The English Teacher (2013) User Reviews (51)

Delicious, Delightful, Intelligent

[Cinnyaste · 7/10 · 25 April 2013]

The bespectacled, wrapped-too-tight spinster, Julianne Moore, is an archetypal schoolmarm with a fire down below living a life of quiet desperation. Until a former student, a failed playwright, with the right poker (pun intentional) arrives in town with a play no one wants to see. Teach flips over the play and pushes the Drama Club to mount it as the complications pile up.

Ms. Moore is simply superb here. She's a national treasure and woman-of-a-certain-age Hollywood still calls. And rightfully so. Although pony tailed and covered head-to-toe as "The English Teacher," she's still hot!

Teach judges men she dates with stream-of-consciousness displayed as on-screen text. She's abetted by a proper British narrator, Fiona Shaw, who adds an element of Gothic Romance to this tasty stew.

The Drama Club is run by a terrific Nathan Lane, a failed Broadway Star, who delivers the funniest lines in his trademark condescending dryness. Kudos also to Jessica Hecht and Norbert Leo Butz as Principal and Vice who take exception to the play's dark ending and demand a rewrite. Add a serviceable Greg Kinnear who easily handles his role as the playwright's Doctor Dad.

The play, "The Chrysalis," is received as having a universal theme all people relate to as if it were written specifically about/for them. The broad interpretation is Ms. Moore, by film's end, has broken out of chrysalis to butterfly. (Much to the consternation of the narrator who unsuccessfully attempts to talk Teach out of a date with Kinnear.) Scratching beneath the surface, students of Literature and Drama might find the film mildly thought provoking.

Ms. Moore's arc is predictable, but the journey remains a lot of fun.

Though a bit lightweight, with a great cast, a smart, funny and intelligent script, there's little to dislike about "The English Teacher." One hopes Ms. Moore will keep you after class.

A decent small film with good performances from the Leads

[esub44 · 6/10 · 26 August 2013]

First of all watch the film, then make up your own mind, I can't stand people who come on here and give bland one or two word reviews. Its a small budget film which centers around a returning high school grad and an English teacher trying to help him succeed and reminding him to keep at his dream of becoming a playwright in New York. Its films like this that make me want to continue watching films, they center around characters, story and actual acting. If you want gimmicks and explosions with no point then go play a computer game or watch a Michael Bay film.

Okay so this film isn't the best you'll ever see but its decent.

Movie about an English teacher who goes to any lengths to help her students. Funny and worth watching. Great acting. I say B

[cosmo_tiger · 6/10 · 2 September 2013]

"The true romantic is always alone and must ever be on guard against a dangerous world." Linda (Moore) is an unmarried English teacher with a passion for teaching her students, when Jason (Angarano) a former student of hers shows up and fills her in on his life. After graduating from NYU he has become a failed playwright and his overbearing father is forcing him to go to law school. After reading one of his plays Linda talks the school into producing it which causes tension between him, his father, and the school as well as bizarre love situations. Based on the cast alone I was very much looking forward to seeing this. Greg Kinnear is one of my favorite actors and Julianne Moore is great in everything. The idea didn't seem all that original or exciting but the acting more then makes up for it. It seems like every movie made about a teacher involves an English teacher and most of the time they are very good. This is really a toned down, less classic version of Dead Poet's Society in the way that the teacher tries to help a student realize his potential against the wishes of his father and the school. I am in no way comparing this to Dead Poet's Society but it is worth watching and I did enjoy it. Overall, great acting and funny, very much worth watching. I give it a B.

A sympathetic teacher

[Gordon-11 · 5 November 2014]

This film tells the story of an unmarried female teacher who is in trouble after an alumnus playwright goes back to her school for a school play.

Julienne Moore often plays challenging characters, and this English teacher is no different. She faces loneliness, shame and embarrassment; yet deep down she is a good person who does teenagers much good. I sympathize with her experience, and I thought she did not deserve such bullying. I liked the ending a lot, although I thought the film could have done without the narration of the voice that tells her what to do and what not to do.

The story is told in a comedic manner, hence I enjoyed watching it.

Cute and cheeky

[rps-2 · 7/10 · 13 October 2017]

This is a pleasant, low budget, entertaining film. The story is built around a high school production of a play written by a former student of the school. But there are complications galore. It's funny. It's clever. It's original. There are a lot of laughs but also some serious moments, a bit of rumpy-pumpy and a few profanities, tied to-gether with a humorous, British accented voice over commentary and occasional, bluntly worded on screen titles. It's a happy combination of good writing, interesting characters, original ideas and snappy production, all done on a low budget.

a little funny

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 26 October 2020]

Lifelong reader Linda Sinclair (Julianne Moore) is a 45 year old high school English teacher in Kingston, Pennsylvania. She's a spinster and has given up on men. Former student Jason Sherwood (Michael Angarano) has returned home as a failed writer in New York. She is taken with his play and drama teacher Carl Kapinas (Nathan Lane) is excited to do it. She judges Jason's dad Dr. Tom Sherwood (Greg Kinnear) to be unsupportive. Student Halle Anderson (Lily Collins) is the lead actress.

It's marginally funny. A flustered Julianne is somewhat funny. I'm not sure about Angarano although he has that slacker vibe which works in the role. I don't think I like his character. As for the plot, I doubt that Linda can be fired for that. He's in his twenties. It's not even a scandal. Julianne is hot. There's no reason not to. I just hope that Halle is not underage. The morality is all twisted although Halle's words do come back into play. Linda is forced to eat too much crow.

A waster of time

[maxuk-639-60360 · 4/10 · 29 August 2013]

... I was intrigued when the film first started and I thought it was going to tell a story that's meaningful and serious ... Out of no where the teacher was having sex with her former student in the classroom. I thought she had been looking for a man that is cultured, humble and intelligent. The scene of her having sex with her former student was a complete shock to me... I understand that the character of the teacher has been single and bottled up for a long time but knowing nothing about the former student's private life apart from reading his play and then letting sex happen like that is a complete character-changing ... This must be made for American's taste...

Many films after all are about money-making.

It is absolutely a waste of time.

The English Teacher

[QuirkNFreckles · 6/10 · 1 November 2016]

I enjoyed this film...though I will admit parts of it made me uncomfortable, it is also a funny tale of how sometimes even with the best intentions, we end up making mistakes.

What struck me with this movie is that one can relate to each of the characters who in some way have made some kind of mistake but ultimately end up moving on and have some kind of positive change and resolution after the fact.

That being said, I feel like the film was a little uneven. The opening was entertaining, but I don't feel like the light-hearted beginning that was somewhat Bridget Jones-esque carried all the way through the film until the very end. It was darkly humorous in the middle and I feel like the British narration would have lightened up the movie significantly if it was featured throughout the entire movie and not just at the beginning and end.

My Questions to the Writers Are: Do You Believe Your Story Is Funny? What Is the Message of This Story?

[claudio_carvalho · 3/10 · 28 January 2014]

In Kingston, Pennsylvania, the forty-five year-old lonely spinster Linda Sinclair (Julianne Moore) is a high-school English teacher with a routine life that loves literature. When she stumbles with her former student Jason Sherwood (Michael Angarano), she learns that he has returned from New York after failing as a playwright in Broadway. Linda borrows his play named "The Chrysalis" to read and she loves the play. Then she shows "The Chrysalis" to the drama teacher Carl Kapinas (Nathan Lane) and they decide to produce the play in the high-school. However Vice Principal Phil Pelaski (Norbert Leo Butz) and Principal Trudie Slocum (Jessica Hecht) are against the production since the conclusion is too dark for the students and they can not exceed the budget. Carl offers to change the ending and Linda offers to cover any amount that exceeds the budget. However, along the rehearsals, the naive Linda learns that real life is not a literature and people are flawed and may disappoint.

"The English Teacher" is an unpleasant movie with despicable characters; Julianne Moore's actress and her character are the only attraction of this movie. Jason Sherwood is a liar and ungrateful character; Carl Kapinas is a sophisticated ridiculous character incapable to keep and assume his own word; Halle Anderson and Will are among the worst that you can expect from teenagers. Linda Sinclair is unselfish teacher that sponsors the production of the play for love for the art, but is not supported by the selfish Jason Sherwood and Carl Kapinas and has her career destroyed by the disgusting Halle Anderson and Will. My questions to the writers Dan Chariton and Stacy Chariton are: Do you believe your story is funny? What is the message of this story? My vote is three.

Title (Brazil): "Adorável Professora" ("Adorable Teacher")

Entertaining, but frustrating

[name99-92-545389 · 6/10 · 21 October 2014]

I found the storyline of this movie appealing (I like works of art that are happy to admit some people enjoy their comfortable routine lives and do not crave "excitement" and "adventure"). Julianne Moore was as gorgeous as always, and portrayed her character's range of experiences well. BUT Two big flaws:

The first flaw comes towards the end of the movie. We've built up this fraught and tense situation where Ms Sullivan has burned all her bridges. She returns to school, mocked by the students and tremendously embarrassed. We then basically jump forward three weeks to a totally different social environment where she appears to be once-again respected and integrated into the school. WTF? How did that happen? The answer we get is a complete cop-out. It's hinted that some combination of "grin and bear it" on her part and the awesome ending she wrote for the play did the job, but, seriously, that is not how the world works. Teenagers are freaking monsters, not to forget that she earned (for good reason) the enmity of one of them whom she tried to destroy. That's all not going to go away, and pretending that it does destroys any pretense the movie has to somehow commenting on life.

The second flaw is not as serious, but the voice-over in the last few minutes is ham-fisted as all heck. It's totally unnecessary, totally idiotic. Throughout the movie (including commentary about the play) we've been told about nuance, about filling in the blanks, about the audience making inferences, then we get this stupidity!

A Waste of Time

[DavidGregorio92 · 2/10 · 13 October 2020]

This movie was a waste of time. The ending was awful. I'd like to see what the hallmark channel would've done with the concept. Anything would've been better than this.

Charming & funny - a real gem

[phd_travel · 10/10 · 19 July 2013]

This is one of those indie movies that is much better than many big budget feature film comedies.

The story combines original comedy, a touching partly dramatic climax and a feel good plot that comes together perfectly. The comments on screen are an original touch. No wonder such a top notch cast appears in it.

The performances are stellar. Julianne Moore gives a wonderfully varied and moving performance as a spinster English Teacher in high school who mounts the play of an ex student played by Michael Angarano. She can do comedy just as well as she does drama and biopics.

The supporting cast includes Broadway veterans Jessica Hecht and Norbert Leo Butz as school principals, Nathan Lane as the diva of a drama teacher, the lovely Lily Collins as a high school student and aspiring actress and finally Greg Kinnear as the young playwright's father.

This is one of the best indie comedies in years and deserves much more critical acclaim and financial success than it received. Look forward to seeing more from the screen writing duo who penned the story.

Comic

[sergelamarche · 7/10 · 12 May 2022]

Very funny right from the start but the story is a bit strange. This is not your regular love story, not linear at all. It is actually getting quite difficult mid-film. You can throw romantism through the window. The english teacher still ends up a bit selfless and delusional in a nice kind of way, with some sexual appetite rather unfulfilled.

insufficient

[Aymakaymak · 4/10 · 31 July 2020]

Whether it's screenplay or carving, I never liked.Care was not shown.Character developments were bad.A movie below average

The English Teacher

[tmooney1-987-62067 · 28 April 2014]

"The English Teacher" is actually a thought-provoking movie. It's somewhat bittersweet in its depiction of an array of likable, believable characters who encounter - and must deal with - a gap between personal ideal and reality. Take the drama teacher: he tells us that he once had ambitions, while now he's the quirky local school drama coach. Everyone, including the teacher herself, has some unfulfilled ambition bubbling beneath the public surface.

I'll admit to having perhaps a slightly different perspective than many other viewers. I live in the real-life Kingston, Pa. and saw the movie with an audience that "got" all the local references, for better or worse, and probably laughed harder than other audiences would. But I think any audience, anywhere, could enjoy - and even perhaps identify with - the characters who populate this movie. If "action" seems minimal, maybe that's because what's "happening" is the everyday lives that we eventually settle into.

A Fun Film Despite an "Old Maid" Julianne Moore...Come On

[danew13 · 7/10 · 25 October 2013]

I'm a sucker for sweet rom/coms. So I liked this movie and I also love Julianne Moore. But,I'm sorry, although her performance was top rate,I can't buy this always hot chick as an old maid school teacher who can't get decent men in her life. I have to think an an even more absurd film called The Ugly Truth where a ravishingly beautiful Katherine Heigle can't meet a guy.

Other than this miscasting, the English Teacher evolved better than most films of this sort and left me in feel good mode. The staging of the school play was very good and funny. This was due in part to a good comic performance from Nathan Lane.

The cast is rounded out by Greg Kinnear,Michael Angarano and Lily Collins, who seems to be in loads of films now.

Gimme Moore

[zuhairvazir · 7/10 · 27 January 2014]

Some films unintentionally let you a glimpse of the actors' preference in how the actor has built a unique, almost exquisite sense of his/her on-screen presence, in the minds of you and I.

I call it 'the intrigue appeal'. The air of mystery and myth and glamour and starry-eyes and what have you, that these actors carry with them draws the audience in. The actor has worked hard to maintain a subconscious photograph of himself in the movie-goers eye and it is this what intrigues me.

Stallone will beat the likeliness out of you, so would Willis but after spilling out the NYPD wit. Schwarzenegger will always be an endoskeleton dressed in leather with a prosthetic arm missing. Similarly Weaver, Streep and Lane have built around them shields, those which are impenetrable on so many different psychological levels.

These are but only a handful of great actors who have either made a choice or the choice has made them. Brando had it coming, he gave away too much too much to the audience.

'The English Teacher' is a funny and partly intelligent film carried on the lean shoulders of Julianne Moore. 'Boogie Nights (1997)' (adult performer); 'Magnolia (1999)' (addict); 'The Big Lebowski (1998)' (eccentric no inhibitions painter); 'Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011)' (adulteress) and more films have made us conditioned to see Moore do something a little more edgy; perhaps take on a more edgy character, more reckless or maybe something like 'I'm Not There (2007)' where she plays '(a) fictional folk singer named Alice Fabian—described by some critics as a 'Joan Baez-like figure'.

This film nails it for Moore as the wonderful, still-voluptuous, sexy and mysterious actress waltzes around the film in confusion and a deliberate unorthodox streak of that sexuality that Moore carries all the way up to a rather distasteful end.

Yes, I do not have much to say about the film other than it is damaged in a very organic manner.

Even with all the bad taste the film or rather Moore give you a sense of unconventional sensuality and it must be watched to see if you could be any of the main characters in the film. It can drive you crazy. A must watch for Moore and MILF fans.

Good actors in badly developed characters

[Sexy-scientist · 4/10 · 17 December 2014]

At first, movie is not true to its trailer. The trailer promised it to be much more funnier and I had much expectations because it is Tribeca films, but there is not much comedy but more of the drama element. Now, the movie itself – Linda is shown to be pretty mature, clear minded and not at all desperate for men. In the scene with Jason after their argue with his dad, there is a hint of motherly feeling in her for Jason. But out of nowhere, Jason kisses her. (Why?) She is first shown to resist but after the kiss, she is shown to dive in the act with both feet in. What suddenly happened to Linda? Where is her dignity and professionalism? In the next scene, she asks Jason to take a break (not breakup) from the relationship in the name of the play. Okay, means she is thoughtfully ready to have a relationship with Jason in future. But no, this time Jason messes the things up by hitting on Hailie who already had a thing for him from the beginning. Now, what Jason is trying to do? Is he too desperate to have sex and non-responsible for the enactment of his own play? Then Linda is shown to be pretty immature by trying to talk Hailie away from Jason using her authority, in place of talking to Jason about it. Can anybody tell me why so much immaturity is happening when the characters are established to be very mature? Okay so, then this complete asshole Will, whose character is not developed in the movie, records the tiff between Linda and Jason (in which they talked about their sex) and distributes it in the whole college. So, someone writes obscene words outside the door of Linda's classroom which Linda pretends to be Hailie. (Why Linda why? It could be anyone. Please use your mind.) Then, out of rage, Linda barges into the principal's chamber complaining about Hailie by telling half the truth to the principal. Then, principal and vice-principal goes to auditorium only to find out the complete truth. At this point, all the characters are present in the auditorium and when all the truths get revealed, it becomes a huge mess. Actually this all is the story development and movie starts from here on. But there are too many flaws in the characters' development which makes the movie not enjoyable.

It is what you think it is.

[tomczykta · 6/10 · 18 January 2021]

Could have been better, but not bad. A little bit clunky and predictable, but the actors save it.

Slapstick schlock

[tigerfish50 · 1/10 · 23 October 2013]

Considering that 'The English Teacher' was clearly intended to be a light comedy, watching it while awake is an excruciating experience. The film's basic concept has some promise - a failed young playwright returns to his home town where he encounters the high school English teacher who had inspired him to write. Unfortunately the idea is treated as broad farce from the moment the disillusioned Jason runs into prim Ms Sinclair at an ATM, and she mistakes him for a mugger. After attacking her former student with a pepper spray, the apologetic teacher decides to recommend Jason's latest work to her school's drama department.

The remainder of the film exudes a sense of desperation, as director and cast put on an over-acting showcase at the level of provincial theater. After several pratfalls, shameful revelations and last minute hitches in search of easy laughs and melodrama, the play opens to a predictable reception. Needless to say, Ms Sinclair's dedication earns her the formulaic romantic reward of a 'unexpected' suitor. As the curtain falls, she sheds her primness for a prosperous, contented future in American rom-com dreamland. It makes Jane Austen's work look like gritty urban drama.

Not that original, supported by a convincing Julianne Moore

[yris2002 · 6/10 · 3 August 2014]

Old maids are always old maids, so even if they have a respectably satisfying although quiet life, they always hide repressed desires that sometimes come to light: Julianne Moore, the English teacher, reflects this prototype, and the movie does not add anything new to this ever green concept (or maybe preconception) about single women, they necessarily need a man. So, nothing new, it would be nice to see sometimes another version, to offer a new and still realistic ending, of a single woman capable of enjoying life without the need of a man, but this is not the case, prince charming is always lurking and ready to transform and save the heroine. However, a good interpretation is offered by the always impeccable Julianne Moore, better when expressing the sad and dramatic side of her life. Unfortunately, we all know that comedies end when everything is fine and promising, what happens after the happy ending belongs to other movies, but these are other stories and we do not need them. So, once again single women can take a breath and be satisfied, there is hope for everyone

Julianne Moore is good as always, the film that surrounds her is not...

[ClaytonDavis · 4/10 · 2 May 2013]

Anyone who knows me, or simply follows my Oscar predictions on a yearly basis, knows that I'm highly anticipating the hopeful moment that three- time Academy Award nominee Julianne Moore wins her long deserved Oscar. Last year, my year in advanced predictions had Moore at the top of the Best Actress heap for Craig Zisk's The English Teacher. At the time, little was known about it and I was operating on a wing and a prayer for than actual analysis. The film was pushed back and had its showing on Video and Demand as well as the Tribeca Film Festival. Essentially, the hope remains for another project. The English Teacher is a cheap farce of comedy taking unrealistic behaviors and unbelievable dialogue from its principal cast. Julianne Moore, as always, rises above anything that is going on around her. Beautifully elegant and dives head first into a character poorly structured and overtly misguided. Nonetheless, you can take her to bank every time.

What the film manages to do is highlight the beauty of Lily Collins to the utmost extreme and once again, put the undervalued Greg Kinnear in a role that offers him no strength or room to move. And don't get me started on the ending that scribes Dan Chariton and Stacy Chariton put together. Cheap, under thought, and gives the audience no credit in the process and procedures of teaching, acting, and romance. Nathan Lane is nearly boiled over in his awkward role while Michael Angarano is merely passable.

Unfortunately, The English Teacher is a miss on most counts. Julianne Moore is your reason to watch.

Best Literate Comedy Since the Jane Austen Book Club

[jayraskin · 10/10 · 25 December 2013]

I was captivated by this movie and laughed from beginning to end.

I do not get the people who did not like this movie. They say nasty things and say nothing about the movie. Did any of them even watch the movie? They all deserve an "F". Yes, everybody who hates this movie gets an "F" in good taste and an "F" in life. Now, go back to High School and learn what you didn't learn when you first attended.

For the rest of us, especially those of us in the teaching profession, this is a gem. Not since Neil Simon retired have we had such sharply drawn characters and such sweet and gentle self mocking humor. It is both English teaching and High School theater that gets gently ridiculed. Yet, underneath the humor there is a real understanding of the importance of both subjects in our curriculum.

Any humanist, Jane Austin fan, Julianne Moore fan or theater lover will appreciate this movie. Go for it.

There's no business like school business...

[moonspinner55 · 7/10 · 12 June 2017]

Julianne Moore is at the peak of her charms as a 45-year-old spinster schoolteacher in Pennsylvania who encourages a former student with his writing, committing herself to seeing that his original play is approved by the school board for production by the drama department, but instead yielding herself to a sexual indiscretion in the process. Tangled-web dark comedy, framed like a modern day absurdist fairy tale, begins as a lightly-comic character study before fusing itself to a sharp satire of the high school dynamic. Fortunately, both sides work beautifully, with excellent supporting turns by Michael Angarano (a terrific young actor), Greg Kinnear as the boy's father and Nathan Lane as the passionate drama teacher. Extremely well-written by Dan and Stacy Chariton, who provide such an offbeat touch to both situation and dialogue that one never knows what's going to happen next. A marvelous surprise! *** from ****

Waste of time

[adventurer_ci · 2/10 · 22 August 2013]

I did not like this movie. Poor acting to start with. Julianne Moore can't cry that is for sure and I felt most of the time that she was overdoing it- overacting. So her character looked rather fake to me. Jason' character , as almost all the other characters in this movie, is shallow and/or absurd caricatures. Predictable, soppy, mediocre film. Nothing is funny here, why is it called a comedy? I still don't know what this movie about. I can't name a single worthy American movie made in the last few years. The other 2013 movies I watched and liked are

not American- The Best Offer; The Hunt; Intouchables; The Hairdresser-one of the German made movies that I liked, even thought it is not a masterpiece, in my opinion. The first thing I judge a movie by-is acting. I am sure there are talented actors in US, but for some unknown reason the ones who can't act are being hired again and again.