Robin Williams Tribute Month: Dead Poets Society (1989)

As John Keating says whilst perched upon his desk, "We must constantly look at things in a different way", quite a suitable turn of phrase from a film that could transform even the most sceptical person into a lover of literature and poetry. But that is not the only accomplishment of Peter Weir's Dead Poets Society, for it remains one of the most touching films I have ever seen.

The film follows a group of seniors at an elite preparatory school, Welton Academy. Neil Perry (Robert Sean Leonard) who struggles to overcome his Father's controlling attitudes, Todd Anderson (Ethan Hawke), a new student whose introversion becomes his constant stumbling block, and Knox Overstreet (Josh Charles) who falls in love with the daughter of his parents' friends, are just three of the rich ensemble that graces this film. However it is Robin Williams who takes centre-stage here as the boys' new English teacher, John Keating, whose eccentric teaching methods have a profound effect on the lives of his students.

From ripping out useless textbook pages, to marching, to kicking soccer balls whilst reciting poetry, Keating's style doesn't simply keep the boys interested, it enriches them with the beauty of phrase, teaching them to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life. But it's his past life as a Welton Boy that inspires the troupe to reinstate Keating's old secret body, the Dead Poets Society. Meeting every few evenings in a damp cave off school grounds, the boys explore poetry in the hope that they will gain further understanding about the joys of life.

Revisiting this film for the first time in years, it's astonishing to see how talented these young actors were. Robert Sean Leonard is fantastic as Neil, perfectly enthusiastic whilst unable to justify his desires to an authoritative father, yet it is Ethan Hawke that really shines here for me. Even at nineteen, the talented actor who seems to be in every new release at the moment, brings to life the toils of a reclusive young male amongst a group of such lively, free-spirited boys, almost the polar opposite of his character in Boyhood.

Once again, Robin Williams proves his proficiency as a dramatic actor here. John Keating is one of the most memorable characters ever preserved on celluloid, partly because Tom Schulman is a fantastic scriptwriter, but largely because Williams is able to deliver such energy and humanity in his performance. Keating could have so easily become yet another character lost to the depths of pretension, yet the sincerity of Williams presence on screen makes him come across as a man driven by a passion to teach and an authentic love of poetry.

Dead Poets Society is an all time classic. It's one of Robin Williams' best films, and he's supported by an array of  talented young actors. If there was one underlying message to the film, it would be that we must strive to find our own voices in this world, and if you can't take that away from your viewing, then at least you'll gain plenty of fantastic quotes. 

Hitchcock

I am convinced that someone has built and is using a time machine. My evidence for this wild allegation is the movie Hitchcock. They must have gone back to 1960 and convinced Alfred Hitchcock to get in some odd shaped car and act in a film about the making of his most famous movie Psycho. It's either that or Anthony Hopkins is the best celebrity impersonator ever (or close enough until you hear the legendary Ralph Garman). Either of these ideas work for me.

The story behind Psycho was an amazing one. His last film North by Northwest was a huge success. But Alfred dreams of his younger days, when he and his wife Alma (Helen Mirren) were making experimental movies and pushing the boundaries of can and can't be shown on the silver screen. He is under contract for one more picture with Paramount. So in the search for the inspiration for his next movie, Hitchcock comes across Robert Bloch's novel Psycho. It is about the owner of a mysterious motel who murders most of the young female guests who enters it's doors. Hitch, as he is known in this movie, is smitten with the story, he has found the film that will push the envelope in many ways. However, he cannot get anyone to finance it. So, in a turn that makes me to consider him one of the original indie filmmakers, he mortgages his house and tightens his bootstraps to make one of the most ambitious films of his career. Ambitious only because the head of the US censor board (That 70s Show's Kurtwood Smith) finds the film to be abhorrent. So through the ups and downs of the production he finally is able to make a rough cut that is satisfactory, although it isn't any good.

Meanwhile, Alma finds herself drifting away from Alfred and wishes to pursue her own projects. She starts work on an adaption of her friends new novel. She works on this for a considerable amount of time before realising it is unadaptable. This is just about the time when Hitch finds that he needs to re-edit his rough cut and Alma comes to the rescue. They spend a considerable amount of time in the editing room and end up coming out with a masterpiece. This time round the film is much more to Hitch's expectations, although only two theatres agree to show it, so they must rely on word of mouth. Luckily for them it is a success with the audience.

The cast in this movie is great. Anthony Hopkins, as I said earlier was a dead ringer for the master of suspense, and Helen Mirren were perfect as always. But they real joy of the cast is in the supporting roles. Scarlett Johansson is perfect as Janet Leigh (also known as Jamie Lee Curtis' mum, something I only recently discovered), the leading lady made famous by the iconic shower scene. Another doppelganger in this movie was James D'Arcy as Anthony Perkins, who plays the eponymous psycho. This guy was so convincing as Perkins, he had all the nervousness of the actor and character down-pat. Also a surprising supporting role came from a highly unrecognisable Toni Collette as Hitch's assistant. Jessica Biel also gets a bit part as Vera Miles, Hitch's former leading lady.

There are some interesting "dream" sequences in which Hitch's experience making this film is likened to that of the story Ed Gein, the serial killer caught two years prior to the making of the film and the model behind the character of Norman Bates. Here his played by Michael Wincott (we all remember him from Alien: Resurrection, surely).

Verdict: I found this movie to wonderfully enjoyable. I love Psycho and I find it to be terrifying (it's 52 years old as well). I also like to see movies about how Hollywood worked in it's golden age and this is no exception. Look out for a great reference to his next film, The Birds.