Edward James Olmos plays a real-life character in "Stand and Deliver" a film about a high school math teacher who makes some incredible changes in the lives of some very un-studious, disrespectful students and not only does he teach them how to do math problems, and pass an AP calculus exam, but he also teaches them how to progress in life and to become devoted, and to apply themselves to something other than what their street friends think is cool.
All in all, the film works out very well and I enjoyed it from start to finish. I thought the performances by the cast were fairly good, we got to see a young Lou Diamond Phillips, but I especially favored the performance by Edward James Olmos. This performance is quite the contrast from the one other film I have seen him in, but he plays it with even more effeciency. Olmos got the Oscar nomination for 1988 and he very well deserved it. He pulled of a fantastic performance with what he was given to work with.
That is not to say that what he was given to work with was bad. And I am not saying that "Stand and Deliver" is a flawless movie. That it most certainly is not. It does have some flaws that unfortunately downgrade its rating for me. I felt that there were a few too many subplots and thus, the pacing was off. There was a high school romance subplot that didn't aid anything in the movie really and could have been eliminated to spare us a few minutes.
Nevertheless, I will not deny that I found myself enjoying "Stand and Deliver" when I had a feeling in the back of my mind that I was going to despise it. It has a good heart, a few too many flaws for my taste, a good purpose, great performances (especially by Olmos), a screenplay that would have been perfect had it been shortened a tad bit, and high entertainment value. More than one would expect from a movie like this. I recommend it.
All in all, the film works out very well and I enjoyed it from start to finish. I thought the performances by the cast were fairly good, we got to see a young Lou Diamond Phillips, but I especially favored the performance by Edward James Olmos. This performance is quite the contrast from the one other film I have seen him in, but he plays it with even more effeciency. Olmos got the Oscar nomination for 1988 and he very well deserved it. He pulled of a fantastic performance with what he was given to work with.
That is not to say that what he was given to work with was bad. And I am not saying that "Stand and Deliver" is a flawless movie. That it most certainly is not. It does have some flaws that unfortunately downgrade its rating for me. I felt that there were a few too many subplots and thus, the pacing was off. There was a high school romance subplot that didn't aid anything in the movie really and could have been eliminated to spare us a few minutes.
Nevertheless, I will not deny that I found myself enjoying "Stand and Deliver" when I had a feeling in the back of my mind that I was going to despise it. It has a good heart, a few too many flaws for my taste, a good purpose, great performances (especially by Olmos), a screenplay that would have been perfect had it been shortened a tad bit, and high entertainment value. More than one would expect from a movie like this. I recommend it.