Chalk

I'm a big Christopher Guest fan and honestly went into this film expecting to be disappointed, but wound up being pleasantly surprised. Chalk was very entertaining, often hilarious, at times touching, and even managed to pull everything together to actually tell a story pretty well. The development of the Mr. Lowery character from start to finish was great. There were only a handful of actors in the film (the rest were real students, principals, teachers, etc.) and they were great. Troy Schremmer was excellent. Anyhow, I highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys finding comedy in the ridiculousness of life or basically anyone who enjoys good mockumentaries. Or, people who are teachers or are related to teachers and know that world. Two thumbs up.

Delightful mockumentary about new teachers. Well cast, well acted, and a brilliant structure that not only plays for laughs, but more than little 'only serious' edge to it. Basically if you were ever a student or a teacher, or a parent of a student, you'll get something out of this film. There's not much more I can say about it besides go see it when it hopefully releases in March. Oh, and it's so good, there's talk about it becoming a series. Think thats premature? Wait til you see the most refreshing sendup on spelling bees ever imagined. Then think about the fact that the extras playing students and teachers are just that. It's fresh and kinetic, and doesn't take itself too seriously.

I rented the DVD because I come from a family of teachers, and one of them recommended that I watch the film in order to gain a better understanding of their jobs. I found it to be entertaining, but I obviously didn't appreciate it as much as teachers seem to, just as they probably don't appreciate all of the humor I find in "Office Space".

The teachers who call this "true to life" must mean this in the same sense that a Korean War veteran once told me that M*A*S*H was true to life-- as a good caricature of some of the more extreme people and situations, intermixed with some reminders of what daily life was like, not as anything close to a realistic snapshot.

I don't want to believe that there are really very many high school teachers like that. I wouldn't expect students to feel much respect for any of them.

Time for me to get back to my TPS reports.

Attention Bruce Burns, I am so very glad you are not a teacher because you seem far too smug and self-important with apparently no sense of humor. You would be a terrible instructor.

Moving on...I am a middle school English teacher who absolutely *adored* Chalk. It nailed the nuances, struggles, and joys of teaching, and it made me even more convinced I've got one of the best jobs on earth.

As someone who entered teaching as a second career after working as a reporter, I can honestly say teaching is not for everyone. But if you're bright, caring, and can think fast on your feet, you might be cut out for it. The rewards are everything you would imagine them to be, and the challenges are far bigger than you could envision. "Chalk" celebrated it all without being overly sentimental like so many of those cheesy teacher as lifesaver films that are out there.

For me, the best moment of the film came at the very end when Mr. Lowery is trying to rap with his students. It was so human, and the hard-won affection from his students was so real...I could totally relate.

Schools are like little small towns full of gossips, crazies, heroes, and everything in between..."Chalk" nailed that as well...complete with the Happy Hours every teacher knows and loves (and depends on!).

Overall a great little film that will ring true for anyone with a sense of humor...and especially with anyone who has ever uttered the words, "All right everyone, get out a piece of paper and put your name on the corner." :-)

I saw this at the LA Film Festival, and it's a funny peek at the lives of teachers, from a point of view you don't often see.

According to the festival literature, it was written and directed by actual former teachers, so as you can imagine there is a lot of inside stuff that we may not have seen before, that is both sad and funny.

The plot, such as it is, follows four new teachers at a high school in Texas during their first year, and all the trials and tribulations they encounter. I didn't recognize any of the cast, I think the kids may have been real students, but that didn't matter to me. Like 'The Office', it shows the ineptitude and struggle to make sense of ridiculous things, like school policy, and people desperate to win 'teacher of the year'. It's funny and heartfelt, and reminded me of a Christopher Guest film in that it felt ad-libbed more than scripted.

I ended up feeling great affection for these people, and thought the film was very good.