Movie Review: Half Nelson *

Do not let Ryan Gosling's Oscar nomination fool you: this is a retro movie to the 1960s-1970s, when they made psychological drug-related movies like "Apocalypse Now" and "2001: A Space Oddyssey." In "Half Nelson," Gosling is a history teacher in an urban school with students who are all minorities, mostly black, and he is a drug addict. One student finds him in the bathroom in some a drug-induced state and the two of them become friends. The history curriculum consists of stories about the Civil Rights Movement and some later events involving minorities suffering persecution. The lessons appear about as exciting as watching paint dry - this is definitely not one of those "the best teacher I ever had" movies. This teacher is defeated, frustrated, drugged up and in trouble. He knows he is in trouble, but has no clue how to free himself and does not seek help. He loses his job, but the movie shows no resolution of what his life will be afterwards. The interesting moments reveal a look into the worldview of many Hollywood actors today: the news media has a strong conservative bias, reporting anti-war protests to be smaller than they are. The teacher has a hard time dealing with the fact that many people support President Bush, but he is throwing his life away with drugs. Which crisis is worse?
This is one of those movies that has no plot as it is generally understood. The actors say the final lines and the credits begin running, but there was no climax in the story, resolution or redemption. Ultimately, the teacher cares about the kids but realizes that he is part of the problem. He wants them to avoid drugs and to escape the crimes of society, but he supports drug dealers with his business and he as a teacher is part of the "establishment" and his identity as a white man increases his guilt. All he has is the hopelessness of life on drugs in today's flawed world. Like "Crash," "Half Nelson" shows problems that exist today, but provides no suggestions for solutions and not one of the characters has any hope. This is life without God. "*" is the rating: I want those two hours of my life back.