X
- 1996
- PG
- Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
- 2 h 23 m
- 1996
- PG
- Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
- 2 h 23 m
Directed By: Stephen Herek
Written By: Patrick Sheane Duncan
- 1996
- PG
- Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
- 2 h 23 m
- 1996
- PG
- Buena Vista Pictures Distribution
- 2 h 23 m
Mr. Holland's Opus
59
6.3
Directed By: Stephen Herek
Written By: Patrick Sheane Duncan
Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 21 Critic Reviews
59
57% Positive
12 Reviews
12 Reviews
33% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
10% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
Metascore
Mixed or Average
Based on 21 Critic Reviews
59
57% Positive
12 Reviews
12 Reviews
33% Mixed
7 Reviews
7 Reviews
10% Negative
2 Reviews
2 Reviews
The film captures how the constant turnover of students keeps educators poised between loss and rebirth, fuddy-duddyism and eternal kiddishness. That balance is there, most pleasurably, in Dreyfuss’ performance. The wonders of makeup and hairpieces have taken 20 years off his age, and his acting feels 20 years younger, too. He has an edgy vigor here that recalls his ebullient star turns of the late ’70s.
Dreyfuss' exemplary performance shows how selfishly Holland neglects his own family in favour of his pupils, and it's clear how conservative politics impinge even on music classes. A middle-brow melodrama which functions as the thinking person's Forrest Gump. Music to my ears.
It's a symphony of solid storytelling and good feeling that pays tribute to Hollywood's rarely-seen, gentler side.
There's a lot to like in Mr. Holland's Opus, even if you find yourself wishing it had been more artfully written, directed - and trimmed. [19 Jan 1996, p.58]
Despite the schmaltz this reviewer lapped it up, not least for the engaging teens, including Alicia Witt, and the spectacle of Dreyfuss strutting his wily stuff to Louie, Louie.
It's all too mawkishly life-affirming for words, the sort of film that wins Golden Globe Awards for its tear-jerking sincerity. And you thought -- hoped? -- they didn't make movies like this anymore.
Mr. Holland's Opus is the kind of movie that only a person who really doesn't like movies could love. It's a movie whose grandiose swagger is meant as compensation for its message about the resignation of the human spirit to smaller gratifications and vistas.
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 10 User Ratings
6.3
60% Positive
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
20% Mixed
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
20% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
User Score
Generally Favorable
Based on 10 User Ratings
6.3
60% Positive
6 Ratings
6 Ratings
20% Mixed
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
20% Negative
2 Ratings
2 Ratings
There are no user reviews yet. Be the first to add a review.
Production Company
Hollywood Pictures,
Interscope Communications,
Polygram Filmed Entertainment,
The Charlie Mopic Company
Release Date Jan 19, 1996
Duration 2 h 23 m
Rating PG
Tagline We are your symphony, Mr. Holland. We are the melodies and the notes of your opus. We are the music of your life.
Awards
Golden Globes, USA
• 2 Nominations
Academy Awards, USA
• 1 Nomination
Young Artist Awards
• 2 Wins & 3 Nominations
