In Radical, a teacher in a poor and undeveloped seaside Mexican town tries a new method to unlock his students’ potential and creativity. Source: Australian Catholics.
The screenplay is based on A radical way of unleashing a generation of geniuses, an article published in Wired by Joshua Davis about the experiences of a teacher in Mexico in 2011.
Audiences will perhaps be reminded of creative education movies they have appreciated in the past such as the personal touch in To Sir, With Love, or the creativity of Dead Poets Society.
In this impoverished border town, mothers work night shifts, a father earns his living by fossicking in a mountainous rubbish tip and there are dead bodies on the streets.
At the local school, the principal is frustrated. The school has some of the lowest assessments in the annual tests. Disgruntled staff are ready to cheat by getting the tests early and rigging the results. Corruption in local city offices is offering promises of computers that are never delivered.
Then comes the new teacher, Sergio (Deberz), full of creative vitality. He has worked in the system and is disillusioned with students not appreciating their education. Sergio is determined to find creative ways, especially for the top year in primary school.
We, the audience, are immersed in his methods, perhaps sharing the initial stunned silence of the young students who really do not know what he is asking of them, but gradually responding.
While some dissenters may label this kind of film as kitsch, most audiences will view Radical as positive, heartwarming and hopeful.
Review by Fr Peter Malone MSC, Jesuit Media.
Radical: Starring Eugenio Derbez, Daniel Haddad, Jennifer Trejo, Mia Fernanda Solis, Danilo Guardiola Escobar. Directed by Christopher Zalla. 125 minutes. Rated M (Mature themes and coarse language).
FULL REVIEW
Radical (Jesuit Media via Australian Catholics)
