The Miracle Worker

SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Arthur Penn directed this 1962 film (before he went on to make a very different movie about social outsiders, Bonnie and Clyde), based on the stage play by William Gibson, who adapted his work for the screen. This movie, which covers the early life of the amazing woman, Helen Keller, is a story about someone who is not just psychologically apart from the mainstream world, but who physically is unable to interact visually, auditorily, and phonetically with her surroundings.

The movie opens with a shot upwards, almost from Helen’s crib shortly after her birth, which emphasizes that she is the prime interest in the film. Helen’s father, Captain Arthur Keller (Victor Jory), a loud ex-military man used to having his world marching to the sound of his voice, speaks with a doctor (Grant Code) following Helen’s difficult birth. The doctor says that sometimes there is “acute congestion” of the brain at birth, but that Helen will be okay. So much for the medical profession in Alabama in 1882. He does say that the baby has a great deal of energy, and as we see he is correct on that account. Helen’s mother, Kate (Inga Swenson), after her husband escorts the doctor to the door, talks to Helen, commenting that Captain Keller’s earlier remark that his wife was not used to “battle scars” shows how men don’t understand what women must endure. Indeed, the Captain and his adult son from a previous marriage, James (Andrew Prine), don’t seem to comprehend the strength of the women around them.

But, Kate’s hope for a healthy Helen quickly vanishes as she realizes her baby does not blink and can’t respond to Kate’s snapping her fingers. She screams and the Captain waves a lantern in front of Helen, with no response from the child. The narrative jumps forward to 1887, and Helen (Patty Duke, repeating the performance she gave on the stage, and winning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress, but looking older than Helen’s age here) tentatively walks forward toward a staircase. The shot stresses the danger in this world for her, as she can fall (and fail?) at any moment. We actually see her shadow first, implying she is not a fully formed person, given the limitations of her disabilities. She is not able to see, hear, or speak. She is next in the yard and gets caught in the white laundry, and the image of her wrapped in the fabric makes her look like a ghost. This shot again emphasizes how Helen stands apart from the other average inhabitants of the world. The analogy is repeated when we see Helen walking with outstretched arms in a field. She looks like a scarecrow, something that appears to be a person, but is not (until transformed in The Wizard of Oz, which hints at the metamorphosis to come).

There is a reflection of Helen in a Christmas tree ornament, which we can see, but Helen can’t, which tells us that she, unlike most of us, is unable to relish in the joy of the holiday. With her probing outstretched hands she smashes the Christmas ball onto the floor, its shattering mirroring Helen’s lack of being part of human celebration. In these angle shots and in subsequent dream sequences, Penn adds cinematic touches to the play source material. However, much of the movie is shot in rooms, which is where the action takes place on the stage. However, through the movement of the camera, and the employment of close-ups, Penn gives the film the power of intimacy between the audience and the actors that a theatrical performance can generate.

Because she is unable to see or hear what is around her, Helen is also a threat to others, because she has no early warning system. She knocks over objects, including her baby sibling resting in a cradle on the floor. This shot can imply resentment on Helen’s part for the child that has the physical attributes she lacks, and jealousy concerning her mother’s love for that other child. Indeed, Helen’s anger due to her frustration in not being able to connect comes out as hostility as she fights with one of the African American servant children. The Kellers have sent Helen to schools who specialize in dealing with disabled children, but they were unsuccessful in dealing with Helen. The Captain, not reconciled to the defeat of the South in the Civil War, seems ready to give up concerning his daughter. There is a suggestion of placing her in an asylum. James seems put out by Helen, saying, “She can’t even keep herself clean. It’s not pleasant to see her about all the time.” It is the woman here, Kate, who is tenacious, who has the strength to go on until all possibilities at helping Helen are exhausted. She reprimands James, reminding him of the advantages he takes for granted by telling him angrily, “Do you dare complain about what you can see?”

Helen wants to be fully part of the world she can sense through smell, taste, and touch. It is significant that Helen wants her doll, whose smooth ball for a face emphasizes Helen’s challenged existence, to have the features that function on a human being. She gestures that she wants buttons sewed on the doll’s face to represent eyes, thus making the toy look like her. It’s as if her wanting to change the doll demonstrates how she would like to be enhanced. This act shows Helen’s desire to have the advantages of which she has inexplicably been deprived. She opens and closes her mouth while putting her hands inside the opening, as if wanting to be able to express the thoughts in her head so she can communicate with those around her. At this point she only knows how to show she wants her mother by stroking her face upward, in a sign of affection. Other than that, when someone holds Helen’s hand against a person’s cheek and feels the head nod, she knows that it means “yes,” and a shake sideways means “no.”

Kate’s persistence convinces the Captain that they should contact another school, the Perkins Institute for the Blind in South Boston, that specializes in teaching the sightless. Instead of sending Helen away, the teacher will stay with the Kellers. The woman, an Irish American who still has an accent, and is only twenty years old, is Annie Sullivan (Anne Bancroft, also recreating her stage performance, and winner of the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal). The Captain, underestimating the woman’s abilities, is upset that Annie is so young, and that this job is her first (and possibly that she is a Yankee). James is condescending when he meets Annie and says she looks like one half a governess, referring to her small size. Annie defiantly grabs her luggage away from James, asserting her self-reliance and strength. She is a graduate of the school and as Kate points out was the valedictorian of her class. Annie was blind as a child and has had numerous operations to restore her sight. She needs to medicate her eyes, and wears sunglasses because bright light hurts her. Because of her disability, she can better understand what Helen is going through. Annie’s trip from Boston is intimidating for her, as she must deal with the outside world alone for the first time (which is what Helen will have to learn to do). The noise of the train startles her and she must deal with confusing rail connections. She also has nightmares of her childhood when she was blind, and an orphan, along with her crippled younger brother.

Annie is disappointed that Helen isn’t there at the train station, so eager is the teacher to begin her work. When she sees Helen standing on the house porch, Annie slams her suitcase on the flooring so Helen can feel her arrival, and commence the interaction. Helen is a curious person and explores to find out who the new person is as she touches Annie’s hand, smells it, and explores Annie’s face. But, Helen’s vulnerability makes her cautious and she stops Annie from touching her. Helen especially wants to know what’s in the suitcase. Helen is initially polite, raising her hand to be placed on Annie’s face, and receiving the nod that gives her permission to open the suitcase. Annie wants to take it inside, but Helen, used to getting her own way due her parents’ leniency, grabs the suitcase. Annie smiles, observing Helen’s will, but by conceding the luggage, gets Helen to relieve her of her burden. In this way, they both get what they want in a sort of introductory compromise.

James agrees with the Captain’s pessimism about Annie’s success, but the Captain basically tells his son to be quiet. The father is always dismissive of his son, but James says he is agreeing with the Captain. He complains to Kate, “Nothing I say is right.” Kate, angry at James’ negative comments, tells him, “Why say anything at all?” James makes a number of snide jokes about people, putting others down to build himself up, as if trying to get the attention from his father he never felt that he received. At one point Kate basically accuses James of being a coward for never standing up to his father.

In the absence of dialogue between Annie and Helen, Annie many times speaks out loud while with her student so as to let us know Annie’s observations. In a bedroom, Helen tries wearing Annie’s hat, shawl, and glasses. Annie’s sense of humor comes through when she says that it’s a shame that’s how she looks after all the trouble she went to for the trip. Helen holds up a mirror as if to see how she looks in the get up. She probably is mimicking her mother, but the scene again illustrates how Helen longs to be part of the surrounding world. The image also demonstrates how the two are mirror images of each other, Helen being a younger version of Annie, who overcame her affliction as a child, but is still an outsider in the world because of her eyes and her background.

Helen finds the gift that Annie brought her in the suitcase. It is a doll with complete facial features. Helen is pleased with this fact, as she tries to realize herself by finding common ground in her interaction with the external. Annie gets right to work making Helen feel Annie’s fingers as she signs the letters that form words that correspond to objects. Annie tells Kate that it could be a long time before Helen isn’t just imitating action, playing a finger game, and actually understands that the hand formations refer to a means of communication. James comments that Helen will imitate anything to get what she wants. James asks Annie if she invented the sign language. Annie says humorously, “Spanish monks under a vow of silence, which I wish you’d take.” But, at this point, James is correct, since as soon as Helen gets her doll, she wacks Annie across the face, causing her to lose a tooth. She runs out of the bedroom, and locks Annie inside, the key having been placed in the outside keyhole. Helen is crafty, and hides the key. When the Captain asks Annie if there was a key on her side of the door (a foolish question), Annie, despite the circumstances, uses humor when she says if the key were there then she wouldn’t be. She says she is the only one on that side of the door, and that it looks like, “I’m the only one on my side,” of the situation with Helen.

The meaningful humor continues, as James is bringing a ladder to rescue Annie, but the Captain dismisses him. But then he counters himself and tells him to bring a ladder. The Captain’s lack of respect for his son is in evidence here as he automatically dismisses him even when he is doing the right thing. The Captain, out of old-fashioned chivalry and condescension toward women, won’t allow Annie to climb down the ladder herself, and insists on carrying her, despite her protests that she can take care of herself. Annie tells the Captain that she will search for the key so he won’t have to replace the door. The Captain does get off a good line when he advises her not to look in rooms that can be locked, suggesting she may be prone to self-confinement (another obscure reference to how Annie is connected to Helen). James echoes his father’s joke (again subconsciously seeking his approval), when he tells Annie it might be best if they leave the ladder out, in case she repeats her mistake.

After this commotion, Helen sits motionless next to the outside water pump. Annie stays with her as the others go inside the house. Annie remains still, and Helen, sensing no motion around her, takes the key out of her mouth and drops it in the well. Annie acknowledges Helen’s sneaky ways, but says that she will not be gotten rid of so easily. She says she has no place else to go. Her statement shows her tenacity, but it also points to Annie’s aloneness in the world.

The combination of her family indulgence, rebelliousness, and frustration over her situation, makes Helen very difficult for Annie to control and teach. Helen breaks things, like a pitcher of water, spills ink, and stabs Annie’s hand with a needle when the teacher tries to take away her knitting at bedtime. Kate gives her daughter something to eat to get Helen to comply. Annie is outraged that Helen is rewarded after hurting her. The longest and toughest battle between the two (and the one with hardly any words) occurs at dinner in a marvelous piece of orchestrated action, which contains humor, too. It feels like one take, but multiple camera angles are used. Annie watches with a stern look on her face as the men have a conversation about the military loss at Vicksburg as Helen circles the table, grabbing food off of each person’s plate. She is not treated like a cooperating member of society so she does not act like one. When she reaches Annie’s chair, she refuses to let Helen take her food. Of course Helen is outraged, and Annie dismisses everyone from the room except she and Helen. The girls tries to unseat Annie by pulling her chair out from under her repeatedly. Annie uses the smell of the food as an enticement to lure Helen, but she wants her to sit at the table and eat her meal with a spoon. Helen holds onto her chair with her hands so she won’t be able to comply. Annie forces food into her mouth with the spoon, and Helen spits it out, sometimes in Annie’s face. Helen slaps Annie, who returns the smack with enough firecenss that Helen thinks better of hitting her again while in mid swing. Annie gives Helen a succession of spoons which the girl repeatedly throws onto the floor. In the end, Annie appears at the outside door to the house looking disheveled and exhausted. She tells Kate that Helen ate her food with a spoon and folded her napkin. Annie says, “The room’s a wreck, but her napkin is folded.” Sometimes there is collateral damage when reaching a worthwhile goal.

We get more of Annie’s daydreams and nightmares about her childhood. These memories appear as fuzzy images, which match her difficulty with seeing, and contain discouraging adults saying that children who are blind aren’t able to learn how to read and write. So, Annie knows about how people can put obstacles in the way of individual achievement by giving up on children, and, thus, her history resonates with Helen’s situation. This connection is cemented by seeing her walking with outstretched arms, just as we saw Helen at the beginning of the movie. The young Annie, despite the negativity around her, wanted to get an education and improve herself, even if it meant leaving her brother to do so.

Annie’s humor continues to surface. After the dinner scene, Helen runs away from Annie, afraid of her. When the Captain says to Annie that if she wants to stay, “there must be a radical change of manner,” Annie asks, “Whose?” although we know he means he wants Annie to behave differently. Annie concedes that the situation is hopeless in the current surroundings. Kate thinks she is giving up, and she, unlike the males, is continually hopeful. She says at age six Helen uttered a version of the word for water, so the mother believes Helen has it in her to understand how to attach words to things. Annie is not giving up. She wants to make Helen completely dependent on her. She asks that the two of them along with the servant boy Percy (Michael Darden) live in a cabin that stands on the property. Annie argues that Helen’s greatest handicap is the way the parents overindulged her with “love and pity.” She says to Kate, “you’ve kept her like a pet. Well, even a dog you housebreak.” When the parents concede that they considered putting Helen in an asylum, Annie tells of her own horrific story growing up in one of them. She and her brother, “used to play with the rats because we didn’t have any toys.” There were crippled, blind, and dying old ladies that had contagious diseases. She and her brother were put in with them. There were also younger women, “prostitutes mostly, with TB and epileptic fits.” She also implies that there were pedophiles there. Her brother, who had a tubercular hip, died eleven years prior. She says the experiences there made her strong, and she recognizes the strength in Helen. The Captain agrees to give her two weeks to work the miracle of the title.

Helen’s first response in the cabin with Annie is to thrash about. James comes by and again questions the point of her efforts. Annie again shows her tenacity, telling him she’d rather be dead than give up. He asks how will she reach Helen. Betting on Helen’s hunger for knowledge, Annie says, “I’m counting on her. That little head is dying to know.” Annie uses the boy Percy as an intermediary. Annie manipulates Percy’s fingers to form letters. Helen becomes jealous when she feels what Annie is doing. The girl eventually pushes Percy out of the way so that she can be the recipient of Annie’s finger formations. Annie then rewards her with milk for letting Annie touch her again. Annie eventually gets Helen to comb her hair and dress herself. In one scene Helen holds a an egg that is starting to hatch. Annie says that she hopes that Helen, like the emerging chick, will break free from the disabilities and parental protection that confine her so that she can flourish as an individual.

After the two weeks are up, The Captain and Kate want their child back. The Captain is content with the fact that Helen has come a long way by learning how to take care of herself. But Annie says that she wanted to teach Helen “what language is. I know without it to do nothing but obey is no gift. Obedience without understanding is a blindness too.” Annie wants Helen to gain insight into what she is doing, not just blindly repeat actions to get rewards. But, the Captain, playing the male reconciliation card again, says that they are very satisfied with what Annie has accomplished. Helen is “more manageable, cleaner,” and “cleanliness is next to godliness.” Annie is not one to be so easily satisfied and says, “Cleanliness is next to nothing.” The Captain uses religion to justify being content with smaller victories when he says to Annie, “I think you ask too much of her and yourself. God may not have meant Helen to have the eyes you speak of.” Annie’s response is, “I mean her to.” Annie is not content to relinquish her attempts at reaching a goal by surrendering to some concept of destiny.

But, the Captain refuses to give Annie more time. They return to the Keller house where Helen now feels her previous behavior will again be indulged. At dinner, Helen sits at the table, but continually throws her napkin on the floor. While her mother is willing to let this behavior slide, Annie won’t tolerate it. She tells Kate basically what Escalante says about his students in Stand and Deliver (which was discussed here recently) - that children will live up to expectations. (That film and this one are great inspirational movies about teachers and students).

During her tantrum following the napkin throwing, Helen tosses the water out of a pitcher. Annie takes Helen outside to fill the pitcher. James, finally getting some backbone, confronts his father, stopping the Captain from interfering with Annie. James tells the Captain he is wrong here, and accuses him of self-righteousness when he says has he never considered the possibility that he could be wrong? At the well (a metaphor for a place from which one draws sustenance, in this case knowledge for the brain?), Helen has an epiphany. Feeling the water on her hands, she repeats the attempt to say water that her mother said she tried when a baby. Annie jumps at the opportunity and signs the words for water, ground, pump, etc., as Annie touches the objects and wants to know the combination of letters that name them. Helen rings the dinner bell on the house porch, symbolically communicating loudly to those that can hear her joy about her newly found discovery. Her parents hug her as Annie happily proclaims that Helen “understands.” Helen points to Annie and wants to know the word for her. Annie signs the word “teacher.”

Helen finds a key in her mother’s pocket, which symbolizes that through drive and persistence, Annie and Helen, with support from her mother (all females), were able to find the “key” to freeing Helen so she could become part of the world. No more locked doors. Later that evening. Helen finds Annie sitting on the porch. She sits in her teacher’s lap and kisses her. Annie signs the word for “love.” With affection and persistence, outsiders can become insiders, and miracles can happen.

The next film is Kramer vs. Kramer.

Stand and Deliver

SPOILER ALERT! The plot will be discussed.

Many of us have obstacles to overcome in order to live a better life. But, some have more barriers placed in their path that they must ascend than do others. This 1988 film, based on a true story, is one of the most inspirational stories put on film, without being sentimental, that shows the extreme effort needed by some to gain success in the presence of prejudice and the poverty that derives from it.

The movie opens with a scene of flowing water which suggests that we may be ready to visit a lush tropical locale. But it is the river that flows through Los Angeles, and it seems ironic to place nature and concrete side by side. But, the water implies that there can be something that is fertile, life-sustaining, even in an asphalt jungle. Right from the beginning we get a symbol that there can be hope here.

Jaime Escalante (Edward James Olmos, in an Oscar-nominated performance) is heading to the first day of his teaching job at Garfield High School in a Latino section of the city. We are vicariously experiencing the newness of this adventure with him as he takes in the colors, sounds, and diversity of the neighborhood. It doesn’t take long before he encounters his first obstacle. He is supposed to teach computer science, but is told that they do not have computers. The math department chairperson, Raquel Ortega (Virginia Paris) tells him that the computers were supposed to be there already, but it hasn’t happened. It’s like trying to teach carpentry without any tools. So, the bureaucracy already is working against Escalante.

Since he can’t teach computer science, Escalante must switch gears and is assigned to teach mathematics. The next problem is the students. They are unruly, and see no need to learn math. Pancho (Will Gotay) jokingly says, “I don’t need no math. I got a solar calculator with my dozen donuts.” For these young people, the only math they believe they need will be basic calculations done by the machines in fast-food stores.  Escalante uses humor to deal with the situation, trying to employ entertainment to get the class’ attention. For example, when a girl drapes herself over the desk of a boy, he says that there is only one body per desk. But there are many disruptions on his first day. There are students in the class who only speak Spanish. The bell goes off right after class begins, since some students have rigged it to sound haphazardly. His car is vandalized on the first day, a window broken and the radio removed. One student wears a jacket with a picture of Jesus on the back. It can either suggest hope, irony that the students feel that God has forsaken them, or a reminder that God helps those that help themselves.

We find out, through a discussion with a neighbor, that Escalante worked at a computer company, and left a higher paying job because he wanted to help Latino students learn so they can help themselves. He shows up at class dressed as a butcher with a cleaver and places parts of apples on the students’ desks to teach fractions. Pancho ate his apple, and when asked how much he has left, he says he only has a core. Escalante wittily mixes humor and math when he says, “You owe me a hundred percent. And I’ll see you in The People’s court.” A few students come in late, and are intimidating. But, Escalante uses his humor to deflate their threats. One gives him the finger, and the teacher calls him “finger man.” When Angel (Lou Diamond Phillips) reaches for Escalante’s pen, he warns the student that he might lose a finger. Then, he won’t be able to count to ten, which is a mathematical put-down, suggesting that using his hand is the only way he can add. He later shows the students a simple trick to use fingers to do more complicated computations, encouraging them by showing that they don’t have to be geniuses to solve problems. He basically tells them that showing contempt for education just to act cool now won’t help later in life, because “tough guys don’t do math. Tough guys fry chicken for a living.”

He has other effective classroom management techniques. He stands close to a student’s desk, interacting with that person one-on-one, as an individual, not as a member hiding out in a group. This way he can either inhibit bad behavior, or be supportive of positive academic participation. When one student, Lupe (Ingrid Oliu), rebels by refusing to take a test, he separates her from the group, placing her in a chair facing the rest of the class. Instead of his humor and antics providing entertainment, he tells her she is “the show,” and the other classmates ridicule her for being treated like a child in a time-out. Escalante turns the adolescent inclination of making fun of peers as a way to keep students in line.  

He wants his students to reach for something better out of life, so he challenges them. He says, “If the only thing you know how to do is add and subtract, you will only be prepared to do one thing: Pump gas.” He tells them they are going to learn algebra. He goads one of the “tough guys” to show that he can be smart, being able to add positive and negative numbers to get the answer of zero. He then appeals to their cultural background, to instill pride and associate it with math. He tells them, “neither the Greeks nor the Romans were capable of using the concept of zero. It was your ancestors, the Mayans, who first contemplated the zero. The absence of value. True story. You burros have math in your blood.”

At a math teacher meeting, Principal Molina (Carmen Argenziano) says that if the school doesn’t improve it will be put on probation, and will lose accreditation. Chairperson Ortega points out that there is no real help from the outside in terms of resources. One teacher is supposed to be teaching gym, not math. Another, because of better pay, is going into the aerospace industry. But Ortega’s attitude is a defeatist one, always blaming the situation, those obstacles, for the lack of success, and preaches resignation instead of an attempt to rise to the occasion. She even harbors racist inclinations against her own people, as she suggests that they would have to change the demographics of the district for the school to improve. She surrenders to the notion that they can’t teach “logarithms to seventh grade level kids.” She says that they have done all that they can, but, in contrast to this throwing in the towel attitude, Escalante says he can do more. He counters Ortega’s capitulation by saying, “students will rise to the level of expectation.” If they undercut the students confidence by saying they can’t accomplish goals, they will fail.

He tells the students they already have those extra obstacles mentioned above blocking them. In a society that preaches equality but practices prejudice, and assumes they can’t be smart, he says, “You already have two strikes against you: your name and your complexion.” Despite those imposed disadvantages, there is no reason to give up. Knowledge of mathematics will be the “the great equalizer,” leveling the playing field when they must compete for jobs. He wants them to face the reality that an employer does not want, “to hear your problems.” He wants them to understand by working hard, they can still hit a home run despite the “strikes” against them. But, they must have “ganas,” that is, the desire to achieve.

As the students begin to admire Escalante for believing that they can excel in mathematics, they give him the name of “Kemosabe,” which was the term of endearment that the Native American sidekick of the Lone Ranger on the old TV show used for his masked friend. In some interpretations it means “trusted friend.” But, it also has the connotation of someone who has your back when fighting against the enemy, which in this story turns out to be the social system that has placed those “two strikes” against these kids.

Angel begins to realize that math may be his ticket out of poverty and discrimination. But, he has to avoid the peer pressure of the other gang types who think trying to be a good student is selling out to a system that marginalizes them. So, Angel asks Escalante for a math book he can keep at home so it appears that he isn’t taking his studies seriously by carrying his book around. His teacher jokingly comments on the the absurdity of the problem when he says to Angel, “Wouldn’t want anyone thinking you’re intelligent, would you?” When he gives him the book, Angel hides it under his shirt. In this crazy upside down situation, it is not illegal drugs or stolen goods that must be hidden, but instead a book is the incriminating evidence.

The film takes time to show the obstacles in the personal lives of these students. Lupe is a surrogate mother for her siblings while her mother must work late in order to provide for her family. Angel has a sick grandmother for whom he watches over. One smart girl, Ana (Vanessa Marquez), tells Escalante that she has to drop out to work in her family restaurant. Escalante has dinner at the restaurant with his wife, Fabiola (Rosanna DeSoto), and tries to convince Ana’s father (James Victor) that his daughter can go to college and become a doctor, which is what she told Escalante she wants to be. The father has some old, sexist attitudes about girls, which are impediments to Ana’s wishes. He thinks that the longer Ana stays in school, the more likely she will become pregnant. He says that the whole family works at the restaurant, so why should she be any different. In this way, the father echoes the school math department chairperson by having low expectations for the children, and thus limiting their changes of realizing their dreams. Escalante does go a bit too far by saying that if Ana drops out, she will get fat and waste her life working in the family eatery. This statement is insulting to the father, who had worked his way up from dishwasher to owner. But, Escalante says he, too, started as a dishwasher, and both he and Ana’s father have done well by working hard for what they wanted. Even though the dad is angry at first, Ana shows up at school again, and shines as a student.

Pancho tells Escalante that they need to know how math works in the world outside of school. So, the teacher takes them on a field trip to where he worked at a computer company. A student asks what type of mathematics is displayed on a computer screen. He is told that it is calculus, and Escalante says that it will be taught to them when they go to college. The worker there tells Escalante that his daughter is taught calculus in high school. This encounter gives Escalante the idea of teaching his students calculus so that they can get college credit by passing the Advanced Placement test. Of course, the obstacles are there trying to prevent him from achieving this goal. The negative chairperson, Ortega, says that even some math teachers can’t pass that test, let alone their students who have a seventh grade reading level. She says they don’t even have the books. Escalante knows that Principal Molina wants to prevent the school from being put on probation, so the math teacher says the only way to turn the school around is from the top down, with the best students modeling success for the rest of the student body. Escalante says either he gets to teach calculus, or he walks. In order to achieve greatness, for him, there can be no compromises. Ortega tells Escalante that his students will lose what “little” (note the condescension) self-respect they have when they fail. Again, she assumes defeat. For Escalante, giving up without even trying is the greater failure. Principal Molina gives him the green light, but he must teach prerequisites such as trigonometry in the summer to be ready for the calculus in the fall of the students’ senior year. Summer school is usually for remedial courses, but Escalante wants to use it not for going backward but moving forward academically. The students toil in the heat as the air-conditioning doesn’t work, just adding another burden to deal with on their difficult road ahead.

When school begins again in the new school year, Escalante wants his students’ commitment in writing. He makes them and their parents sign contracts that guarantee that they will show up before school begins, stay late after classes are over, and even to work with him during vacation breaks. There will be no senior year slacking off. The kids are not thrilled, and one says that Escalante likes scaring them into doing stuff, but that it is getting old. But, Escalante is persistent. One girl, Claudia (Karla Montana), trying to convince her mother of the importance of calculus, tells her that it is fascinating that Sir Isaac Newton invented calculus to understand planetary motion. Her mother, another blocking agent that must be overcome, is reluctant to sign the contract, preaching the sexist idea that boys don’t like smart girls. Claudia tells her she wants to learn so that she doesn’t have to rely on a boy. Her mother, probably understanding the vulnerability of relying on a man, is inspired by her daughter’s desire to be self-sufficient, and signs the contract. Pancho tells Escalante that he has a job offer to work a forklift and he will be making more money than the teacher. They go for a ride in Pancho’s car, and Escalante asks him quickly to decide which way to turn. After the turn, he pulls over and says that if Pancho sticks with the course, he will be able to design machines not just try to operate or repair them. His point is to not just have a short range plan to make money to deal with immediate financial needs, but to work toward a fulfilling future. As Escalante tells Pancho, “You only see the turn. You don’t see the road ahead.”

Escalante sometimes goes too far in pushing his students. Claudia looks outside of the classroom window, watching other youths enjoying the outdoors while she is inside enduring her teacher’s grueling lessons. She gets up and starts to leave, and Escalante says she probably has another date, and has more boyfriends than Elizabeth Taylor. She angrily tells him before leaving that she doesn’t appreciate him using her personal life for the class’ entertainment. He does run after her, though, and she breaks down, saying that she doesn’t see her boyfriend, hasn’t had time to help her mother, or even to take care of personal grooming. (While rushing to catch up with Claudia, Escalante puts his hand over the left side of his chest. The act is a foreshadowing of what is to happen later). She makes Escalante realize that she is sacrificing a great deal of her young life to study. Angel takes his ailing grandmother to a public clinic where they have to wait a long time because they can’t afford decent health care. When he is late for class, Escalante kicks him out, and Angel upends a desk, enraged that his teacher won’t even stop to listen to Angels’ reason for his tardiness. Later, Angel crashes Escalante’s holiday dinner, bringing his grandmother, who explains why Angel was late for class. Angel justifies his action by telling his teacher that he needs the math class to get “a good career.” He may have gone over the line, but he has demonstrated to Escalante that Angel has the “ganas” to succeed.

But, Escalante’s zeal to accomplish a greater good for many others has shortchanged his own family. Besides putting in so many extra hours teaching calculus, he also volunteers to teach English as a Second Language to immigrants, and recently started helping out at junior high schools. His driven nature catches up to him, because the human body has its own way of becoming an obstacle to unlimited accomplishment. Escalante suffers a heart attack while teaching an ESL class. To emphasize how the students run into roadblocks at every turn, with only two weeks to the AP test, their substitute is a music teacher. Escalante knows how little support and time is left, and he returns to the class after only being sidelined for a couple of days. He so inspires his class that even the struggling Pancho excels, rising to meet what was expected of him.

They take the AP test, and after the exam they jump into the ocean together to regain a sense of freedom and relief from the trying ordeal they have endured. But, the water seems to imply a sort of baptism and rebirth, cleansing themselves of their old life and allowing an opportunity to start again freed from previous restrictions. Pancho is working under a car, grease all over his hands and arms when the test results come in the mail, He tries to open the envelope without sullying it with the grime of his labors. He is joyous as he learns that he has passed which will allow him not to suffer under, but instead climb above the weariness of manual labor.

At a ceremony at the school, Principal Molina tells the gathering that less than two percent of the students in Southern California attempt the AP test in calculus. However, all eighteen students from Garfield High School who took the test passed. The students feel pride maybe for the first time in their lives and they show their gratitude to Escalante by giving him a plaque expressing their thanks.

Their celebrating does last long as the system imposes another obstacle before them. The eighteen who passed the AP test receive notice that they are to be investigated by the Educational Testing Service for possible cheating. On the surface, they are considered suspect because of the uniformity of their answers, so the possibility of copying from each other is raised. Escalante says that the ETS is not taking into account that the students were in one class and taught rigorously as a team by one teacher, which accounts for the uniformity of their test scores. Angel is particularly enraged, but he expresses his anger and despair at being treated unfairly to his friend, while they drive, by using the new knowledge he has learned. He says, “The stars aren’t really there, ese. No, what you’re looking at is where they used to be, man. It takes the light a thousand years to reach the earth. You know, for all we know, they burned out a long time ago, man. God pulled the plug on us. He didn’t tell nobody.” Despite the fact that he is not being recognized for his intelligence and what he has learned, he has enhanced his life because he can comment on it in scientific and religious terms. A police car pulls them over because Angel hangs out of the car and yells at the police as representatives of the system that treats him badly. Angel says to them, “That’s all you know!” It is a simple sentence but it carries meaning. He is pointing out the ignorance of prejudice that assumes a certain ethnic type is worthless, and by making this point, shows his own intelligence. When the police frisk Angel, the only “weapon” he has is a pencil, which negates their assumption that he is dangerous, and points to his immersion in an academic, not criminal, life.

Although the tests are initially screened anonymously, once they are flagged, the ETS discovers the names of the students and then can investigate or not. In this case they send an African American, Dr. Pearson (Rif Hutton), and a Latino, Dr. Ramirez (Andy Garcia, in a very early role). It seems that the ETS is going out of its way to appear fair to minorities by having two men who are from oppressed ethnic backgrounds represent them. They gather the students in a classroom and try to make them confess to cheating, as if it is a foregone conclusion. Ramirez is particularly unsavory when he uses his own background to say he understands why they might feel a need to take a shortcut by cheating. His remarks are insulting and demeaning to his own ethnic group. Outraged by the way they are treated, Angel appears to give the men what they want to hear. He says that they have been caught. He acquired the test ahead of time from the mailman, who he strangled, and whose body is “decomposing in my locker.” The rest of the class laughs hysterically at how Angel satirized the assumption that they are cheaters and criminals.

The math chairperson, Ortega, again assumes the worst concerning the students. Escalante asks her if she thinks that the students cheated. She says that they care for Escalante so much, they would do anything to please him, even cheat. She says that most people who are accused of a crime are guilty. So much for the American legal tenet that people are presumed innocent until proven guilty. Escalante starts to despair. He tells his wife that his students, “lost the confidence in the system they’re finally qualified to be part of. “ But, after his kids borrowed his car so they could detail it and make it look cool, he realizes that his wife was right when she said, “those kids love you.”

Escalante confronts Pearson and Ramirez. They argue that all the students finished the test ahead of time, which to them implies cheating. Escalante, arguing against the assumption of guilt, says that “they should be rewarded, not punished” for the swiftness of their work. He tells them that what no one wants to talk about here is racism, which has blanketed the students’ accomplishment in doubt. Escalante says that if the same results involved youths from Beverly Hills High School, there would be no suspicion of cheating. He tells the ETS men, “Those scores would never have been questioned if my kids did not have Spanish surnames and come from barrio schools.”

Escalante refuses to let his kids be stopped on their road to success by the unfairness of prejudice. The students ask for a retest, but they only have one day for review. Escalante says that this time the test will be harder. They must overcompensate in order not to be considered suspect. They can’t have wandering eyes, or wear clothes with pockets. He praises them, trying to build up their confidence, by saying that they are “the true dreamers” (a word which reverberates with immigrants today), and says they are “the champs.” Late in the evening, while some continue to study at Escalante’s house, he takes on a more dire tone. Claudia asks Escalante if he’s worried they will “screw up royally tomorrow.” His response is, “Tomorrow’s another day. I’m worried you’re gonna screw up the rest of your lives.” He may sound harsh here, but he is trying to tell them the same thing he said to Pancho, which is that the test is only one step on a tough, long journey to realize their full potential.

They take the retest. Anna has to leave early because she has an interview for a college scholarship. She is already changing her life, ready to be the first person in her family to get a higher education. While Escalante waits for the test results, the school secretary tells him, after two years that he has been at the school, they finally received the computers. Escalante satirizes the absurdity of waiting for help from a bogged down educational system by saying, “Yep, that will do it.”

The new test results vindicate the original ones. All of the students receive passing or exemplary scores. The film states at the end that from 1982 to 1987, the number of students passing the AP calculus test at Garfield High School went from eighteen to eighty-seven. As Escalante said, despite numerous obstacles in their path, “students will rise to the level of expectation.”

After a week off, the next film is The Swimmer.