Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)

Director:

Stephen Herek

Writer (WGA):

Patrick Sheane Duncan (written by)

Release Date:

19 January 1996 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Music

Tagline:

We are your symphony Mr. Holland. We are the melodies and the notes of your opus. We are the music of your life.

Plot:

A frustrated composer finds fulfillment as a high school music teacher.

Plot Keywords:

School | Teaching | Teacher | Composer | High School

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 5 wins & 4 nominations

Cast

Richard Dreyfuss	...	Glenn Holland
Glenne Headly	...	Iris Holland
Jay Thomas	...	Bill Meister
Olympia Dukakis	...	Principal Jacobs
William H. Macy	...	Vice Principal Wolters (as W.H. Macy)
Alicia Witt	...	Gertrude Lang
Terrence Howard	...	Louis Russ
Damon Whitaker	...	Bobby Tidd
Jean Louisa Kelly	...	Rowena Morgan
Alexandra Boyd	...	Sarah Olmstead
Nicholas John Renner	...	Cole at 6 Years Old
Joseph Anderson	...	Cole at 15 Years Old
Anthony Natale	...	Cole at 28 Years Old
Joanna Gleason	...	Adult Gertrude
Beth Maitland	...	Deaf School Principal

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild language.

Runtime:

143 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | American Sign Language

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:All | Philippines:G | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Finland:S | Germany:6 (w) | Portugal:M/12 | Spain:T | Sweden:Btl | UK:PG | Singapore:PG | USA:PG (certificate no. 33797)

Filming Locations:

Christie School - Highway 43, Marylhurst, Oregon, USA

Company:

Hollywood Pictures

Trivia:

As a child, Katee Sackhoff was a child extra in this film. She has stated that she hated the experience, but vowed to Richard Dreyfuss that she would work with him again. She ended up playing his daughter in the series "The Education of Max Bickford" (2001) six years later.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Mr. Holland plays Lovers Concerto to his class and asks who wrote It. A student replies, 'The Toys.' Mr Holland corrects him and says "That was Minuet in G, by Johan Sebastian Bach." The piece is often attributed to Bach as it was found in a book kept by Bach's wife. It was in fact written by Christian Petzold (1677-1733).

Quotes:

Glenn Holland: I'm Glenn Holland. I'm the new music teacher.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Phil Hartman/Gin Blossoms (#21.16)" (1996)

Soundtrack:

BEAUTIFUL BOY

Oh for the love of crumbcake...

So many people have complained about the Gertrude Lang character (Alicia Witt), Holland's interaction with her, and the purpose of the character, and I am simply amazed at the hostility.

1) "Playing the sunset" was Holland's way of getting Gertrude to relax so she could play the notes fluidly. They both knew that she didn't sound professional, and wasn't going to. The idea was to get her just above the level of making a fool of herself as she did the first time he called on her in class. Then she could, and did, perform in the band without dragging down the whole ensemble.

2) Her goal was not to be a professional musician. Did no one else hear her speech about "I just wanted to be good at *something*"? She listed all the fabulous achievements of her parents and siblings, and concluded, "I'm the only one who's..." The missing word would have been "useless" or "worthless". Or "a failure". Thirty years later she's the governor (not the mayor!), because in 1966, Holland helped her gain confidence for the first time.

3) She wasn't "wasting" Holland's efforts by going into politics. Art, music and theater education don't exist solely to create professional artists, musicians and actors. They also exist to give young people an opportunity for change and growth, even if they never use a paintbrush again.

I liked that plot twist. Almost every high school has an alumnus who has achieved something in art or entertainment, but a lot of people sell one painting or appear in one film and become a hero to their home town. But there are only fifty states, and it takes an extraordinary amount of drive to become governor of one of them. It's unlikely that she would have taken that first step towards empowerment without Holland.