The Harvard case. At Harvard, a stream of freshmen comes to the philosophy department. Girls, brawls, fun jokes... no, it’s not at Harvard. The diploma of the graduate of the best university of the planet opens up to the lucky person an almost golden career in life. But to gnaw this diploma, you need to ride some unthinkable load program. The hell for students starts from the beginning. Especially on the course of the old burnt scoundrel-perfectionist Charles Kingsfield, who begins to break weak people from the doorstep. And one of the newcomers, James Hart, is obsessed with the idea that Kingsfeed will like it, but it’s almost impossible to do that, especially if you’re sleeping with an old professor’s daughter.
A damningly fascinating tape that conveys the special atmosphere of the Harvard contest of minds. It is especially interesting that the production took a relatively young (37 years) screenwriter James Bridges, for whom it was only the second work in the director's chair. Bridges himself and shoved the novel of a certain Osborne Jr., creating an atmospheric-competitive film with bright types and characters. Although absolutely perfect story can not be called exactly. The film clearly sags the love line of the two main characters, which especially does not carry any semantic load. Well, the main hero-student fucks the daughter of his idol-teacher, whom he adores and hates at the same time. So what? The relationship-confrontation on the line “student-teacher” in the film is not reflected in any way.
But the main thing in the film is a very detailed and juicy atmosphere of study and preparation for exams. The whole film breathes this student excitement and the realization that the failed ... no, does not go under the scaffold. After all, being a bartender somewhere who can casually tell a beer visitor that he studied at Harvard is also not so bad. Worse than that. See your classmate somewhere on TV in the chair of the U.S. Supreme Court Justice, or even in the Oval Office. This is gonna hurt. And Bridges, on some whim, conveys all these experiences to a damn interesting student, who in any other university would be considered cosmically abstruse.
And, of course, without clearly spelled and played characters here was not done. In fact, the whole film pulls only two – a snot and an old man. The snot is smart and cocky. And an old man with one phrase can destroy all the expectations and arrogance of a smart and daring person. Student Hart very qualitatively played 22-year-old Timothy Bottoms, who has already glowed in the title role of Peter Bogdanovich in the “Last film show”. Bottoms practically showed what an ideal student should be – obsessive, persistent and at the same time, not to erode the sense of self-esteem, which in a paper chase is often lost in intellectual chaos.
Well, the teacher of Kingsfield chicly performed 71-year-old John Houseman, who for this role deservedly received an Oscar. In general, in Hollywood, Houseman is not a random person - a rather eminent producer with a lot of successful projects and a rich Broadway background, leading his report since the 30s. But this role for Houseman became a full debut and immediately the old man received a statuette. It is possible that the internal academic party contributed to this, but Houseman and without the help of his friends on the shop was damn good. Moreover, after 5 years, the eponymous series began, in which the same Houseman played the main role. And the series lasted until 1986, and was closed when the leading actor was already well over 80. Agree, to continue to shoot a series in which the title role is played by an old man standing with one foot in the kingdom of Hades, somewhat risky. In addition, the actor died a year after the end of filming. But all this just says that the producer at the end of life woke up not bad acting skills, the top of which was just this film.
For the third main singer Lindsey Wagner (Hart’s girlfriend and Kingsfield’s daughter), I already said indirectly at the beginning. A pretty girl-actress (by the way, came from the modeling business), but her character did not carry a special load. On the other hand, the production is not exactly spoiled.
One of the best intellectual films about real student life. And a very high-quality Harvard ad. What kind of advertising does Harvard need?
7.5 out of 10