movie minute

Boys Of Obridge: In Nicholas Hytner's (director of The Crucible, The Madness Of King George) The History Boys (R), eight boys in their final year of learning spend a semester preparing for their Oxbridge exams. These students are the brightest of the bright and their patient, guiding and inspirational teacher wants to see them enjoy learning and be their best. The teacher, Hector, is played by Richard Griffiths. Griffiths gives a terrific performance that is understated and believable. As the boys prepare for the exams, the headmaster brings in a new and young teacher who rounds out the interview preparations for the boys and offers other more pragmatic tips to succeed. We also see that Hector touches the boys in more ways than one. On a rotating basis, the boys get a ride home with Hector on the back of his motorcycle. He then fulfills his needs in his own way. What happens when the news gets out is only part of the story. This film touches on a taboo subject without ever taking sides or portraying the boys as victims or naive.

The film is taken from the hit stage play that won a record six Tony Awards including Best Play, Best Director (Hytner), Best Featured Actress for Frances de la Tour (who plays Mrs. Lintott), and Best Actor for Griffiths. Samuel Barnett, who plays Posner, was nominated for Best Performance by a Featured Actor. It also features the entire original stage cast. There are two standouts aside from Griffiths. The first is Samuel Barnett who plays Posner (the one with the nice singing voice) and who is infatuated with Dakin and the second is Dominic Cooper who plays Dakin the self-professed heterosexual who ends up head over heels for the new teacher.

I will warn you now this is a sophisticated British film for a sophisticated viewer and done tastefully and artfully and excellently; few American films or directors, if any, could do this as well. Witness the one scene done almost entirely in French with no subtitles. My spouse knows French and filled me in on the dialogue after the film. My only response was clever (and also funny).

I would see this again in a heartbeat and I really enjoyed how sharp the boys were and the interactions between them and their older teacher.

Bags of popcorn (out of 5): 4.5

paul