Half Nelson

Half Nelson (2006) tells the story of a teacher (Ryan Gosling) who is addicted to drugs. After one of his students (Shareeka Epps) finds about his addiction, they form an eccentric friendship. The film was directed by Ryan Flec. It features Ryan Gosling's breakthrough performance which led to an Oscar nomination. It was praised by the critics and became so popular that you could call it THE indie film of 2006 along with Little Miss Sunshine. Ebert named it one of the best films of the decade. You can listen to his and Roeper's thoughts on the film here. 

Why is the film called Half Nelson? It is a wrestling term that serves as a metaphor for the main character's situation: it is extremely difficult to break free from it without putting up a fight.

The film carefully studies its two main characters. As a character study, the film certainly prevails. Although the camera is very interactive with the characters, we are given an honest image of them. We see Gosling's character both as a good teacher who inspires his students, yet we are also there to witness his horrible actions when he's down on his luck. Both of them are in middle of all kinds of "opposing forces" he talks about during the lessons. The characters slowly crumble towards the ending which is a finely constructed climax. The development of the characters reach a fascinating point which works well as an ending.

Half Nelson might work as a character study, but partly because of that it lacks thematic coherency a little. The presentations on civil rights break the rhythm of the film and feel completely forced and separate from the film, which - in turn - makes the film a little uneven.

Half Nelson's form attempts to create a strong emotional bond between the viewer(s) and characters through many aspects. It emphasizes the feeling of each scene and shot. It is obviously shot with hand-held cameras because the camera trembles most of the time, but it actually works a lot better than you would expect. I can't recall a single long-distance shot from the film; it is constructed mostly of close-ups and a few medium-distance shots. The focus is sometimes awkwardly changing, but that is done on purpose. There are a lot of scenes that actually benefit from this "nauseating" camerawork. It has a better impact on the viewer than any other method would have had, for example this is the case in the scene when the student discover the teacher's drug addiction. It creates a truly agonizing atmosphere for the scene. There are also a few scenes which add music with the same intention, and those scenes also worked quite well.

The film features a few scenes that use juxtaposition in a peculiar yet clever way. I won't give you an example because it is a lot more fun to spot them on your own. The film's pace is very lifelike: it never rushes onwards with only leaving the essential shots, but it never hangs onto a single moment. This is the result of proper editing that is worth mentioning. All in all, the form works very well most of the time, but it isnt necessarily perfect.

Ryan Gosling's performance is simply phenomenal. It is one of the best performances of the decade. He delivers a tour de force with unbelieveable authenticity. Yet Shareeka Epps isnt overshadowed by Gosling's towering performance. Her performance never seems forced - which is the opposite of a lot of other young American actors - and she can sometimes even rival Gosling. The other members of the cast are good too, but they arent worth mentioning here.

In overall, Half Nelson is a very good film which deserves the appreciation it has received.

Score: 8 out of 10