Conrack

Jon Voight? pass ..........................

As a teacher of inner city children for 30 years it was very moving movie to me. It showed specifically the importance of exposing students to knowledge and experiences that are foreign to them and a zest to learn and gain respect for themselves through the devotion of a dedicated teacher. The backdrop was simple but very poignant. The actors and actresses were well chosen for their roles and executed them perfectly.

The cliched story of an inspirational teacher whose unconventional style is misunderstood by his supervisors. In spite of his apparent success at encouraging poor black students to learn, the school superintendent wants something different, although it's not really clear what. Good performances by Voight and some of the young actors. Ungratifying ending.

Old-fashioned feel-good drama with a dubious white saviour message; Jon Voight's role, which he plays excellently, was obviously intended as Oscar bait.

The best inspiring movie ever made!

Just saw this again the other night thanks to TCM. My wife and I watched it together. Me for the third time and she for the first. She loved it and so did I (again) Just a wonderful period piece. The kids. John Voight, Paul Winfield and the entire cast were perfect. Highly recommend.

The potentially dubious aspects of the subject are mostly exorcised, in part by a strong script (adapted from the book by real-life teacher Pat Conroy), but largely by the engaging and persuasive performance Ritt draws from Voight.

The original movie theme about a white teacher that tries to save a group of black kids from poverty. The racism here is really well done. The ending is perfect.

Inspiring flick based on a true story. Extremely well acted 85% on the Rickta Scale

Based off of the autobiographical novel "The Water is Wide" by Pat Conroy, Conrack tells the story of Conroy (portrayed by Jon Voight), a young unorthodox teacher who travels to an island off the coast of South Carolina to teach a group of young African-American students with little to no education. He is railed against for his teaching methods by the school's principle and the superintendent, but Conroy (known as "Conrack" to his students who cannot pronounce his name properly) is bound and determined to teach the children as much as he can in the best way he knows how, no matter what the consequences may be. For all intents and purposes, Conrack is an uplifting, hopeful film on the surface. Fortunately, it steps outside of those confines and becomes something else. It's less of a story about hope and more about sacrifice and loss. Jon Voight gives a terrific performance, as you might expect, but its the direction of Martin Ritt that's really impressive. The film also leaves many things unsaid, so dialogue is never wasted nor overused. It may touch a bit on the clichéd side, but overall, it's a terrific little film with some very good performances.