Triunfo a la vida

This is a line of the Beatles' song that Mr. Holland sings to his son, Cole, at a concert. I've seen this movie plenty of times, but for the first time, I noticed just how well this line resonates in this movie. In fact, this line is the basis for the movie, and could stand in for the whole movie in a pinch- except that we would be missing out on one of the most moving and inspirational films to come out of Hollywood in the past few years.

Mr. Holland's Opus is the story of a man who loves music, who practically lives and breathes music. We see at the beginning of the film, and throughout the rest of it, a man who is most passionate when he is within music. When his wife informs him that she is pregnant, he likens the feeling to falling in love with John Coltrane's music. When a student complains to him that he knows everything there is to know about music, Mr. Holland responds by reminding him that the name of his class is Music Appreciation and explaining forcefully that it doesn't matter how much you know about music if you don't appreciate it.

The movie takes Mr. Holland through three decades- from the '60s to the mid-'90s. In the spirit of nostalgia films like Forrest Gump, we are guided through the decades by vignettes of archive footage depicting scenes such as Nixon announcing his resignation, Gerald Ford tripping down the stairs, and even good old Frankenfurter representing the sexual revolution. As a piece of nostalgia for those times and the days of high school, Mr. Holland's Opus works great. As a chronicle of a man's life and the impact he has on others, it works even better.

This film could have turned into cheap schmaltz, but through its cast and a story that reaches wonderful poignancy and honesty at times, it manages to represent something so much more than that. Richard Dreyfuss, always a natural actor, is perfectly real and moving as Glenn Holland. I can't describe his performance in words, simply because it deserves to be seen more than just written about. And even though this is basically Dreyfuss's movie, the supporting cast makes an impression as well. Glenne Headly, as Mr. Holland's wife, shows tremendous resilience and emotion as the mother of a disabled child. When she explodes at her husband because of his lack of understanding, you explode with her, because we believe every word she is saying.

I don't know if movies can change lives. I think some have the potential to. I know there are movies that can inspire their audiences to be better people- It's a Wonderful Life is one; Casablanca is another. While Mr. Holland's Opus does not reach the quality that those two do (and who can blame it?), it has a similar and near equal impact, and that is definitely a compliment. And how perfect- a movie about a man who changes lives that can also change lives.

Richard Dreyfuss is outstanding (as is the whole cast) in this thoroughly enjoyable film. I really liked it the first time, but with repeated viewings, I'd say that this film got even better. It's a little predictable, but so what? For me, it was impossible not to care about these characters, and the ending was the perfect heartwarming note to go out on. It was rather funny as well, but my favourite thing about this movie was the music. It seems only fitting, considering the importance of music to this film, that it would have a great number of songs, but I was astonished by how much I LOVED the music in this movie. All-in-all, this was a completely satisfying film, and I would call it a must-see.

Many reviewers have blistered this movie, and I agree it contains too many cliches and is overly sentimental. But compared to the endless supply of Hollywood vapidity, this one isn't THAT bad. Mr. Holland is neither saint nor bad guy, but he clearly loves music and cares about his students. I understand that music is a very serious topic for many people including several reviewers who hated this film. But I think they miss the point; Mr. Holland is not a musical genius, he's a high school music teacher. And yes, his opus truly sucks balloons, and that's because Mr. Holland is a musical mediocrity. His dream of being a famous composer was delusional, a ridiculous pipe dream. But he Found his true calling in life as a decent teacher. That's the point of the movie.

I love this movie because I had a fantastic, inspirational teacher in high school that all the students admired and looked up to. Even though I was in high school when this movie came out, I still carry the memories. Nicolas Cage deserved to win his Oscar for Leaving Las Vegas, but I still would have loved to see Richard Dreyfuss win. The whole cast was wonderful, and you actually felt like you were in the 60s and 70s, unlike other films set in that time period.

How often does a film come out that generations relate to; and a film so touching about a teacher who cares about his students, and vice versa? Will always be one of my favorite films.

It's a MOVIE! I'm reading comments so vastly polarized to one extreme or another so as not to be believed.

Okay, I am a musician. I've been one on a professional level for over ten years, both as a writer and performer. And I LOVED this movie (apologies to all those pretentious 'serious' musicians out there). I enjoyed my theatrical viewing and I have watched my DVD several times.

Is MR. HOLLAND'S OPUS musically accurate? No, of course not, no more so than STAR TREK paying attention to factual science and the laws of physics. But for the most part, nobody other than most of us ego-driven, high horse bound musician types will ever know it.

Designed to have a broad appeal outside the aforementioned musically inclined crowd? Yes, but then so is nearly every movie to come out of Hollywood. It has to be palatable to a certain degree, and I believe that the much maligned "Play the sunset" scene is far more entertaining than having Mr. Holland give us lengthy exposition on the proper articulation and technique that goes into playing a given instrument.

And if I hear one more poster scream about Mr. Holland's 'opus' only being ten minutes long (the "It took him a lifetime to write THIS?" mantra) I think I'll scream. Did it ever occur to anybody that what we heard was only a small part of a much larger work? Most classical and semi-classical pieces occur in (get ready) MOVEMENTS! It's entirely possible that we only heard the prologue to a much larger piece. Think outside the box, people.

As for the quality of the piece itself, I found it to be acceptable, if not the most dynamic piece of work I've ever heard. But seeing as how we had been hearing snippets of this piece THROUGHOUT THE MOVIE, I can't say that I was so overwhelmingly let down as some of our more 'educated and refined' musician types that have posted here.

Sure, there were some flaws. Ms. Headly is not the greatest actress in the world, and beside Dreyfuss she's downright embarrassing. William Macy's character is so cliched that it warrants no further discussion. The whole subplot with Rowena and her romantic interest in Mr. Holland ran about ten minutes too long. And the ending bit where the arts funding gets cut seemed a little too political.

But overall, a great film, surely one of Dreyfuss' best, and one of my favorite films.

I'm a musician. And I liked it. So sue me....