mjsreg
I stumbled upon this film by chance and thought i'd watch it out of interest - so had no expectations generated by reviews etc.It was disappointing from the moment it started. Technically, it was mediocre to say the least. I felt as though no thought had gone into setting up the scenes, the lighting, or the relevance of shots to what was taking place. Someone could have done the same thing with a cheap camera phone - and this was much the same throughout this film. It was as though it had been made to some formula rather than any artistry.The story could have been a good tale to tell, but was let down by either the script or editing which produced a disjointed feeling between shots, with both over-emphasis and lack of emphasis in certain shots that could have made the film bearable.In the end I was glad it had finished.
tkaine3
Tindal.. Your a F'ING Genius. OK like I usually state I put in reviews for movies that are not being represented properly or are overrated. Today I am focusing on "The Lesson" starring Robert Hands,Evan Bendall & Michaela Prchalov'a. Now is this movie overrated or underrated, well if your going by the IMDb rankings it would be neither.Let me explain. The user reviews are right on the money for anyone who gave a 8 or higher rating. But The rating ranking is 4.5 out of 10 which is such a terrible display of a ranking for an amazing movie it kinda upsets me that the critics could rate this movie so low. or maybe that's just a collective ranking from users and critics whatever the case may be "The Lesson" is a captivating intelligent gruesome and invigorating film displaying a teachers passion to teach at all costs and a students ability to learn on any level if pushed to the limit. The acting by Robert Hands was definitely some of the best work I have ever seen. Maybe this role was so close to his actual real life personality for him to pull it off so well but regardless of that he displayed award winning talent and he should definitely be considered in the league of A- list actors.The camera angles,The writing,the directing was also superb and the other actors were all sufficient but I felt there roles could of easily been replaceable by someone else which was not the case for Robert Hands who stole the show. The only reason I did not give it a 10 was because of added scenes towards the end which I feel were sort of useful for filling out the story and giving you the whole spectrum of the finalized result but it kinda thru off the speed or pace of the movie and I feel it would of been a more effective ending if it was 75% shorter. All in All though a great movie that is relevant in our society today and isn't that what it's really about. We watch and we learn so many things in our life time good and bad but if something isn't useful then what's the point in creating it.. Stay Safe Stay Blessed.. T.Kaine
justinesweeten
If Ken Loach had ever produced a horror film, it would have looked very much like 'The Lesson'. This is a hugely thought provoking film whose portrayal of horror goes so much further and deeper than the scenes of violence. The film is firmly grounded in the real world, our world, with real people dealing with real issues. For the hard core chain saw massacre viewer, the film may take a while to get to the 'horror' scenes - but for me, the horror started from the moment the film began as we witness the appalling way people treat each other and how horrifically society fails them. Ultimately it is hard to say who is the monster and who the victim- in fact the most stomach churning scenes for me involved the domestic violence. Having said that Robert Hands is outstanding as the teacher. His mercurial performance is totally empathetic and mesmeric - at one moment terrifying , the next pathetic. Sign of a great film for me is that it makes you think as you watch it, it makes you think as you discuss it afterwards and it is still making you think days later. This film does that with knobs on.
susanby
The first feature film written and directed by Ruth Platt; The Lesson, has been described as an; '..astonishingly bravura art-house horror..'*. In addition Platt's film is; 'A dark claustrophobic and bloody coming of age love story..'*. Although I don't disagree with either of these comments, I consider that Platt achieves far more than just the sum of these two observations.The Lesson takes place in an area which reminded me of a new town, or city suburb. The school children depicted aren't from the gutter; they're from a reasonable neighbourhood with neat houses, where public parks have long sweeping pathways and their school uniforms appear clean, tidy and pressed. In perceiving how this neat urban area would function, the viewer can be forgiven for expecting caring family units to reside there. Yet, the suburb is revealed as soulless; empty of love and affection, bland and unstimulating to the youth that reside there. Somehow, this is an almost subliminal message held close to the films core. The emptiness of the streets and the park we see the youngsters in, gradually seeps into the viewer's subconscious. I felt this message led the viewer to a certain level of understanding, concerning the teenager's behaviour towards authoritative figures. An important perspective perhaps, for a film that can be described as morally ambiguous.After a slow start, which does serve to impress upon the viewer aspects of how the youngsters, at the centre of the films narrative, live and are cared for, attention is switched to an incident at the school they attend. After the teenagers disrespect one of their teachers, The Lesson switches tone and presents the viewer with a tale of repercussive revenge, whereby a very harsh lesson is taught. The scene presented here is no holds barred, violent and will be regarded by some as torture porn. Certain aspects are deliberately stylised, for example the way blood is displayed upon the neck of Fin's friend Joel (Rory Coltart). However, what I found interesting was how this tale of soullessness and revenge, resulted in epiphany and redemption. Also, although the 'lesson' section is, at times, hard to watch, the empty realism of life in the suburbs, also at school, juxtaposes nicely with the painful awakening to the vastness of intellectual information contained within the lesson the boys are subjected to.Dialogue in The Lesson is well written and confidently handled by all members of the cast. Robert Hands excels at imparting the 'lesson' and his performance, as a teacher who is pushed over the edge, is believable. Other performances of note are that of Fin (Evan Bendall) who manages to portray how isolated and self-involved the world of a teenager can be; also Michaela Prchalova. Her carefully judged portrayal of care and attraction is well realised. As director Ruth Platt is no stranger to acting and being filmed by a camera, I have no doubt her own experiences assisted in getting terrific performances out of her young cast, all of whom are newcomers to film acting.The black and white scenes which recall Fin's memories of time spent with his mother and father are nicely edited into the brightness of day. The obvious dichotomy between light and dark are used to illustrate irresponsibility and the manner in which Fin is almost sleepwalking through life, against the horror and awakening which occurs when his teacher takes control.As The Lesson unfolded, I became aware that, rather than containing social commentary about the difficulties faced by teachers in a particular classroom environment, the films integral message concerns the absence of love and security in the home; the lack of a parental figurehead and the repercussions such a lack could enable. Consequently, there is a real sense of cause and effect generated by events in Fin's life during the course of the film. Arguably, the primary cause of his dislocation, from intellectual discourse and personal responsibility, is the sense of being unloved.If social commentary in horror films is of interest to you, The Lesson is a must see. If you enjoy a taut coming of age drama and like horror films where the camera doesn't always turn away, you'll enjoy this. Personally, I found The Lesson to be a powerful, well-acted and tautly directed film, where social commentary was the icing on the cake. But, be prepared for moral ambiguity, as this appears to be a sizeable portion of the cake on offer.* Both comments taken from the Frightfest Festival guide 2015
