Entre Les Murs
So coming into this movie I had some preconceived notions to deal with. One being that I've seen some other foreign films about education, and they never end well or have a nice warm feeling to them. Also, this was chosen for us as an assignment, so obviously it had some kind of value, purpose or lesson that we should take away from it. That being said, I did enjoy the movie, but probably for reasons which most people would have hated. The film starts with a seemingly positive beginning. Teachers bantering about, meeting each other and starting the new year off on a positive note. There is however an undertone of the coming problems, as teachers share tips on good or bad students, labeling and stereotyping them right from the beginning. Now, having known “good” and “bad” students, is this a negative thing? Shouldn't teachers share and learn from each others experiences? I guess if you use that to blind yourself and to dismiss students, then of course its bad, but I found myself in a difficult position, would I do that myself? Or would I dismiss those comments and be mature enough to enter the classroom with a blank slate? You also get the sense that there is a real tension with the teachers, and they see themselves as a group separate and opposed to the students. A real 'Us' vs 'Them' mentality seems to be emerging. As for Mr. Marin himself and his class, he seems to have his heart in the right place, but his methods and persona are a little hard to watch. He engages his students, and you can see he cares, he doesn't let them slack off, but he is also struggling to acknowledge them and feels threatened when his position as the 'Teacher' is challenged or threatened. Sarcasm, belittling them or singling students out are unfortunately staples of his teaching style. Again he is reinforcing the 'us' vs 'them' mentality, even though he does want them to succeed. This is where the real genius of the film is shown, as it creates this uncomfortable, icky feeling for the viewer, where you are torn between wanting to like Mr. Marin, wanting to fall into a nice, warm, fuzzy feel good movie plot where the teacher helps the poor ignorant inner city kids, but it doesn't let you. It allows you to identify with him, laugh sometimes, feel good, but then immediately pulls that away, and showcases how selfish, petty and strict Mr. Marin can be. The students are also not one dimensional characters, neither wide eyed, hopeful youth, nor hardened, heartless thugs. They're a wide mix of personalities and backgrounds which further confuses the situation. So what do we end up with? A real, complex, confusing, chaotic, sometimes wonderful, often difficult classroom, with a teacher who feels like he wants to help his students, wants to connect, but can't handle losing control or authority. Entre les murs literally means, between these (the) walls, and I guess most people would see it as a take on classrooms and schools, and seeing the life therein, however I feel the title relates much more profoundly to the idea of being stuck, of being pressed between two harsh realities, and not knowing how to deal with that. For the students, it's stuck between expectations, rules and the teachers, and trying to grow and develop and learn about themselves. For the teachers, it is being stuck between good intentions, wanting to help, and the reality of not knowing how to do that, having to follow the rules and curriculum, and being part of a large machine that you have no control over. Race, gender, social status, religion, these are all issues facing the students, teachers, everyone in the film, and they have to navigate those “walls” as well. When I found out that Mr. Marin is played by the actual author of the film, François Bégaudeau, and that his story is a reflection of his own experiences, my respect for the film definitely grew. Not because I thought he was an amazing teacher, but rather because I was impressed by how honest and realistic the story is. Mr. Marin loses control, shows his pettiness and lashes out at his students. He is human, and it takes A LOT for a teacher to not only recognize those flaws, but to put them on display. He targets the students, harbors genuine malice towards some of them, and even though he wants to help, cannot put their needs above his own. Even with those faults, he represents a kind of middle ground and compromise in the teaching staff, as we see other teachers breakdown, lash out and completely attack the students. The pressure and strain of teaching at this school are real, and very palpable. Even the other teachers who seem to have it under control are really only using coping mechanisms, distancing themselves from the students, or relying on the rules and regulations to admonish them of responsibility. The atmosphere and situation is quite toxic and negative. The school community is dominated by their obsession with punishment and respect. Students are forced to act in a way deemed acceptable by the staff, treating them as beyond the laws that apply to the students, and to accept judgment as something beyond reproach. All infractions must be punished and this clearly sets some students on the road for disaster. Even cases where merit is earned, the encouragement is strictly related to performance and grades, with no exceptions or efforts made to reward poorly performing students for their efforts. Mr. Marin seems to want to reform this and allow at risk students a chance to participate, but that gets lost in the day to day battle he conducts in class. Sadly, as I'm sure is the case in a lot of schools, solving the issue with punishment and teacher mentality is given less priority than the coffee machine in the staff room. Perhaps the most bizarre scene of the film was the teacher discussion (with student reps) of the students, comparing notes and determining which students require punishment or not. In what world is it a good idea to tear into and insult students in front of their classmates, allowing them to take notes and report on it? Why would you even want other students present at that kind of a meeting? Are there no issues with student confidentiality? I just found this ridiculous and hopefully not what's really used. Allowing teachers to openly smear or praise students in front of other staff and students is incredibly damaging and intolerant. Another interesting point brought out at this meeting was the notion of what a teachers duty is. While Mr. Marin is trying to advocate for Souleymane to not be punished, another teacher counters with: “Our job is not to let them sit at the back and not cause waves. It's to bring them out.” This idea shocked me, as I can't imagine any teacher not seeing their primary and driving goal and raison d'être to be educating their students and providing a safe environment. Why would it be any teachers job to bring out the bad students? We are not police. We are not there to weed out the bad kids. How can any teacher defend such a view? It made me sad to see how this mentality would continue to influence the rest of the film and play such a key role in Souleymane's destiny. The major incident scene in the film was like watching a train wreck in slow motion. You had the sense that this was going to end badly, and it quickly escalated out of control. Again, the director deserves credit for creating such a tense, chaotic and natural scene. I would assume that many people would blame Mr. Marin for lashing out, saying such a clearly inappropriate and offense term, and then trying to justify it, taking it out on Souleymane. I don't want to defend him, but I can see how natural his response and anger were. He was actually defending Souleymane throughout that meeting, trying to fight for his future, saying that he displayed real talent and skill, if given the chance. That the two girls would completely blindside him, and take his comments out of context must have been a real stab in the back. And like any normal person, he reacted poorly. He became defensive. His very motives were undermined and his authority clipped, so he lashed out and tried to reassert himself, to save face, to retain power. And of course he lost that very thing. He even knows what he is doing is wrong, but he cannot overcome his own ego, his own shame, and gets pulled deeper into the ground. I really feel for his character because I have lashed out at students before (not physically, and not as badly, but I did call some girls spoiled brats for picking on a poorer classmate and being just terrible), and I knew as soon as the words came out of my mouth how wrong I was, and how out of control I was. And then you immediately go into damage control mode. You back peddle, you try and save face, try to regain control, but unfortunately, as a teacher, you can't take those things back. Even during the hearing, you can see that he wants to defend Souleymane, and give him another chance, but doing so undermines his own position and career, and he remains silent, remains safe. Is it admirable? Of course not. Would I be brave enough to act differently? I hope I don't have to find out. (Also, why was the vote secret ballot?!? That's crazy! A students future is at stake, and you don't have to justify or stand behind your votes? That is ridiculous, I think that student has a right to know exactly who is voting for what, and why.) Finally, perhaps the most moving and interesting part of the film was the final sequence, where one of Mr. Marin's students stays behind, after everyone has shared what they have learned, and confesses she has not learned anything. This is an incredibly powerful scene because she is not just commenting on the French class, nor her tests and homework and lessons. What she is really saying, what these words “I don't understand what we do. I didn't learn anything.” really means is that this school is failing her. The school, the system, the purpose of education in France, it is failing the people who need it the most. She cuts to the core of the big questions we are struggling with in class right now, what is education? Who decides what it is for? How do we teach? What do we teach? What do students need to know? How do we judge them, assess them, value them? All of those questions, to her, they are not being answered, not being addressed. She spent the whole year in the background, on the fringes, watching, but not being taught, not learning, nothing. She came out the same way she came in, just a cog being pushed through. She feels her future is already set, her destiny predetermined; “I don't want to go to vocational school.” She see's that she has no future, no choices, no hope. It's heartbreaking. That is the reality of soo many students. Stuck between those walls, sitting at a desk, just being pushed through. This is what made the movie so powerful to me, it didn't answer any of my questions, it didn't resolve anything. It left a flawed, sometimes well meaning teacher, no wiser, no better, and a class of students, a little older, just moving forwards on a predetermined path, hopefully feeling like they earned something, but really, just pieces of a puzzle. And so, I guess I return to try and summarize and piece together my own chaotic emotions after watching the film. There was a lot more in it that I would love to discuss, but this is what I'll stick to for now. It's hard. It does not make me look forward to being a teacher. And it definitely does not make me think I could do any better. It worries me and makes me question myself. It's unsettling. But unsettling can be good. Comfort is a demon and a siren that is much too dangerous. This movie makes me want to be a better teacher, and even more so, makes me want to learn what a better teacher means.
3 Comments
Lexie
9/1/2017 05:53:52 pm
I found this reflection very interesting and you've mentioned things that I couldn't explain and other things I hadn't thought of in the first place. Watching the film for the first time felt like a let down but when I began to understand the students and the teacher, it made perfect sense and I began to like it. I also loved the ambiguity of the ending and the ambiguity of certain choices. Thank You for writing this!
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Peter
9/1/2017 06:34:58 pm
Hi Lexie, thank you for taking the time to read my reply. Do you mind if I ask how you stumbled onto it?
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