To Sir, With Love - 7 stars out of 10

To Sir, With Love - 7 stars out of 10

"To Sir, With Love" falls into the genre of "inspirational movies about education."  Although I cannot put this one on par with "Lean On Me" and "Mr. Holland's Opus," it tells a nice story about a bunch of school misfits and the teacher who believes in them.  The character development of the students is very well done, providing each student with a distinguishable personality and their own set of social issues, whereas many films has a "generic student body" that is affected as a whole.  Sidney Poitier is excellent as he always is, but the most memorable performances in the film come from Christian Roberts (as the ringleader of the class) and Judy Geeson (as the student who first begins to come around).  The lack of appreciation from the students is frustrating but a realistic portrayal of the inner-workings of the educational system.  The thing that lacks in this story is a very pungent twist.  Films of this type typically have a death or pregnancy of a student, or an earthshattering event, but this twist wan't too shocking.  The film has the sensation of a character study than that of a drama, but its good acting and proper resolution are what make it memorable.