The most egregious thing about Dead Poets Society is how not one person takes the inspirational teacher's advice when it matters, even after the death of the one character who dared to seize his day. Every student folds when it matters most: defending their beloved teacher. Yet, after the damage has been done and the threat of repercussion has passed, several of these same students stand on their desks to honor their now fired hero. "Oh Captain, my Captain!" they recite in a moment of Walt Whitman-inspired "solidarity" with Keating. Keating is touched, but he should have called bullshit on these cowards. He should have kicked the desk from under a former student and screamed, "Where was your courage when it was inconvenient? You can't seize a day that's already passed!" Instead, Dead Poets Society ends with Keating's thanks, which serve as a stamp of approval against the always painful urge to do the right thing, no matter how inconvenient.Tom Schulman won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for the film, ahead of Crimes and Misdemeanors (Woody Allen), Do the Right Thing (Spike Lee), Sex, Lies, and Videotape (Steven Soderbergh), and When Harry Met Sally... (Nora Ephron).
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
A BRIGHT, SHINING LIE: I've always been a fan of critics deflating Dead Poets Society, and as part of THND's Summer of '89 series Odie Henderson came up with something I hadn't considered before:
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