instruction:
In this task, you must classify if a given review is positive/negative, indicating your answer as P or N.
question:
i remember making a pact , right after ` patch adams ' , to not be easily be suckered by movies dripping with sentimentality .
but darn it , ` music of the heart ' is just layered with feel - good material and bright characterizations .
it 's hard to dislike a movie that uses such skill with it 's manipulation .
in addition , it 's also a terrific family film .
this is the true story of violin teacher
roberta guaspari , who fought the school board to keep the musical program active in a handful of inner city harlem schools .
it could also be described as ` mrs .
streep 's opus ' .
yes , meryl streep brings her dramatic clout to the demanding role of guaspari , and that brings both good news and bad .
out of the gate , possibly because of her distracting star power and the rushed writing , it is relatively difficult to identify with roberta 's character and grasp her academic point - of - view .
she is very strict with her students , but what insight does that create into the story ?
slowly but surely , we begin to recognize the intentions of the character , and show admiration for the thoughtfulness and human feeling that streep has once again applied .
one thoroughly interesting fact about ` music of the heart ' lies with the unlikely presence in the director 's chair : horror veteran wes craven .
after leaving an impression with the ` scream ' films and the original ` nightmare on elm street ' , craven has attempted a precarious cross - over to drama .
at first , his inexperience with the genre is fairly obvious , but as the film progresses craven finds a surprisingly comfortable niche with directing this material .
it does n't carry the heart - warming courage of ` mr .
holland 's opus ' , but ` music of the heart ' is casually assured and filled with little morsels of dramatic truth .
the tag team of streep and craven works better than you would anticipate .
yes , oscar could come calling once again for meryl streep , but it 's the solid ensemble cast that makes ` music of the heart ' work .
angela bassett displays her usual forceful stamina as janet williams , the principal at an inner city school who initially does n't hire roberta because of her lack of experience .
blue - eyed adian quinn is endearing , as always , playing a new love interest .
gloria estefan also delivers in the tiny role of a supportive second - grade teacher , and the three lead actresses together produce a flaming fireball of estrogenic force .
it 's like a schoolteacher 's version of ` thelma and louise ' , in a restrained but effective manner .
the movie tackles more issues than just guaspari 's teaching of violin .
there 's some powerful moments between roberta and her two sons , who must cope when their father leaves them for another woman .
in it 's dramatic build - up
, the movie manages to produce some authentic moments of feeling and warmth .
it 's a good movie for anyone to see , although missing out on the experience would not be a life - altering decision .
it 's commendable of wes craven to be attempting such a difficult cross - over , and also for achieving his intricate goal .
watching this heartfelt chick flick about morals and musical instruments , who may ask yourself : this is the guy who directed ` scream ' ?
of course , when the third installment of that series comes around in february 2000 ( with craven directing ) , you may find yourself wondering : this is the guy who directed ` music of the heart ' ?
mission accomplished , wes .
thankfully , there is no layer of artificial sentiment covering the film .
in it 's entirety , it 's a wholesome and agreeable movie for the whole family , despite the periodic flaws that surface every once in awhile .
the child actors are cute and perform up to par , even if some of their problems are clich ?
d and predictable in the extreme .
the mother who does n't want her son to be learning ` white man 's music ' , the unexpected casuality .
. .
basically everything is there .
it does n't strike the perfect chord , but ` music of the heart ' is highly convincing .
the uplifting true story of roberta guaspari could have been told better , but ` music of the heart ' is still edifying enough to properly divulge her morals .
answer:
P


question:
_ in brief : _ this film needs no introduction . if you have n't heard of it , then you must have been up in space on a sabbatical , and if you have n't seen it -- well , i suspect you 're in a small minority !
first thing 's first ?
is it all it 's hyped up to be ?
well , yes ?
and no .
it 's a good film , and there 's a lot to like about it , but it 's not without its problems .
when i saw the first trailer for " titanic " , it was when i went to see " bean " last summer , i think , my intial reaction was --
ai n't that downright sick to make a disaster movie out of such a dreadful , real - life tragedy ? !
i mean , what 's happened to hollywood 's script - writers , have they run entirely out of new ideas ?
gads ,
whatever next , i asked myself , how about an action film based on hiroshima starring jean claude van damme ?
i was not entirely filled with anticipation , but then i was n't alone in that respect .
it 's when it came out in the cinema , to rave reviews ( well , mostly ) and
anyone who 'd been to see it seemed disturbingly obsessed by it that i started to take notice !
i did n't see the film until several months after its release ( by which time my sister had seen it about four times ! ) , so i went with a slightly more open mind , but i still did n't think i 'd enjoy it much .
did i ?
yes
and no .
mainly yes , i 'm happy to say .
the first hour or so was beautifully done , not so much because of the scripting
( i 'll talk about that later ? ) but because the re - created ship and sets were stunning to look at , as was cameron 's directing , and the performances of the principal cast were so strong that the " human " aspect of the story , the romance between rose ( kate winslet ) and jack ( leonardo dicaprio ) , was enchanting
.
the film is told via flashback , with gloria stuart playing the elderly rose in the modern day ( you knew that , a ' course ! : - ) ) .
well , it 's an often effective device to use in storytelling -- though sometimes it can fall flat .
does it work here ?
in script form it does n't add all that much to the story .
what does add a lot to the story is gloria stuart , whose stunning performance is the strongest , most moving of the film .
her presence brings a much deeper level of passion , and depth to the story , and though her appearances are relatively brief , the film would have suffered without her . also impressive are dicaprio and winslet , who wholly succeed in rising above the often poor dialogue , and the bond they form is both heartfelt and moving
.
it 's an old story , you know -- forbidden love ala romeo and juliet -- but it works , and jack 's " rescuing " rose ( in both literal and figurative senses ) and teaching her to live life for what counts was pointed and touching .
in fact , i enjoyed the first half of the film a lot , largely because winslet and dicaprio bring such and charm , energy to the romance .
it 's engaging , touching and very enjoyable .
there 's more than a tinge of poignancy to it as well ,
simply because you know it 's not going to be a happy ending .
which leads us to the second half of the film .
we all knew it was coming .
i 'm sure director cameron was looking forward with eager anticipation to it , because as he 's stated in interviews , the real thrust of the story ( for him ) was the sinking , and the jack / rose romance was a merely a manipulative plot device to get you emotionally into the film .
i think that understates the importance of the romance , as i found it far more enjoyable than an hour of watching people die .
the iceberg arrives , and the captain announces that titanic will have sunk in about an hour .
and it is an hour .
my goodness , we do n't miss a second of that hour ?
gratuitous ?
well , perhaps not by today 's standards , i 'm sure there 's been far worse produced under the banner of " entertainment " in other films .
but i certainly was n't prepared for how shocking and graphic the last hour or so would be .
not that i 'd expect the word " understatement " to be part of cameron 's vocabulary ( he who brought us such , umm , vivid films as " terminator 2 " and " aliens " ) .
is it overdone ?
i thought so .
understatement can sometimes work wonders in conveying tragedy .
no , no one expected a happy ending , but i did n't quite expect the horrendously shocking and powerful scenes we were bombarded throughout the film 's second half .
still , whether it was overdone and heavy - handed or not , if it was the shock - factor cameron was after it worked , because i was shocked and moved , in fact i spent most of the last hour in tears !
you really could n't help but get emotionally involved ,
whether it was wishing someone would knock that dreadfully psychotic fiance of rose 's overboard or desperately hoping that rose would rescue jack , or that jack would rescue rose , or that they would both survive .
perhaps the most harrowing scene was when the ship has sunk , and those that sunk along with the ship freeze to death on the water surface .
the bit where rose lets go of jack 's hand , while promising she 'll never let go in her heart was particularly heart - wrenching , and the sight of rescue boats sailing amid the ocean of corpses was a pretty powerful image , to put no fine a point on it .
i loved the ending , however , which was both moving and slightly uplifting following the horror of the past hour and a half .
so , we 've established that the film is powerful and moving , if the last hour was rather excessive . have n't mentioned the script .
plot - wise
it 's ok , though the jack / rose relationship was beautifully developed
,
but i 've a feeling that 's to the actors
credit if anything .
as for the dialogue ?
well , titanic is set in 1912 .
it 's a period drama .
but i saw very little indication of period in so far as the dialogue is concerned .
did they really use phrases like " goddamn it !
" back in the turn of the century ?
i doubt it .
would someone talk like this : " do ya love the guy or what ? " .
i doubt it .
is such dialogue as " i saw the iceberg , and i see it in your eyes now
" not just a bit ? clumsy ?
yes it is .
a little more attention to dialogue would not have gone astray , and cameron himself is to blame ( he wrote the script ) .
stick with directing , dude .
but its more than redeemed by the acting , with dicaprio and winslet on fine form , ably supported by a strong cast .
star of the show was gloria stuart , though --
why did n't she win that oscar ? !
after all , they were throwing oscars at " titanic " left , right and centre , but gloria was perhaps the most deserving nominee . directing - wise cameron does a spectacular job .
like i said , his vision was a bit excessive , but at least he directed it well .
i have n't even mentioned james horner 's beautiful score .
utterly heavenly , though when your dad and sister play the soundtrack a lot you do start to get a bit bored with it !
; - ) i 've finished my rant , which lasted a lot longer than i thought it would !
just leaves a couple of questions ; was it worth all those oscars ?
hell , do n't talk to me about oscars .
bloomin ' farce .
it was deserving in a number of departments , though .
last question ; is it , as some suggest , one of the best films of all - time ?
nope , i do n't think so .
it 's certainly one of the most powerful and memorable films i 've ever seen ,
but i do n't think it quite ranks as one of my all - time favourites .
and as for the fact they 're reportedly making a " titanic 2 " ?
well i guess that 's typical hollywood for you !
answer:
P


question:
( note : there are spoilers regarding the film 's climax ; the election , of course ) we see matthew broderick , a man torn to a primal state ; he 's been unfaithful to his wife , lied to and manipulated his students , and by the same token they 've demeaned his masculinity ,
his self - respect , his desperate attempt at changing the world .
and yet , he equates the cause of his pain , his torment , with tracy flick ( reese witherspoon ) .
no matter how many students have come and gone , and disappointed him as an educator , she 's the real threat .
about to give in , and divulge that she 's won by only a lone vote , broderick 's mccalister turns in defeat , sees tracy 's euphoric celebration in the outside corridor and says , ' no ' .
the fact that he simultaneously lusts after her ideologically further illustrates that freudian foundation of entitlement which all men , no matter how obscure , have in their relationships ; a traditional expectation of success , to usurp and surpass women as a proverbial industry .
she ca n't go higher than him .
he wo n't allow it .
and what 's amazing about " election " is that every word of that criticism is drawn from a rather opaque metaphor .
early in the film we learn that tracy was romantically , and then sexually , involved with a now departed teacher .
it 's like payne and taylor , his co - screenwriter , have taken tracy , a girl desperate for friendship , loyalty , and almost perversely drawn the mythological pattern of kids who were so utterly rejected by their peers , that they found sitting at the teachers ' lunch table more fitting , to an unlikely extreme with her as the protagonist .
and it 's amazing the compassion that we have ; it seems so real to us , and not merely because it 's happened before , splashed all over the front pages , but , because of the all around " nice " persona of these people , we easily dismiss the truly wayward deeds of the characters .
it 's with mandy barnett 's " if you 'll be the teacher " playing winsomely over the closing credits that payne skewers the tenets of his detractors most ; a final , viscous injection of bittersweet irony .
sexuality , though , is not the only basis for payne 's satire , or its success .
it also makes a telling point about politics , friendship , and class boundaries .
satire is required ( or ought to be , anyway ) to take itself seriously , or act so , while the audience does not .
it 's a fine line to straddle , but some films ignore it altogether ( " drop dead gorgeous " leaps infuriatingly to mind ) .
payne and taylor hit the right chord ; their characters are real people : neither is perfect , but rather both of the leads are flawed , misguided individuals who retain , somewhat , noble intentions at heart .
we sympathize with them , but still , as a satire , their idiosyncratic behavior , and their wrongdoing , is taken to an extreme for the audience to knowingly chuckle , but also reflect and meditate , about .
minus half a point , though , for payne admitting not to having seen " ferris bueller 's day off " .
whatever .
answer:

P