A tense drama about a school teacher trying to ensure that her students do not have to suffer the consequences of the actions of the adults looking to establish their brand of "justice".
At times, it feels like the film has a lot of things to say about censorship, false allegations, parenthood, school bureaucracy, student-teacher relationships, journalism etc. But it does not dive into these themes, and thankfully so, because that would have deviated this movie from its actual ideas.
Carla Nowak isn't the kind of ideal teacher we are used to seeing in the world of cinema. But she is exactly the kind of empathic teacher that the education system requires. A teacher that tries to understand the students' perspectives while being a guide to them.
As a South Asian, I am not completely sure how realistic is the movie's portrayal of the school system in Europe, but what is shown here is definitely not how it should be. A school run by people who are so self righteous that they are just concerned with bringing people to "justice" according to their "no tolerance policy" without trying to understand the effect it might have on the people.
All the adults in this film make some bad judgements, including Carla. But at least she tries to make sure that the children don't have to suffer because of the adults' wrong decisions. She sees the potential in these kids, she knows Oskar is a talented student, she understands Ali should not have been confronted like he was, she wants Tom to understand why lying and cheating is not okay, and so she doesn't want their lives to be ruined because of the wrong actions of the adults. She tries to be empathetic and understand the negative impact their decisions might have on the children, even when everyone else thinks she's in the wrong.
Punishing those kids for reacting to the circumstances would have only escalated the situation which would have a lasting effect on these children's lives. At least, due to Carla's actions, they will now have a chance to live up to their potentials.
It's a really well made film that touches an important topic. And even though not technically as great as the other Oscar nominated films, the nomination will at least get some people (like me) to watch this, and help in starting discussions.
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