Half Nelson, Ryan Gosling, and teacher movies

Anyone who knows me knows that I love those inspiring teacher movies. Dangerous Minds, Freedom Writers, Akeelah and the Bee, and The Ron Clark Story are all movies I have to watch whenever they are on.

A week or so back I watched the 2006 film Half Nelson. It was everything you want out of a movie and more.

This is what the film's wiki entry says: The story concerns an inner city middle-school teacher who forms a friendship with one of his students after she discovers that he has a drug habit.

The title had me confused for the entire film. Nelson is not the name of the character played by Ryan Gosling, and so I googled it, turns out it is a wrestling move. 

Definition for half nelson:

Web definitions:

a wrestling hold in which the holder puts an arm under the opponent's arm and exerts pressure on the back of the neck.

The most outstanding thing in the film would have to be Shareeka Epps's performance. She was strong yet vulnerable, portraying the role perfectly. I also loved how believable she acted, sounded, and even looked. You could see the emotions in her eyes, something not a lot of young actors can convey.

Another great thing about the film is the perfect, flawless, and amazing dialogue. I just loved the half-witty jokes, and half-engaging conversations. I have no idea how the writer(s) managed to keep the dialogue between the teacher and the student in the context of that relationship yet still make it friendly. A tip of the hat to the fine sir.


To be honest, I didn't want to watch the film because I thought it would be a romantic relationship, and frankly after watching Pretty Little Liars and Daydream Nation I don't want to see anything of the sort again. Books of the Young Adult genre keep throwing or thrusting the teacher/student relationship into everyone's faces, and it is becoming annoying. After I saw that 
this wasn't the case in Half Nelson I became very excited to see it. 


Ryan Gosling's performance was impeccable. I loved all of his scenes; he brought life and depth perfectly to a character that required much of that. His character was also filled with great contrasts that worked in harmony which he portrayed that perfectly. 

If you needed anymore reasons to watch this film; it has small history facts, a spot on soundtrack, and two cats. I know!


Final rating: 5/5