Dan Dunne (Ryan Gosling) is a young teacher at a shabby Brooklyn junior high school, who somehow finds the energy...
Dan Dunne (Ryan Gosling) is a young teacher at a shabby Brooklyn junior high school, who somehow finds the energy to inspire his 13 and 14-year-olds to examine everything from civil rights to the Civil War with a new enthusiasm. Rejecting the standard curriculum in favor of an edgier approach, Dan teaches his students how to think for themselves.
Though Dan is brilliant, dynamic, and in control in the classroom, he spends his time outside school on the edge of consciousness. His disappointments and disillusionment have led to a serious drug habit. He juggles his hangovers and his homework, keeping his lives separated, until one of his troubled students, Drey (Shareeka Epps), catches him getting high after school. An uncertain friendship between the two develops.
Though Dan is brilliant, dynamic, and in control in the classroom, he spends his time outside school on the edge of consciousness. His disappointments and disillusionment have led to a serious drug habit. He juggles his hangovers and his homework, keeping his lives separated, until one of his troubled students, Drey (Shareeka Epps), catches him getting high after school. An uncertain friendship between the two develops.
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Where to watch Half Nelson
91 %157 reviewsRotten Tomatoes® rating
82 %56,668 reviewsAudience score rating
"The audacity of making an inner-city drama in which the white-male authority figure is the crackhead finds its equal in Gosling's already legendary performance, a high-wire act that's gutsiest for its unconscionable charm..."
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Village Voice
Village Voice"An inspirational teacher picture devoid of the usual pieties is driven by a brilliant performance by Gosling..."
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New Zealand Herald
New Zealand Herald"A really rewarding watch, if you're in the mood..."
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Newshub
Newshub"What is different about Half Nelson is the execution, the kind of subtlety in writing, directing and acting (by costars Shareeka Epps and Anthony Mackie as well as Gosling) you seldom see..."
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Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times"Just wonderful with its offbeat but wholly credible storyline, down-to-earth style and exceptionally fine performances..."
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Empire Magazine
Empire Magazine"Avoiding the usual cliches of the "inspirational teacher" flick, Half Nelson is a wise, absorbing and refreshingly unsentimental portrait of a student-teacher relationship in the noughties..."
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Christchurch Press
Christchurch Press"Writer/director Ryan Fleck shoots the action in a way that's raw and unsentimental yet brimming with humanity. He examines the everyday exploits of a functioning addict and an apprentice drug dealer with so much absorbing detail that contrived shoot-outs and OD panic scenes aren't necessary to create drama. Instead of preaching, Fleck uses humour to point out hypocrisy. Funny moments spring naturally, like a scene where Drey backchats Mr Dunne and, rather than take the high road, he responds in kind. It takes a while to settle into the rhythm (feeling episodic at first), but Half Nelson soon takes hold with a vice-like grip..."
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BBC
BBCHalf Nelson | Details
- Runtime
- 106
- Genre
- Drama
- Country of origin
- USA
