Peter Weir
L'Attimo Fuggente

Starting the review of "Dead Poets Society," the first thing that came to mind was that it would be much, much more difficult than imagined. Because it's easy to fall into the banal and the rhetorical when analyzing a film that, for better or worse, has managed to reconcile everyone, a box office hit, almost triumphantly received by critics, and apt to appeal both to the complexed fourteen-year-old and the elderly connoisseur over fifty. Because it's a film that lashes out, indirectly but with great vehemence, against one of those "easy targets," namely the bigotry of the educational system, which, along with other fixed themes, represents an almost certain guarantee, if not of the quality of the product, at least of its popularity (see, for example, "American Idiot" by Green Day: take a vulnerable subject, criticize it more or less violently, and voilà, success is at hand). Fortunately, this is not the case with this film, and it is for this reason that a delicate operation of analysis and commentary is necessary. Let's start with the objective data: directed by Peter Weir, released in 1989, over two hours of film starring Robin Williams, more on the rise than ever, who did not win an Oscar which I believe he truly deserved. Williams plays Professor Keating, who has now transcended from the mere cinematic character to an icon of nonconformity, free thought, or, more simply, recognized by many as the "ideal teacher." He is promoted to literature professor in a very strict Catholic-styled institution, anno domini 1959, and immediately stands out for his unorthodox methods, his more open attitude towards creativity and free thought, his unconventional lessons, and his motto, obsessively repeated, "Carpe Diem," from Latin meaning "seize the day," a clear invitation not to miss the opportunities offered by life. His students, among whom the stories of Neil, a brilliant and intelligent student with artistic vocations in theater brutally suppressed by his father, and Todd Anderson, a shyer and more awkward boy tempted by Keating's ideas but unable to fully open up during the film, are highlighted. Equally significant is the subplot (which also gives the original title to the film) of the "Dead Poets Society," an association banned by the school principal that preaches, as followers of the professor, the carpe diem and aims to compose and read poems to grasp the beauty in human existence, conceived as a strong ensemble of emotions, but also under a merely biological and thus atheist, non-transcendent perspective. There's even room for a not very original love story, between two students of the school. Evidently, the situation eventually deteriorates, the father's constraints on Neil become too pressing, and he, understanding that it's right to develop his own ideas and personality, crushed between his will and paternal obligations, commits suicide. Keating, in turn, is blamed for corrupting the youth by instilling "perverse" ideas, akin to a modern Socrates. The final scene, one that has made thousands of students and others cry, with the professor returning to the class to collect his things while the principal improvises teaching with his prudish and schematic theses, sees Todd first, freeing himself from all hesitation, standing on his desk, invoking "O Captain, My Captain," followed significantly by another half of the class (not all, not just one), the ones who truly received the professor's message. This scene is objectively splendid, significant, and in a certain sense unexpected, with a strong symbolic value. Though not perhaps the acclaimed five-star masterpiece proclaimed by many and perhaps not having all the innocence one might think, the entire film fundamentally has great significance and presents an intelligent (albeit radical) critique of the management of schools against the formation of free thought, and in my opinion, also against the closed mentality of the church. Williams is simply extraordinary and highly communicative, his message might be rejected, but it would be a great pity to pass by without giving it a look, without reflecting on it. All the other young actors (Ethan Hawke seems to play Todd, I liked his performance, I regret he didn't then break through) are convincing, from the role of the timid to that of the betrayer to the unexpressed, they all have a story to tell. Peter Weir's direction is superb. Besides the final scene, the first lesson of Keating, and Neil's last night, which strike in different ways, very beautiful is also the scene where the professor makes them play soccer, getting emotional like a child, and is finally hoisted triumphantly by his students. So, to conclude, it's nice to think that somewhere there is a Professor Keating who might really teach us that going to school is beautiful, and how to seize the day and the beautiful part of life. Until (but I await and hope a little for some denials) it remains a utopia, let's therefore content ourselves with this cult movie, which, without reaching perfection, will undoubtedly stimulate the 2/3 people who haven't seen it yet.