The words of the classic “We all learned a little, something and somehow” will probably never lose their relevance. Filmmakers often choose the temples of science as the scene of their masterpieces. This publication presents films about school, university and college.
Masterpieces of the domestic film industry
Soviet cinema was famous for its beautiful paintings about teachers, schools and institutes. The most sincere and touching stories developed at the blackboard and in student audiences. Remember “Let's Live Until Monday,” “The Adventures of Electronics,” “Big Break.” No less successful, according to reviews, is the drama of the famous George Danelia "Autumn Marathon". The main character, a teacher at Leningrad University, tries to be good for everyone, but turns into a miserable loser. The image was embodied on the screen by the brilliant Oleg Basilashvili.
The Soviet film “You Never Had A Dream ...”, having become the best film of 1981 according to a poll of the magazine “Soviet Screen”, even appeared in the USA under the name Love & Lies. This picture contains a lot of references to the Shakespearean tragedy, in the center of the story is the school drama of Katya and Roma, in which their exhausted parents rage no less than Montecca and Capulet. The work of Ilya Fraz, as well as the American melodrama Adam Shankman's "Haste to Love", no doubt refers to films about the university, college and love. Both projects have extremely positive reviews and reviews.
About teenage crime
The fact that children and teenagers can overwhelm society so much that educational institutions turn into closed institutions, filmmakers have long said. Their films about college and university are based on the fantasies of authors and real stories. Class 1984, as well as the episode with a changed past from Back to the Future 2, can be considered flowers. Berries are the “Class” of 1999 and the “Class” of 2007.
Director Mark L. Leicester in his work fantasized what could happen when the confrontation between teacher and student goes beyond reason.
The Estonian film “Class” is far from fiction. Director Ilmar Raag presented to the public a story about the friendship of two teenagers forced to confront the hooligan majority, violence and bullying. Unable to be guided by common sense, children take up arms. As a result, not only their abusers, but also innocent students suffer. Topical topics did not leave the audience indifferent, the rating of the project, taking into account the reviews, was IMDb: 8.00.
In the Russian film "Uchilka" by Alexei A. Petrukhin there is not a drop of romance, but an outgoing event is described out of the ordinary. The tape was removed based on a real incident. The pistol brought by one of the students passes from hand to hand. A cocked cock reveals genuine feelings, relationships within the student body and with the teacher. The relevance of the topic was appreciated by critics, but the film has polar reviews.
Unfortunately, such films about college and the university do not protect children from tragedies, and murders are repeated with frightening intervals.
Thrillers and Horror
American films about university and college are often produced in the thriller or even horror genre. For example, “Comatose” by Joel Schumacher or “Carrie” by Brian De Palma.
Joel Schumacher is an excellent director who manages to cling the viewer in each of his work not only visually, but also ideologically. In the film "Komatozniki", the key characters are medical students who conduct dangerous experiments on each other within the university laboratories. Based on the opinions of the audience, it can be argued: the story is attractive and beautiful, the cast is amazingly stellar.
"Carrie" terrifies not only the mystical background, but also a demonstration of teenage cruelty, herd feelings. Classmates took up arms against the main character, and teachers chose not to notice the bullying of the teenager. Therefore, according to the majority of respondents, the students deserved every flash of fire and every drop of blood that a desperate girl who stopped hiding her paranormal abilities brought down the offenders. Reviewers often recall in their reviews of "Carrie" the movie "Scarecrow", which broke a lot of patterns of Soviet cinema. The picture far from in the best light showed both students - pioneers, and teachers. For the beginning of the 80s, such a project was unprecedented honesty and courage.
Do not go, children, to school ...
Youth films about college (high school) sometimes seriously make you think about the need to continue education.
In Wes Craven’s iconic Scream, Woodsboro’s educational institution might have remained unknown to the general public. But once there was a terrible tragedy. The masked girl killed the student and her friend, and the maniac turns the bloody massacre into a game. The adventures of Sidney Prescott later turned into a franchise, which formed a new direction in the cinema. Everything is wonderful in it, but after watching the teenagers the question does not give rest, and what if their class also has its own maniac, or even two?
Robert Rodriguez has a great place at Harrington College. Here, Terminator Robert Patrick leads physical education, health is monitored by nurse Salma Hayek, biology is taught by Famke Janssen. Students also have a good life. But the idyll is violated by the attack of alien slugs that take possession of the bodies and minds of their victims. The battle with aliens, according to reviewers in the reviews, will be glorious.
Not without zombies
Closed schools are often positioned as a solution to all the problems of education. But the creative tandem of directors D. Milott and C. Mernion have a different opinion on this. In their offspring Kutis, several students suddenly turn into zombies who are trying to gobble up classmates and teachers.
By the way, the characters of the "New Era Z" directed by Colm McCarthy are trying to educate and train zombies, an interesting sight turned out. The film, as critics say in the reviews, turned out to be a non-standard zombie story that catches, intrigues, delays and terrifies in equal proportions.
In movies and on TV
Despite a wide range of cinematographers' research, the best films about students, college and university are mainly shot in the comedy genre. Recall only the tetralogy “The King of Parties”, the notorious epic of the Weitz brothers “American Pie”, the tapes “Mean Girls”, “Very Bad Teacher”, “Excellent student of easy virtue”, “Dudes”, etc.
Among the list of comedy projects, the picture "We were accepted!" stands out for its non-standard approach to demonstration of an educational institution. In the work of Steve Pink, the desperate protagonist, not entering any college, decided to open his own. He gathered a team of like-minded people, the “teaching” staff and opened a college in an empty building of a psychiatric hospital. The project of Tom Shadyak's team is notable for an interesting cast, among which are young future stars of the first magnitude.
Universities also get television. For example, the unprecedentedly successful sitcom “The Big Bang Theory,” in which young scientists from the university are at the center of the story. The series has many laudations, as it is not only geeky, but also romantic.
Asian projects
Films about college and university production in Southeast Asia for the most part raise serious problems caused by a rigid and authoritarian education system.
A series of South Korean films “Whisper of Walls” opens with an episode about the events that took place at the girls' school, whose student committed suicide. The deceased's girlfriend has returned to the school as a teacher. At this time, several students are killed in the educational institution at once. This project has a mixed effect on fragile minds.
In the Japanese Battle Royale, Kinji Fukasaku takes the viewer to the future, where education is available only to the elite. Dissatisfied and dissenting whole classes are sent to the Battle Royale entertainment show, in which they act as victims and murderers.
In Tae-gun Kim’s Volcanic Impact, Korean college teachers have to confront rebellious students with bulky biceps and low IQ. From the school as a result there will be no stone unturned.
High School from Crows: The Beginning Takashi Miike is one of the toughest college and university films on the list. In it, gangs have acquired such a scale that they are no longer able to resist either the teacher or the guards. The picture demonstrates the confrontation of two high school students claiming leadership. Colorful school uniforms and picturesque fights look spectacular, but only from the screen. God forbid to be in the way of such gangs.
Thematic Swatches
In addition to those mentioned, films about college and university include the following pictures:
- comedy for fans of Miley Cyrus "Undercover Agent";
- a melodrama about friendship and determination “Sidney White”;
- sports comedy "She is a man";
- musical trilogy “The Perfect Voice”;
- colorful “vanilla-caramel” story “Boys like it”;
- family adventures "Daddy's daughter";
- dramatic thriller "Rebel Club";
- a good movie, with a happy ending, "Mrs. Washington Goes to Smith College";
- beautiful love story "Boys and Girls";
- film without flaws "School ties."