Other Titles • To Sir, with Love • Herausgefordert (1967) • Junge Dornen (1967)
Synopses for To Sir, with Love (1967)
1.
Ideological changes in post-Civil Rights movement America were at the heart of legendary African-American actor Sidney Poitier's films in the late 1960s. One such film is this powerful drama, which stars Poitier as Mark Thackery, an unemployed engineer who applies for a teaching job because he needs the paycheck. He lands a job at a school in London's East End that's full of unruly teenagers who are profoundly uninterested in learning. After several failed attempts to reach the students, Thackery abandons the textbooks and conventional teaching methods and, treating them as young adults, he prepares his students for the job market. His unorthodox style is effective--the students begin to respect Thackery and absorb his lessons. But his substantial accomplishments are weighed in the balance when he is finally offered the engineering job he had been waiting for.
Poitier's proud, defiant figure stands tall against the rowdy, aimless swinging-sixties London teens, but one of the film's strengths is the respect that is paid to the disruptive students as human characters worthy of a better future. Lulu, who delivers a strong student portrayal, also sings the popular theme song.
2.
3 1/2 Stars. Excellent." - Leonard Maltin's Movie and Video Guide
A novice teacher faces a class of rowdy, undisciplined working-class punks in this classic film that reflected some of the problems and fears of teens in the '60s. Sidney Poitier gives one of his finest performances as Mark Thackeray, an out-of-work engineer who turns to teaching in London's tough East End. The graduating class, led by Denham (Christian Roberts), Pamela (Judy Geeson) and Barbara (Lulu, who also sings the hit title song), sets out to destroy Thackeray as they did his predecessor by breaking his spirit. But Thackeray, no stranger to hostility, meets the challenge by treating the students as young adults who will soon enter a work force where they must stand or fall on their own. When offered an engineering job, Thackeray must decide if he wants to stay.
3.
Novelist James Clavell wrote, produced and directed this 1967 British film (based on the novel by E. R. Braithwaite) about a rookie teacher who throws out stock lesson plans and really takes command of his unruly, adolescent students in a London school. Sidney Poitier is very good as a man struggling with the extent of his commitment to the job, and even more as a teacher whose commitment is to proffering life lessons instead of just academic ones. The spirit of this movie can also be found in more recent films such as Dangerous Minds and Mr. Holland's Opus, but none are as moving as this. Besides, the others don't have a title song performed by Lulu, who also stars. --Tom Keogh
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