Why I loved Dead Poets Society
There are certain films, that when seen at the right time can inspire you for a lifetime. Dead Poets Society is one such film for me. It makes you feel something - it makes you see the world in a different way.
The film's motto was Carpe Diem - seize the day! It focuses on a group of boys studying in an elite prep school where most of them are being forced to conform to societal standards - into doing things they don't want to do. But when they meet their new English teacher called Keatings (perhaps a homage to Geoffery Keatings) - all of their lives change forever.
He opens their eyes to everything the world has to offer.
He teaches them to live for themselves and to seize every single moment in life. To follow their dreams and passion. And the fact that Robin Williams is in the role of Keatings makes it about a hundred times better. I felt so stirred up while watching the movie, like I was a part of it.
Keatings used to study in the same prep school as the rest of the boys, when he was younger and used to be a part of an association called the Dead Poets Society where all of his friends would gather in a cave and recite poetry - from Whitman to Chaucer to Keatings himself - living in the moment and feeling the magic of words flowing through them. The boys decide to revive this society and they soon begin meeting in the cave every night as well.
Although it enables almost all of them to become free thinkers in the end, it involves a lot of emotional complexity in between. Keatings has a lot of unorthodox methods of teaching the students - which are no doubt excellent - but land him in trouble ultimately.
He stands on tables to make them look at life differently. He plays soccer with them so that they push each other to excel. He makes them recite their own poems to be able to express their own views. He changes all of them.
One of my favourite characters is Knox (his friends' call him Knoxious). He's always been shy and hasn't done much to "seize the day" before in his life. But then he meets a girl - as they always do - who he badly falls for but she's taken. And he's just so sweet. You find yourself rooting for him so bad throughout the movie. You want Knox to get the girl, because everyone has been a Knox at least once in their life! And you always wish that you had been able to Carpe Diem the day before.
Then of course, there's Todd Anderson who can't speak up. Who despite having a lot of views cannot express them at all. He has a lot of pressure on him, continuously being shadowed by the perfect image his older brother had. His parents, he feels don't care for him at all - as they don't spare him any of their time. You wait for him to shine out, you wait for Keating's words to change his life too - because you have also found yourself being a Todd, for some time in your life.
Then, of course there's Charlie. The self assured, confident git that you're bound to love. He's always off doing something weird and different from everybody else.
I love this movie so much because each and every character in this movie reminds me of someone I might have been at one point in my life - or someone I'm. The vulnerable parts. And then there's Keatings with his inspiring words and watching this feels like I could change my life. Like I could actually seize the day.
It's definitely a movie I'm going to be watching several times and it's definitely not something I could ever get tired of.
The film's motto was Carpe Diem - seize the day! It focuses on a group of boys studying in an elite prep school where most of them are being forced to conform to societal standards - into doing things they don't want to do. But when they meet their new English teacher called Keatings (perhaps a homage to Geoffery Keatings) - all of their lives change forever.
He opens their eyes to everything the world has to offer.
He teaches them to live for themselves and to seize every single moment in life. To follow their dreams and passion. And the fact that Robin Williams is in the role of Keatings makes it about a hundred times better. I felt so stirred up while watching the movie, like I was a part of it.
Keatings used to study in the same prep school as the rest of the boys, when he was younger and used to be a part of an association called the Dead Poets Society where all of his friends would gather in a cave and recite poetry - from Whitman to Chaucer to Keatings himself - living in the moment and feeling the magic of words flowing through them. The boys decide to revive this society and they soon begin meeting in the cave every night as well.
Although it enables almost all of them to become free thinkers in the end, it involves a lot of emotional complexity in between. Keatings has a lot of unorthodox methods of teaching the students - which are no doubt excellent - but land him in trouble ultimately.
He stands on tables to make them look at life differently. He plays soccer with them so that they push each other to excel. He makes them recite their own poems to be able to express their own views. He changes all of them.
One of my favourite characters is Knox (his friends' call him Knoxious). He's always been shy and hasn't done much to "seize the day" before in his life. But then he meets a girl - as they always do - who he badly falls for but she's taken. And he's just so sweet. You find yourself rooting for him so bad throughout the movie. You want Knox to get the girl, because everyone has been a Knox at least once in their life! And you always wish that you had been able to Carpe Diem the day before.
Then of course, there's Todd Anderson who can't speak up. Who despite having a lot of views cannot express them at all. He has a lot of pressure on him, continuously being shadowed by the perfect image his older brother had. His parents, he feels don't care for him at all - as they don't spare him any of their time. You wait for him to shine out, you wait for Keating's words to change his life too - because you have also found yourself being a Todd, for some time in your life.
Then, of course there's Charlie. The self assured, confident git that you're bound to love. He's always off doing something weird and different from everybody else.
I love this movie so much because each and every character in this movie reminds me of someone I might have been at one point in my life - or someone I'm. The vulnerable parts. And then there's Keatings with his inspiring words and watching this feels like I could change my life. Like I could actually seize the day.
It's definitely a movie I'm going to be watching several times and it's definitely not something I could ever get tired of.
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