Freedom Writers
Idealistic Erin Gruwell finds a way to unify her disadvantaged, racially divided students and to improve their grasp of academics, partly by having them keep journals about their violent, troubled lives.
20 September 1983, Houston, Texas, USA
4 September 1986, St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
9 July 1955, Chagrin Falls, Ohio, USA
13 January 1966, Lewiston, Maine, USA
3 March 1986, Meriden, Connecticut, USA
27 August 1986, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
10 November 1985, San Diego, California, USA
25 June 1963, Plano, Texas, USA
5 May 1927, Shreveport, Louisiana, USA
6 March 1985, El Centro, California, USA
21 February 1989, Los Angeles, California, USA
August 13, 2007
While it is, like its genre brethren, inspiring and uplifting, Freedom Writers glosses over so much material that it makes the process look too easy.
January 10, 2007
Square, sincere, and proud of it.
January 05, 2007
Thanks to LaGravenese's empathetic writing and direction, and Swank's titanic force of will, Freedom Writers' unabashed earnestness proves unexpectedly powerful.
August 04, 2007
Ironically, the film features almost zero teaching. Despite much pedagogical posturing, it doesn't teach us much, either.
July 03, 2011
The movie benefits from an interesting subject and good acting, I just wish it were more focused and deep.
January 11, 2007
Engaging but clichéd inspirational drama set during the time of the 1992 race riots in Los Angeles. On some level, just about any movie featuring never-say-die teachers is effective.
January 09, 2007
Our eager-beaver heroine suffers the kids' sarcasm, fails to earn their respect by bringing in a Tupac tape, then wins them over in a crucial scene that, fact-based or not, rings as false as anything in Dangerous Minds.
January 04, 2008
A richly rewarding film experience that rises to the top of its genre.
July 14, 2007
Is this film formulaic? Yes. Does it accomplish what it set out to do? Yes. ... It's certainly not a perfect movie but it does offer many pleasures.
January 06, 2007
Freedom Writers is another exceptional teacher scenario not so different from the norm.
July 16, 2007
Worthwhile because of its honesty, because it tells a true story that's worth telling, and because Hilary Swank and company have done it so well.
January 09, 2007
Corny? You bet. And worse when the plot veers into the glitz of a Dangerous Minds and the sappiness of a TV After School Special. But the movie, which Swank helped produce by using her clout as a two-time Oscar winner, gets to you.
