William Shatner stars in this B&W classroom drama about the changing mores of the last 50s and early 60s. Released in 1961, this film would ring true to both adult and teenage viewers of the time. Only a few years before, Rebel Without a Cause had set the table for a new teenage paradigm. When we see a convertible full of teenagers speeding dangerously through a town (accentuated by a hand held camera in a trailing vehicle), we immediately recognize the form--a dangerous mix of freedom and rebellion.
It is in this setting that Shatner, as the young teacher, does his best to teach his students what they really need to know. One student (played by Patty McCormack only a few years after The Bad Seed!) suggests that the most relevant topic is sex, meaning the role of sex in teenage relationships. The newly claimed freedom of teenagers and their rebellion against the values of their parents made sexual behavior a volatile subject. When the parents discover the teacher is "making them" discuss sex, the town is ready to march with pitchforks (with a capital P, that rhymes with T, and that stands for Trouble!).
Except for the very obvious boom mike hanging over the classroom, I found the production values of this film excellent. The story was interesting. And Shatner doesn't even_talk with his_halting rhythms he became known for.
It is in this setting that Shatner, as the young teacher, does his best to teach his students what they really need to know. One student (played by Patty McCormack only a few years after The Bad Seed!) suggests that the most relevant topic is sex, meaning the role of sex in teenage relationships. The newly claimed freedom of teenagers and their rebellion against the values of their parents made sexual behavior a volatile subject. When the parents discover the teacher is "making them" discuss sex, the town is ready to march with pitchforks (with a capital P, that rhymes with T, and that stands for Trouble!).
Except for the very obvious boom mike hanging over the classroom, I found the production values of this film excellent. The story was interesting. And Shatner doesn't even_talk with his_halting rhythms he became known for.