Amazon.com Essentials:
Robin Williams stars as an English teacher who doesn't fit
into the conservative prep school where he teaches, but whose charisma
and love of poetry inspires several boys to revive a secret society
with a bohemian bent. The script is well meaning but a little trite,
though director Peter Weir (The Truman Show) adds layers of
emotional depth in scenes of conflict between the kids and adults. (A
subplot involving one father's terrible pressure on his son--played by
Robert Sean Leonard--to drop his interest in theater reaches
heartbreaking proportions.) Williams is given plenty of latitude to
work in his brand of improvisational humor, though it is all
well-woven into his character's style of instruction. --Tom
Keogh
