Bloom County's Opus was far more impressive

Rating: 1/10 (2 October 2007)

How dare this film soil the name of Opus, the great cartoon penguin from Bloom County, who is quoted to this day. That Opus lived his dream, knew who he was, and left his unique mark on life. Mr. Holland's "Opus," by comparison, only confirmed his invisibility and historical irrelevance. We are to think that Mr. Holland (Richard Dreyfuss) is one of life's unsung heroes for changing the lives of young people through music, but he is merely unsung, a man of little achievement who does little more than feed our tax coffers while doing what those who cannot do, do: teach.
Dreyfuss, who owes most of his carer to the overrated The Goodbye Girl (1977), tries, and fails yet again, to deliver an Oscar-worthy performance. Had he won for this performance, I would have lobbied stronger for making one actor a year give the award back.
Here we get the story of a touring musician who settles into a teaching job for financial stability, and so he can compose music in his spare time, only to learn that teaching is fulfilling all its own. On the other hand, we don't see successful musicians or composers giving up their lives for teaching, so the entire premise is flawed. This guy is not a success, and is simply making the most out of failure, while the children he "inspires" are making the most out of their indentured servitude in the education system. The supporting cast, which includes the equally overrated Olympia Dukakis as the principal, makes this one of the worst big-budget films of all time.
Not only do I recommend not watching it, but also disowning anyone who ever decides to play it when you have no choice but to watch it (such as if you are stuck at a friend's house and can't jump out the window to avoid it). If you must watch this film, please set your sights higher than the loser of a lead character did, and don't ever convince yourself you are so happy with so little.