Half Nelson (2006)
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A crack-addicted history teacher forms an unexpected bond with a student who is being pressured into the drug trade.
The story
Dan Dunne is a young middle-school history teacher in Brooklyn who utilizes a dialectic teaching style. While engaging in the classroom, Dan secretly struggles with a cocaine addiction. His life becomes complicated when he forms a friendship with a student named Drey. Drey, who lacks supervision and is being pressured by a local dealer named Frank to sell drugs, becomes dependent on Dan for rides home from school. As their bond deepens, Dan attempts to shield Drey from Frank's influence, while Drey seeks to understand the reality of Dan's own substance abuse.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Dan Dunne, a middle-school history teacher in Brooklyn, leads a double life: he is an engaging educator by day and a cocaine user by night. After being caught freebasing by his student Drey, a complex dynamic forms. Drey is struggling with her own circumstances; her brother is in prison for drug dealing, and she is being pressured by a dealer named Frank to sell drugs. Dan tries to protect her from Frank, while Drey tries to confront Dan about his addiction. The tension peaks when Dan, after a confrontation with Frank, becomes intoxicated and assaults a colleague, Isabel. Following a period of hostility where he tells Drey they are not friends, Drey begins selling drugs for Frank. The situation reaches a climax when Drey delivers a package to a motel and finds Dan there as the buyer. After Dan goes missing from school, Drey finds him in his motel room. The film concludes with the two sharing a moment of laughter over a joke Dan tells with poor timing.
- First release year
- 2006
- Runtime (minutes)
- 106
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Ryan Fleck
- Writers
- Ryan Fleck · writer; Anna Boden · writer
- Cast and characters
- Ryan Gosling · Dan Dunne; Shareeka Epps · Drey; Anthony Mackie
- Genres
- drama; independent
- Themes
- Substance abuse; Teacher-student dynamics; Addiction; Cycle of poverty
- Tone and mood
- Sobering; Searingly truthful; Elegant
- Premise and plot tags
- Drama; Independent; Education; Drug Addiction
- Source material / true-story basis
- A 19-minute film titled Gowanus, Brooklyn made by Boden and Fleck in 2004.
- Reception
- The film received universal acclaim, with critics praising the performances of Ryan Gosling and the authenticity of the storytelling. It was noted for its subtlety and for being a 'masterpiece' and a 'small gem' that avoids easy resolutions.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 85 · scale: 100 · review count: 31
- Awards and nominations
- Academy Award · Best Actor · 2006 · Nominated; Black Reel Award · Best Breakthrough Performance · 2007 · Nominated; Boston Society of Film Critics Award · Best New Filmmaker · 2006 · Winner; Boston Society of Film Critics Award · Best Supporting Actress · 2006 · Nominated; Broadcast Film Critics Association Award · Best Actor · 2007 · Nominated; Broadcast Film Critics Association Award · Best Young Actress · 2007 · Nominated; Chicago Film Critics Association Award · Most Promising Performer · 2006 · Nominated; Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association – Russell Smith Award · Ryan Fleck · 2006 · Winner; Deauville Film Festival · Jury Special Prize · 2006 · Winner; Deauville Film Festival · Revelations Prize · 2006 · Winner; Gotham Independent Film Award · Best Feature · 2006 · Winner; Gotham Independent Film Award · Breakthrough Actor · 2006 · Winner; Gotham Independent Film Award · Breakthrough Director · 2006 · Winner; Independent Spirit Award · Best Female Lead · 2007 · Winner; Independent Spirit Award · Best Male Lead · 2007 · Winner; Independent Spirit Award · Best Director · 2007 · Nominated; Independent Spirit Award · Best Feature · 2007 · Nominated; Independent Spirit Award · Best First Screenplay · 2007 · Nominated; Locarno International Film Festival · Special Jury Prize · 2006 · Winner; Locarno International Film Festival · Youth Jury Award – Special Mention · 2006 · Winner
- Production trivia
- Ryan Gosling was the seventh-youngest nominee for Best Actor at the time of his nomination.; The film was based on a 19-minute film titled Gowanus, Brooklyn.; The film was scored by the Canadian band Broken Social Scene.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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