Half Nelson [2006] [DVD]

Sometimes people are attracted to each other because of their differences. When there's a nebulous attraction between a teacher and a young teenage child--as in the superb Half Nelson--the relationship has all the makings of confused disaster. Though there are a few uncomfortable moments when it's not obvious whether Dan (Ryan Gosling) and Drey (Shareeka Epps) might cross the line, the attraction between the pair is culled less from sexual tension than desperation. Dan is an idealistic history teacher in an inner-city school. Drey is one of his brightest students.

For both, drugs represent something that may help them escape their worlds. He takes drugs to dull his dissatisfaction with himself. She views drugs as a possible way to better her life, even though she knows her brother's foray into that trade landed him in jail. Bleakly filmed and well told, Half Nelson soars because of the immaculate acting by Gosling and Epps. With his impish smile, Gosling provides a character that is at once disarming, alluring, and pitiful. As the young girl who's already seen too much hardship in her life, Epps plays her part with just the right amount of hardened raw emotion. While the ambiguous ending may not please fans weaned on happy Hollywood finales, it's a fitting and believable close to a thought-provoking film. --Jae-Ha Kim

Filmmaker commentary from writer/director Ryan Fleck and writer/editor Anna Boden
Fleck and Boden's Sundance award-winning short film "Gowanus Brooklyn", also starring Shareeka Epps
Exclusive interview with Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden
Extended Q&A with Fleck and Boden at the Everyman Cinema in London
Cast Audition Footage
Outtakes
Deleted and Extended Scenes
Photo Gallery
Trailer

Dan Dunne (Gosling) is an inner city high school teacher. Dynamic and inspirational in the classroom, he spends his time outside of school on the edge of consciousness. His personal disappointments and disillusionment have led to a serious drug habit. Dan juggles his hangovers and his homework, keeping his lives separated, until one of his students, Drey (Shareeka Epps), catches him getting high after school. It is from this pivotal moment that director Ryan Fleck builds a tentative friendship between these two unlikely allies, creating one of the year s most arresting films in the process.

"Blasts out of the Hollywood comfort zone with brains, attitude and blistering performances. Essential viewing."

"Indie Scorcher with 2007’s Hottest Actor... Witty, harrowing and glinting with edge, Half Nelson is 2007’s must-see indie."

"one of the best films at the London Film Festival"

"Falling somewhere between Edward Norton and Paddy Considine at their most electrifying, Gosling is a class act" (4 STARS)

"Gosling is jazzy, sardonic and entertaining, commanding the class like Robin Williams in Dead Poet’s Society" FILM OF THE MONTH

Ryan Gosling (The Ides of March, Drive, Blue Valentine) turns in a stunning, Oscar-nominated performance in the smart, moving and politically engaged HALF NELSON, one of the most exciting American films of recent years. With stellar support from Independent Spirit Award winner Shareeka Epps in her feature debut and Anthony Mackie (The Hurt Locker, Million Dollar Baby), and an original score that features Canadian rock group Broken Social Scene, director Ryan Fleck (Sugar, It's Kind of a Funny Story) weaves together a moving story of redemption in an unforgiving world. Dan Dunne (Gosling) is an inner city high school teacher. Dynamic and inspirational in the classroom, he spends his time outside of school on the edge of consciousness. His personal disappointments and disillusionment have led to a serious drug habit. Dan juggles his hangovers and his homework, keeping his lives separated, until one of his students, Drey (Shareeka Epps), catches him getting high after school. It is from this pivotal moment that director Ryan Fleck builds a tentative friendship between these two unlikely allies, creating one of the decade's most arresting films in the process.