Half Nelson (2006)

Half NelsonThe premise is way too practical to breed the crisp out of the script and the makers being aware of it doesn't spend time on it and instead focuses on its meticulous yet bold character's that helps flow the process smoothly without any friction. There is a nerving sensibility pulsating behind the screen throughout the course of the feature, which builds itself up to this hegemony of dramatic conflicts that starts begging the existence of the character's purpose which communicates and connects immensely with the viewers. It is short on technical aspects like sound department and editing, although is beautifully shot with amazing camera work. Ryan Fleck; the director, has done a tremendous work on executing the anticipated vision and creating a perfect arc for the protagonist that even though is predictable, is certifiably entertaining and electrifying. The performance objective is in safe hands of Ryan Gosling who pulls it off brilliantly as a questionable and not-at-all-lovable character that sweats and struggles, creating a much larger impact on the audience. Half Nelson screeches onto one's heart through ethereal morale by shifting the seats and depicting each individual's perspective that all culminates into one big hug for the viewers, actors, makers and society that connects it all.

A great character role by Ryan Gosling as Dan Dunne, an imaginative and creative high school teacher with a drug habit. Eventually his extra curricular life catches up with him when friends and colleagues see some bizarre behaviour. Ryan Gosling shows a range of acting talents as a dedicated teacher whose life spirals out of control. The hidden life is first discovered by one of his students, Drea, a good friend. I liked their initial friendship, which became more than just being friends. The student, played by Shareeka Epps, and Anthony Mackie as Frank, the nice guy dealer, are both outstanding among some other fine supporting actors. A great performance by Gosling with a fine cast behind him is a movie worth seeing.

My friend Helen and me have been reviewing films recently on here, and we always get a little confused with story lines that don't make sense- and this one was no exception. Helen is 55, I'm 47. We also knit and small talk during a screening, as this helps us balance our ideas. Half Nelson is about a inner city school teacher, Ryan Gosling, who also is addicted to drugs. He teaches history to junior high students. One of his female students, Shareeka Epps, catches him in the bathroom getting high. She doesn't snitch on him- because she is in fact, fond of him. Epps lives at home with her single mother but is smarter then you would think, and more mature for a girl of barely 13 years old. She seems to take a liking to older men. She is secretly seeing a thug named Frank, played by Anthony Mackie. Mackie is a drug dealer who lets Epps ride in his truck while he takes her out to lunch. You can already tell he's had sex with with, despite her being under age. He also wants her to start selling for him. She's a cool read though. In fact, from a distance Epps looks like a boy. She doesn't have a pretty face, and she likes sucking on blow pop candies- an indication of what else she likes to do. Helen and me began to get confused around the half hour mark, like we usually do- and our knitting turned into a full blown sewing session. Gosling's motivation makes no sense. If he's a drug addict, why is he teaching? Who's this random woman who keeps showing up at his apartment and claims something happened to her mother. Why is the principal getting mad at him for not opening a folder on civil rights? He's the teacher, let him teach his way. He should have gone to the union to have the Principal fired for disrupting his class to scold him like he was a student himself. Epps character is even more foggy. Why is she into dating older men? That's illegal and not a wise move. Why are most of the kids in the school black and why would Gosling put himself in danger by working in the ghetto? Not to sound racist, just didn't make a lick of sense. Helen added that back in her day, an interracial relationship like the one Epps and Gosling share would be considered illegal and be held up in the courts. We glanced at the television from time to time but the story got less and less understandable. Basically this is about a young black girl's lust for dating grown men who have a bad boy side. FINAL GRADE: C for Confusing!

Ryan Gosling's quietly intense performance in the lead role is the centerpiece of a troubling but watchable 2006 drama called HALF NELSON, a film which sends some troubling mixed messages, some inaccurate information, and, considering the subject matter, never provides the payoff that it should.Gosling plays Dan Dunne, a high school teacher and girls' basketball coach at a Brooklyn high school, who is caught smoking crack in the girls' locker room by one of his students named Dray (Shareeka Epps) and the disturbing directions that this event take the relationship between the two.This is a troubling story on several levels and though I kept watching, found myself squirming for most of the film's running time. I was initially bothered by the fact that after after this event, over 30 minutes of screen time pass before Dan and Dray discuss what happened. Prior to this, Dan acts as if nothing happened and Dray doesn't tell anyone, though the scene where she catches Dan, you can see it in her face that her opinion of the man has seriously altered. She has the power to help the man by reporting what she saw but she doesn't. She actually starts spending more time with him, which is wrong on all kinds of levels and he does nothing to stop it.Another problem with a story that is supposedly about addiction is that we never really see Dan suffer any consequences of his actions. Addiction has consequences and Dan pretty much sails through the running time without any serious consequences. The closest things to consequences the character suffers are a fat lip from a girlfriend and the death of his cat, clearly a result of his neglect.Writer director Ryan Fleck is also not familiar with the effects of smoking crack and snorting cocaine. One of the primary effects of these drugs is paranoia and we see none of this in Dan...he gets high and then likes to get in people's faces instead the isolation that usually occurs with coke addicts. His complete indifference to Dray delivering drugs to his hotel room was also disturbing, which was the just the surface of Dray's issues, but Dan doesn't really attempt to do the right things to help her.The mixed messages and bad behavior glamorized here notwithstanding, Gosling gives a mesmerizing performance that earned him an Oscar nomination and is matched note for note by Epps, who should have received a nomination as well. The shoestring budget on which this indie was clearly shot does add to the realism, but our hero doesn't really change or learn anything and because of this, the film, though watchable, left a bad taste in my mouth.