The Kindergarten Teacher

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BBFC Ratingf-rated FilmThe Kindergarten Teacher

Certificate12A
Year2018
GenreDrama
Director(s)Sara Colangelo
LanguageEnglish
CountryUSA
Running Time1HR 37MINS
SeasonMain Programme

Maggie Gyllenhaal gives a career-best performance as a kindergarten teacher who finds herself in an ethical quagmire after discovering the poetic talents of a precocious student.

Lisa Spinelli (Gyllenhaal) is intense. Her life is not. Her marriage is devoid of intimacy, her children reject her efforts to ignite their creative souls and she spends night after night at home diligently eating nutritious but unremarkable dinners. Searching for a richer existence, she takes an evening poetry class, sharing her ardent compositions to a largely unreceptive class and teacher (Gael García Bernal). When a young boy in her care suddenly begins to recite poetry, Lisa takes it upon herself to record the work and share it, with unexpected consequences.

An intelligent adaptation of an Israeli film of the same name, Sara Colangelo’s change of location to the US reveals fascinating insights into the preoccupations of the English-speaking liberal classes, gleaning subtle observations on identity, guardianship and artistic endeavour. 

- Jemma Desai, BFI London Film Festival

“That's a level of daring we don't often see, particularly in a film about children. The Kindergarten Teacher is probably the only movie about poetry with an ending as tense as any thriller.” – JORDAN HOFFMAN, THE GUARDIAN



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