliché elements. Don't get me wrong everyone loves a good cliché from time to time, but I thought it wasn't needed in this case as the film itself was so well crafted. I think the main one was the shy character of Todd finally coming out his shell with the aid of John Keating and the other boys. However saying that I still thought it did work.

Overall this was a wonderfully inspirational film with fantastic acting and an incredibly special message that I think we need to use more of in our daily lives.

Carpe Diem