Could have been more

Rating: 4/10 (23 May 2011)

(THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS) I saw this movie about 3 years ago on TV and really enjoyed it. I thought there was strong emotional depth, impressive acting, and a well-structured storyline. However, the next time I saw it which was about a year ago, I was underwhelmed. Don't get me wrong; it's not a horrible movie. It's just not as engaging as I thought it was. A lot of this does have to do with its tired, overused premise: the rebellious students oppose conservative, authoritative parents with the help of their liberal teacher. Now, you can take any premise and make it into a good movie, but DEAD POETS SOCIETY doesn't bother to give us anything fresh or insightful. It's just "Find yourself" and "Seize the Day!" and "Believe and you will succeed" for 2 hours.
I still think the acting is generally fine, mostly from the kids. I'm surprised that only Ethan Hawke and Robert Sean Leonard were the only ones that went anywhere after this movie (correct me if I'm wrong). The adults aside from Williams however are not as effective. They're just stereotypical, hard-core conservative snobs who want to only keep the kids from "expressing who they truly are in life." Not much depth is given to them. Robin Williams is good too, but not as spectacular as most people claim him to be. When he's on screen, he's enjoyable and effective. When he's not, I don't miss him. I guess it has to do with the fact that there's not much to his character. He's just a wise, caring, liberal teacher who only wants to help his students. That's not bad, but he seems more like a representation of the movie's idea of Carpe Diem than an actual character. Mr. Keating also acts more like a plot device because he is only around when he's either a) teaching a class, or b) helping a student(s) outside of class. I guess that's why I don't miss him when he's not on screen. The rest of the movie is about the kids taking his lessons and applying to their daily lives. Nothing wrong with that, but it would have been better if we saw Keating more than just the teacher/moral support. Bland characterization, however, is not the only problem I have with this film.
The biggest problem for me is the third act when the Robert Sean Leonard kid commits suicide. What the heck happened?! I would be emotionally involved if the film bothered to show signs of him struggling with suicidal thoughts. But this seems so sudden and out of nowhere. The kid does the play, his father doesn't approve, and he kills himself. That doesn't work. This is the part that makes me wonder why this movie won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay (especially against the likes of CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS and SEX, LIES, AND VIDEOTAPE) because when I see a movie that has a sporadic act of tragedy, I don't think, "Oh, my goodness! This is so sad and moving!" I think, "What the heck? Did the screenwriter run out of ideas?" Here's the thing: Suicide can be a powerful dramatic tool if handled correctly. It can work in a story that sets itself up as a tragedy. But this movie sets itself up more as an inspirational and uplifting drama, so this act of despair seems out of place. Even at the end where the kids stand up on their desks and protest, I still had a hard time getting past that kid's suicide. Another thing that bothers me about this is that it's such a cheap way to show how damaging conservative attitudes can be and how helpful liberal attitudes can be. This can be an effective lesson but here it's told clumsily. The screenwriter forces the audience to care instead of simply telling a story and allowing the audience to be naturally affected by it. I'm sure the person who wrote the script meant well, but this comes across as a little condescending. It seems like he's saying, "Care for these characters right now!" I'll feel what I'll feel, just show us these people and their lives.
That's all I can think of for now. Hopefully, I didn't rant too much. I understand why people like this movie because there are a couple of good scenes and again the kids do a great job. But personally, I think the movie just needed to avoid the clichés and dig deeper to become something really meaningful and poignant.