MOVIEmeter
SEE RANK
Down 969 this week

To Be and to Have (2002)
"Être et avoir" (original title)

7.7
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 7.7/10 from 5,373 users   Metascore: 86/100
Reviews: 69 user | 70 critic | 25 from Metacritic.com

A documentary portrait of a one-room school in rural France, where the students (ranging in age from 4 to 11) are educated by a single dedicated teacher.

Director:

0Check in
0Share...

Related News

Blu-ray Review: 'Être et Avoir' (rerelease)
| CineVue
Competition: Win 'Être et Avoir' on Blu-ray
| CineVue
Etre et Avoir
| The Guardian - Film News

User Lists

Related lists from IMDb users

a list of 1234 titles created 2 months ago
 
a list of 184 titles created 12 Feb 2012
 
a list of 84 titles created 8 months ago
 
a list of 271 titles created 12 Apr 2011
 
a list of 719 titles created 11 Apr 2012
 

Connect with IMDb


Share this Rating

Title: To Be and to Have (2002)

To Be and to Have (2002) on IMDb 7.7/10

Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.

Take The Quiz!

Test your knowledge of To Be and to Have.
Nominated for 1 BAFTA Film Award. Another 8 wins & 4 nominations. See more awards »
Learn more

People who liked this also liked... 

Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X  

A look at the annual journey of Emperor penguins as they march -- single file -- to their traditional breeding ground.

Director: Luc Jacquet
Stars: Charles Berling, Romane Bohringer, Jules Sitruk
Documentary | Drama | Family
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.2/10 X  

When a Mongolian nomadic family's newest camel colt is rejected by its mother, a musician is needed for a ritual to change her mind.

Directors: Byambasuren Davaa, Luigi Falorni
Stars: Janchiv Ayurzana, Chimed Ohin, Amgaabazar Gonson
Documentary | Family | Music
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.3/10 X  

The students of several New York City elementary schools learn ballroom dancing and compete in a city wide dance competition.

Director: Marilyn Agrelo
Stars: Heather Berman, Emma Therese Biegacki, Eva Carrozza
Spellbound (2002)
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  

Spellbound follows eight teenagers on their quest to win the 1999 National Spelling Bee.

Director: Jeffrey Blitz
Stars: Angela Arenivar, Ubaldo Arenivar, Jorge Arenivar
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.8/10 X  

Documentary on the migratory patterns of birds, shot over the course of three years on all seven continents.

Directors: Jacques Perrin, Jacques Cluzaud, and 1 more credit »
Stars: Philippe Labro, Jacques Perrin
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.6/10 X  

A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.

Director: Davis Guggenheim
Stars: Al Gore, Billy West, George Bush
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  

Fulton and Pepe's 2000 documentary captures Terry Gilliam's attempt to get The Man Who Killed Don Quixote off the ground. Back injuries, freakish storms, and more zoom in to sabotage the project (which has never been resurrected).

Directors: Keith Fulton, Louis Pepe
Stars: Tony Grisoni, Terry Gilliam, Jeff Bridges
Inside Job (2010)
Documentary | Crime
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 8.2/10 X  

Takes a closer look at what brought about the financial meltdown.

Director: Charles Ferguson
Stars: Matt Damon, William Ackman, Daniel Alpert
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.5/10 X  

An intimate, picaresque inquiry into French life as lived by the country's poor and its provident, as well as by the film's own director, Agnes Varda. The aesthetic, political and moral ... See full summary »

Director: Agnès Varda
Stars: Bodan Litnanski, Agnès Varda, François Wertheimer
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X  

Two documentary filmmakers chronicle their time in Sonagchi, Calcutta and the relationships they developed with children of prostitutes who work the city's notorious red light district.

Directors: Zana Briski, Ross Kauffman
Stars: Kochi, Avijit Halder, Shanti Das
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.4/10 X  

A documentary on the effect of fishing the Nile perch in Tanzania's Lake Victoria. The predatory fish, which has wiped out the native species, is sold in European supermarkets, while starving Tanzanian families have to make do with the leftovers.

Director: Hubert Sauper
Stars: Elizabeth 'Eliza' Maganga Nsese, Raphael Tukiko Wagara, Dimond Remtulia
Documentary
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 7.7/10 X  

Filmmaker Werner Herzog travels to Antarctica, looking to capture its natural beauty and investigate the characters there.

Director: Werner Herzog
Stars: Werner Herzog, Scott Rowland, Stefan Pashov
Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Georges Lopez ...
The teacher
Alizé ...
Herself (student)
Axel Thouvenin ...
Himself (student) (as Axel)
Guillaume ...
Himself (student)
Jessie ...
Herself
Johan ...
Himself (student) (as Jojo)
Johann ...
Himself (student)
Jonathan ...
Himself
Julien ...
Himself (student)
Laura ...
Herself
Létitia ...
Herself
Marie-Elizabeth ...
Herself
Nathalie ...
Herself
Olivier ...
Himself (student)
Franck ...
Himself
Edit

Storyline

How do we learn to live with others and their wishes? Director Nicolas Philibert poses this question in a village schoolhouse in Auvergne, where Georges Lopez teaches 13 children, ages ranging from about four to 12. Against a landscape of mountains and farmland, from driving snow to rain to sun, the children gather in Lopez's warm and colorful classroom, to read, write dictation, cook, and sort things out. At home, the older ones do homework with parents after their chores. At year's end, they look ahead to the next, visiting the middle school and meeting the little ones coming in the fall. As they learn sums and adjectives, with Lopez's help, they also learn to live side by side. Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis


Edit

Details

Country:

Language:

Release Date:

28 August 2002 (France)  »

Also Known As:

To Be and to Have  »

Box Office

Budget:

€1,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$20,528 (USA) (19 September 2003)

Gross:

$775,607 (USA) (11 June 2004)
 »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

|

Sound Mix:

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

After Etre et Avoir received so many awards and was met with such fanfare, the teacher, Georges Lopez, sued the producer for compensation. Contractually he and the students were paid a set amount of money (low-budget documentary prices), however Lopez did promotional tours and thought he deserved a larger share after the film's success. The French judge did not rule in his favour. See more »

Connections

Featured in Zomergasten: Episode #17.2 (2004) See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Reviews

 
Wash your hands, Jojo
12 February 2004 | by (Dallas, Texas) – See all my reviews

Greetings again from the darkness. Wonderful, award-winning documentary about George Lopez and his one room school house in rural France. So many thoughts rush through the viewer's head as we watch this incredibly patient man battle through the daily challenges of teaching kids ages 4 to 12. Young Jojo will win your heart as the eager to play boy who would undoubtedly be subjected to doses of Ridlin in the U.S. Jojo's charm and openness are in stark contrast to the older children who seem to keep their emotions pent up to play along with the expectations of maturity. Personalities are obvious by age 4 or 5 and we have no trouble looking forward to see the type of teens and adults they will become. This environment offers so many advantages to the "pack 30 in a classroom and demand robotic behavior" that has become the norm in our education system. Teachers have become disciplinarians by force rather than life educators like Mr. Lopez. Yes, I laughed many times during this one, but only as my heart was breaking while dreaming of what could be for kids. The scenes with the families are torturous to watch and should provide insight into how many parents undermine even the best teachers. Should be required viewing for all parents and teachers. We should all ask ourselves, "what is the point of taking the eagerness and desire learn away from kids?"


36 of 39 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
Funniest scene ever? eglaisher
Mr Lopez suing filmakers Citricx6
Explaining the title MrTeal
Marie! sarah_dummy
How do you understand this film? DefiantAssassin
Mr. Lopez Laur3n2003
Discuss To Be and to Have (2002) on the IMDb message boards »

Contribute to This Page

Create a character page for:
?