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74 of 77 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of Poitier's best, March 18, 2002
Sidney Poitier has the role of a new teacher in one of Britain's secondary schools. He is given a class of students who, with maybe one or two exceptions, have reached the end of the academic road and will be leaving school at the end of term. They have no academic future and their future outside of school is not to promising. Bike messengers and shop assistants if they're lucky is what awaits these 15 year olds. (Leaving age in the mid-60s was 15.) The kids can care less about school and are just watching the days roll down until they don't have to attend anymore. Poitier's charecter quickly realizes that the best thing he can do is get these kids ready for the real world. He junks the syllabus and creates his own plan for these people to meet life with something like survival skills. Instead of maths, science and english, he teaches the world of cooking, politeness and proper grooming. These latter skills will help these kids far more than being able to diagram a sentence. I first saw this film when it first came out. I think I had a better appreication of it, as an American, becuase I had jsut returned from living in the UK and attending a secondary school, which while not like North Quay, did introduce me to some of the characters portrayed. Guys I knew were facing school leaving with prospects of working as a green grocer's assistant or a boy soldier or seaman in the Forces. So on an intellectual level, I certainly understood what Poitier's character faced. These weren't juvenile delinquents but a real segment of British society that probably still exists today. This film has just as much validity today as it did when it was first released. The cast is excellent from Poitier down to the kid with no lines but filling a desk. I found this to be a fine film at the time I first saw it and today when I saw it again after a period of several years between viewings. I recommend it to everyone who enjoys British films.
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48 of 49 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Flawlessly wonderful, July 24, 2000
This is my all-time favorite movie. The story is of a Black engineer, born in British Guyana and educated in California, who takes a job teaching at a high school in a depressed area of London. He has no teaching experience, and so develops his teaching style from his own experience. Gradually the relationship between the teacher (Poitier) and his students evolves from suspicion, to respect, to love. There is the obligatory romantic attraction between Poitier and one of his students, Judy Geeson. (Geeson, who plays this part with endearing and convincing sweetness, grew up to become the supercilious and insufferable across-the-hall neighbor from Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt in the TV sitcom "Mad About You"). Everything is perfect in this movie. If you can watch the very last scene without tears, then you are stronger than I. In retrospect, I think this movie was one of the influences which caused me to become a teacher, 17 years after I first saw it. I hope it has done the same for some others, and that it will continue to do so in the future. See it!
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49 of 51 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poitier Is Masterful, February 21, 2001
1967 was an incredible year for Sidney Poitier. He starred in three magnificent films, the Academy Award winning films, In The Heat Of the Night & Guess Who's Coming To Dinner and this superb movie. Mr. Poitier stars as Mark Thackery who is an engineer, but in need of a job accepts a teaching position at a tough West End school. His class is made up of unruly ruffians and at first they rebel against him. It becomes obvious to Thackery that these kids don't have an interest in learning normal academics and that none of them will pursue higher education so he decides to prepare them for live by giving them lessons on how to cope in the real world. He gives cooking lessons, make up lessons for the girls, takes them to museums and they develop a respect and love for each other. Judy Geeson is fabulous as Pamela Dare, a blond beauty who develops a crush on Thackery. Christian Roberts is Devin the leader of the group. He is a thug not use to rules and is constantly testing Thackery. Lulu is Babs Pegg and she does a credible acting job and supplies the film with its famous theme song. Michael Des Barres has a minor part as one of the students and he would go on to minor rock career and marry one of the most famous of all rock groupies Pamela Des Barres. Mr. Poitier is the glue that holds the film together and he is equally forceful and compassionate in his performance. To sir With Love is dated in some ways with regards to the fashions and slang language, but it's story is timeless
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