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Dead Poets Society
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Synopsis
Robin Williams toned down his usually manic comic approach in this successful period drama. In 1959, the Welton Academy is a staid but well-respected prep school where education is a pragmatic and rather dull affair. Several of the students, however, have their thoughts on the learning process (and life itself) changed when a new teacher comes to the school. John Keating (Williams) is an unconventional educator who tears chapters of his textbooks and asks his students to stand on their desks to see the world from a new angle. Keating introduces his students to poetry, and his free-thinking attitude and the liberating philosophies of the authors he introduces to his class have a profound effect on his students, especially Todd (Ethan Hawke), who would like to be a writer; Neil ( Robert Sean Leonard), who dreams of being an actor, despite the objections of his father; Knox (Josh Charles), a hopeless romantic; Steven (Allelon Ruggiero), an intellectual who learns to use his heart as well as his head; Charlie (Gale Hansen), who begins to lose his blasé attitude; unconventional Gerard (James Waterston); and practical Richard (Dylan Kussman). Keating urges his students to seize the day and live their lives boldly; but when this philosophy leads to an unexpected tragedy, headmaster Mr. Nolan (Norman Lloyd) fires Keating, and his students leap to his defense. Dead Poets Society was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Williams; it won one, for Tom Schulman's original screenplay. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Cast

Carla Belver Mrs. Perry
Josh Charles Knox Overstreet
Gale Hansen Charlie Dalton
Ethan Hawke Todd Anderson
Dylan Kussman Richard Cameron
Robert Sean Leonard Neil Perry
Leon Pownall McAllister
Allelon Ruggiero Steven Meeks
Kurtwood Smith Mr. Perry
James Waterston Gerard Pitts
Norman Lloyd Mr. Nolan
Robin Williams John Keating

Production Crew

Sandy Veneziano Art Director
Duncan Henderson Associate Producer
Gordon Webb Boom Operator
Howard Feuer Casting
John Seale Cinematographer
Paul Junger Witt Co-producer
Steven Haft Co-producer
Tony Thomas Co-producer
Maurice Jarre Composer (Music Score)
Marilyn Matthews Costume Designer
Peter Weir Director
Lee Smith Editor
Priscilla Nedd Editor
William M. Anderson Editor
Bette Iverson Hair Styles
Charles Wilborn Musical Direction/Supervision
Wendy Stites Production Designer
Tom Schulman Screenwriter
John Anderson Set Designer
Alan Splet Supervising Sound Editor
Year: 1989
Runtime: 128
Country: USA
MPAA Rating: PG
Category: Feature

Genre
Drama

Color type
DuArt Color

Produced by
Buena Vista
Silver Screen Partners IV
Touchstone Pictures

Release
June 02, 1989 (USA)
by Buena Vista

Awards
1989 - Best Film - British Academy Awards
1989 - Best Film (Drama) - Golden Globe
1989 - Best Picture - Academy
1989 - Best Picture - National Board of Review
1989 - Best Picture - Academy
1989 - Best Picture - Academy
1989 - Best Picture - Academy
1989 - Best Picture - British Academy of Film and Television
1989 - Best Picture - Drama - Golden Globe
1989 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1989 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1989 - Best Picture - Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Scie
1989 - Best Picture - Drama - Hollywood Foreign Press Association
1990 - Best Foreign Film - French Academy of Cinema