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Mr. Holland's Opus poster

Mr. Holland's Opus

year 1995decade 90sdirector Stephen Herekgenre Drama

143 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Richard Dreyfuss Glenn Holland
Glenne Headly Iris Holland
Jay Thomas Bill Meister
Olympia Dukakis Principal Helen Jacobs
William H. Macy Vice Principal Gene Wolters
Alicia Witt Gertrude Lang
Joanna Gleason adult Gertrude Lang
Jean Louisa Kelly Rowena Morgan
Terrence Howard Louis Russ
Damon Whitaker Bobby Tidd

Mr. Holland's Opus | The Rewatchables

host Bill Simmonshost Sean Fennesseyhost Van Lathan format 25th anniversary
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Producer credits not yet identified.

Roger Ebert's review

3.5 stars (scale not stated)

Ebert three and a half stars; importance of teachers noted, scale unspoken.

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:34:03Read transcript
  • Ebert three and a half stars,review discusses teacher importance;no excerpts read.

Picking Nits

Song-release timing questioned; Rowena attraction and the concealed, flawless final performance challenge plausibility.

In the discussion (5)
Approx. transcript time · 00:44:56Read transcript
  • Could Holland know Beautiful Boy in time? asserted1981release after Lennon death raises uncertainty,not independently verified.
  • Rowena apparently favors50yearold teacher over quarterback;others note such situations happened in their schools.
  • Final surprise500people invisible to Holland/empty parking lot implausible despite favorite-scene status.
  • Governor not-rich/not-famous speech unexpectedly mean.
  • Unrehearsed long-lapsed highschool musicians/instruments hidden yet flawless unseen score,odds1000to1 or higher.

Half-Assed Internet Research

Deaf casting, Kelly’s performance and reported personal details, and Dreyfuss’s reported memory problems.

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 00:59:33Read transcript
  • All deaf characters reportedly played by deaf actors;mainstream portrayal built awareness and connection to music-centered father.
  • Kelly did singing/dancing,trained performer;reported Jimmy Patero marriage prompts ESPN party anecdote about Holland critique.
  • Dreyfuss memory loss and inability to recall Whose Life Is It Anyway filming reportedly linked to cocaine;later earpiece for stage lines and Old Vic criticism used to explain career decline.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Opus quality, uptight principal, coach hypothesis, budget/farewell choices, Rowena’s future and Cole’s name debated.

In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:58Read transcript
  • Is final opus good? Wacky guitar/music-teacher ambition and triumphant-but-cheesy Disney ride sound;Soren California preferred to world version aside.
  • Principal Walters more uptight than Little Bill because latter works on porn sets;Boogie Nights script-reading joke.
  • Coach secretly gay hypothesis opposed by different women evidence and lack of prior thought;modern dance/service/era cues speculative only.
  • Would restored program ending improve film? Governor could provide budget,Portland music cuts doubted.
  • Why invite firing principal and why would he attend final goodbye?
  • Rowena absent from finale;wife excluded her imagined,New York success/failure unknown and possible followup movie.
  • Coltrane Gershwin Holland name criticized;imagined drive-home Rowena argument with all-black cast button,Sam Jackson and Regina King preferred to Megan Good.