"Nice Pearls...But I wouldn't wear them in the classroom."

screenwriter-14

What a great beginning to 2007 to see this tremendous film, THE FREEDOM WRITERS, with a stunning performance from Hilary Swank and a cast of young men and women who make you "cheer and cry" all through the film for their stories and their personal journeys. And what a timely film to come out in Los Angeles when our mayor has recently gone to the Feds and asked for more money to handle the intolerable gang issues in Los Angeles.

Richard LaGravenese has delivered an infectious film that deals with real issues of teachers and American education today, and to watch these young students grow into productive lives, as well as to see how they can learn when given the chance by a teacher who believes in them and their abilities to learn, is tremendous.

The music, dialog and the location of Long Beach all make THE FREEDOM WRITERS click and adding in the personal history of the persecution of the Jews and Anne Frank's own diary, was such a marvelous way to make the students see that their own lives were similar to others who have lost love ones to the evils of war and destruction.

THE FREEDOM WRITERS, like BOBBY, gives a picture of what happened in the 1960's in the South, and like those who lost their lives to help others, these new LONG BEACH, California FREEDOM WRITERS are on a path to ensure "change" is just not a word, but an action.

score 10/10

screenwriter-14 6 January 2007

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw1565354/