19 Dec 2012
Director: Philippe Falardeau
Canada
2011
94 min
The ‘inspirational teacher’ movie has become something of a cliché in recent years, but this Oscar nominated film from Canada avoids the usual sentiment and predictability in favour of a darker and ultimately more satisfying approach.
Elderly Algerian immigrant Lazhar (the impressive Mohamed Fellag) is hired as a replacement teacher and discovers his predecessor committed suicide in the classroom, her body discovered by a pupil. Lazhar takes it upon himself to help the class deal with the enormity of their loss, even as the school prefers that he ‘not make waves’. Eventually we learn Lazhar’s own tragic story which adds to the emotion of the film.