IMDb RATING
6.7/10
6.4K
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A Montreal high school student who believes he is the reincarnation of Lev Trotskiy starts a revolution against apathy among his fellow students.A Montreal high school student who believes he is the reincarnation of Lev Trotskiy starts a revolution against apathy among his fellow students.A Montreal high school student who believes he is the reincarnation of Lev Trotskiy starts a revolution against apathy among his fellow students.
- Awards
- 9 wins & 7 nominations
Dan Beirne
- Dan
- (as Daniel Beirne)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe sign outside the school board building indicates that it's the "J. Parizeau English School Board", a deliberately-ludicrous name choice since Jacques Parizeau was a famous Québec sovereigntist, and a supporter of the provincial legislation that restricts access to English-language public schools.
- GoofsWhen Frank is telling Leon about his (Frank's) experience with protests in the U.S., his listing of events is comically inaccurate. For example, he says there were "massive demonstrations all over the U.S. during the middle of the Kennedy Administration" -- when protests over Vietnam did not begin until the Johnson Administration. He also says that "Woodstock and Patty Hearst" were contemporaneous when the Woodstock Festival was in 1969 and Patty Hearst was kidnapped in 1974.
- Crazy creditsAfter credits a usually confused Leon is seen walking up to a bench and sitting on it in a jump suit.
- ConnectionsReferences The Wizard of Oz (1939)
- SoundtracksABC's
Written by K'Naan (as Keiman Warsame), Gerald Eaton, Brian West
Sony ATV Music Publishing, Mawga Dawg Inc., World West Music Inc.
Performed by K'Naan
Under license from Universal Music Canada Inc.
Featured review
School sucks, but it doesn't have to suck
The Trotsky (2009) is a Canadian film that was written and directed by Jacob Tierney. It stars Jay Baruchel as Leon Bronstein, a teenager growing up in an affluent neighborhood in English-speaking Montreal. Leon believes that he is the reincarnation of the Russian revolutionary leader Leon Trotsky. (Bronstein was Trotsky's real name.)
After trying to organize a union in his father's factory, Leon is not only fired, but he now will have to enter public school, rather than the private school he has been attending. In his new school, Leon first encounters Mrs. Davis, who appears to be a dean. She's played by the late Domini Blythe, a brilliant classical actor. In this role, Blythe plays the most satanic dean in any high school anywhere. Henry Berkhoff, the most satanic school principal, is played by another great actor--Colm Feore.
With the two of them standing shoulder-to-shoulder, the students don't have a chance. At least, they didn't have a chance until Leon Bronstein arrives. Using skilled organizing techniques, Bronstein is able to turn the students into a significant presence, which the school cannot ignore. (Especially when the TV cameras arrive.)
There's also a ridiculous romance between Leon and an older woman. The less said about that, the better. Just ignore that, and some other false starts, and enjoy Bronstein's fearless actions, as he tries to give the students a sense of their own dignity, and an opportunity to make their school better.
We saw this movie on the large screen at the wonderful Dryden Theatre in the Eastman Museum in Rochester. It was shown as part of the excellent Rochester Labor Film Series. The movie will work equally well on the small screen
After trying to organize a union in his father's factory, Leon is not only fired, but he now will have to enter public school, rather than the private school he has been attending. In his new school, Leon first encounters Mrs. Davis, who appears to be a dean. She's played by the late Domini Blythe, a brilliant classical actor. In this role, Blythe plays the most satanic dean in any high school anywhere. Henry Berkhoff, the most satanic school principal, is played by another great actor--Colm Feore.
With the two of them standing shoulder-to-shoulder, the students don't have a chance. At least, they didn't have a chance until Leon Bronstein arrives. Using skilled organizing techniques, Bronstein is able to turn the students into a significant presence, which the school cannot ignore. (Especially when the TV cameras arrive.)
There's also a ridiculous romance between Leon and an older woman. The less said about that, the better. Just ignore that, and some other false starts, and enjoy Bronstein's fearless actions, as he tries to give the students a sense of their own dignity, and an opportunity to make their school better.
We saw this movie on the large screen at the wonderful Dryden Theatre in the Eastman Museum in Rochester. It was shown as part of the excellent Rochester Labor Film Series. The movie will work equally well on the small screen
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- Red-125
- Nov 3, 2015
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Box office
- Budget
- CA$6,400,000 (estimated)
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