Dead Poets Society (1989)

Director:

Peter Weir

Writer (WGA):

Tom Schulman (written by)

Release Date:

9 June 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

He was their inspiration. He made their lives extraordinary.

Plot:

English professor John Keating inspires his students to a love of poetry and to seize the day.

Plot Keywords:

Compassion | Classmate | Bittersweet | Teacher Hero | School Life

Awards:

Won Oscar. Another 13 wins & 14 nominations

Cast

Robin Williams	...	John Keating
Robert Sean Leonard	...	Neil Perry
Ethan Hawke	...	Todd Anderson
Josh Charles	...	Knox Overstreet
Gale Hansen	...	Charlie Dalton
Dylan Kussman	...	Richard Cameron
Allelon Ruggiero	...	Steven Meeks
James Waterston	...	Gerard Pitts
Norman Lloyd	...	Mr. Nolan
Kurtwood Smith	...	Mr. Perry
Carla Belver	...	Mrs. Perry
Leon Pownall	...	McAllister
George Martin	...	Dr. Hager
Joe Aufiery	...	Chemistry Teacher
Matt Carey	...	Hopkins

Runtime:

128 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) | Dolby (35 mm prints)

Certification:

Spain:13 | Iceland:L | New Zealand:PG | Brazil:12 | South Korea:12 | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Chile:14 | Finland:S | Netherlands:AL | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG (certificate #29797) | West Germany:12

Filming Locations:

Everett Theatre - 47 West Main Street, Middletown, Delaware, USA

Company:

Touchstone Pictures

Trivia:

Director Peter Weir chose to shoot the film in chronological order to better capture the development of the relationships between the boys and their growing respect for Mr. Keating.

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): After the welcoming speech, Todd's father refers to the headmaster as "Dr. Nolan". Everyone else throughout the movie calls him "Mr. Nolan".

Quotes:

McAllister: "Show me the heart unfettered by foolish dreams and I'll show you a happy man."
John Keating: "But only in their dreams can men be truly free. 'Twas always thus, and always thus will be."
McAllister: Tennyson?
John Keating: No, Keating.

Movie Connections:

References Au revoir les enfants (1987)

Soundtrack:

THE BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS

A fantastic representation of belief and individualism

Dead Poets Society was a movie that took some in depth realization. Robin Williams did a fantastic job depicting individualism and how to walk on your own. He realized that these young men were going to be shaped in either a bad way or could shape themselves into the type of men they wanted to become.Sure, everyone around them were jerks and stiffs but that is the environment of the school. People just didn't go up against all odds, and everything was OK. That is exactly what Dead Poets Society was showing. Even though there were consequences to the boys being inspired and re-forming "Dead Poets Society" they still learned to march to their own drummer. They could be boys and go for their own dreams and ambitions. This movie showed Williams in a different light and i have so much respect for his character. He believed enough in these boys to loose his job. Standing on desks may not make everything better, but it shows the real meaning of the movie. These boys had been taught to conform and put their beliefs aside, but Williams opened up their hearts and made a lot of people, whether they liked it or not, realize that tradition is not always the way to push your children. If all you can look at is the expression on Neil Perrys fathers face, when he realized what his son had done, then you really didn't get the point. This was not Mr. Perrys life, and Williams knew that and was not about to cover up Neils dreams and tell him exactly the opposite of what he had been teaching him all along. Dead Poets Society was an unbelievable movie that showed how this teacher believed so much in his students, that it changed their lives.