'Mr. Holland's Opus'
The Ringer's Bill Simmons, Sean Fennessey, and Van Lathan take a seat in Mr Holland's music-appreciation class to rewatch the 1995 drama 'Mr. Holland's Opus,' starring Richard Dreyfuss, Glenne Headly, and Jean Louisa Kelly.
Cast
Richard Dreyfuss as Glenn Holland
Glenne Headly as Iris Holland
Jean Louisa Kelly as Rowena Morgan
Terrence Howard as Louis Russ
Jay Thomas as Bill Meister
William H. Macy as Vice Principal Gene Wolters
Olympia Dukakis as Principal Jacobs
Alicia Witt as Gertrude Lang
Balthazar Getty as Adult Cole Holland
Directed by: Stephen Herek
Written by: Patrick Sheane Duncan
Music by: Michael Kamen
Notes
- $31 million budget, made $106 million at the box office.
- Dreyfuss was nominated for Best Actor – lost to Nicolas Cage for Leaving Las Vegas.
- Michael Kamen's arrangement of 'Mr. Holland's Opus' won the 1997 Grammy.
- Every person who portrayed a deaf character was actually deaf in real life – way ahead of their time.
- Jean Louisa Kelly did all her own singing and dancing as a trained performer; now married to ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro.
- Dreyfuss's cocaine problem caused legit memory loss – doesn't remember filming Whose Life Is It Anyway or much of the '80s.
- The movie is 143 minutes long – hosts felt it could be trimmed to 117.
- Bill did a 10-minute monologue to Jean Louisa Kelly at an ESPYs after-party about what a pervert Mr. Holland was.
Categories
Quote from Rog's review:
“The movie is not really about music. It is about a good man who finds the purpose of his life. Mr. Holland's Opus does a lot of things surprisingly well.”
Right in Ebert's wheelhouse – he wrote about how important teachers were.
- The ending – the surprise auditorium scene where 500 former students play his opus (Bill's pick).
- The 'Beautiful Boy' scene – Mr. Holland singing John Lennon's song to his deaf son Cole (Van and Sean's pick).
- Breaking through with the clarinet student – 'play it because it's fun'.
- The Louis Russ (Terrence Howard) teaching montage.
- Movies where people age over the course of a few decades.
- Young Terrence Howard and the Vietnam callback / funeral scene.
- Dreyfuss's conducting skills being really believable.
- The 'trying not to cry' face – 'I don't feel like anybody has ever done it better than Dreyfuss'.
- The title being 'maybe the best title ever that easily could have doubled as a porn title'.
- The movie is 143 minutes long – ideally 117 max.
- The almost-kiss with the 17-year-old student.
- Mr. Holland naming the song 'Rowena's Theme' after his student crush, lying to his wife that Rowena is a Greek goddess, then inviting his wife to the play where Rowena is in the program.
- Richard Dreyfuss's career nosediving after this despite getting an Oscar nomination.
Teenage Cole – really dialed it up in his couple of scenes.
Balthazar Getty – 'retroactive that guy'; wasn't a that-guy at the time but has reverted to one.
- Rowena (Jean Louisa Kelly) – only in the movie for 15 minutes, had to nail every song; if that part doesn't work the whole movie unravels.
- Terrence Howard – runner-up.
- Olympia Dukakis – definitely a medalist.
- Julianne Moore as the Governor.
- Frances McDormand as a possible upgrade for Glenne Headly's role.
- Every person who portrayed a deaf character was actually deaf in real life.
- Jean Louisa Kelly is now married to ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro – 'the first lady of ESPN'.
- Director Stephen Herek's filmography: Critters, Bill & Ted, Babysitter's Dead, Mighty Ducks, 101 Dalmatians, then Holy Man (the flop).
- Richard Dreyfuss (second career) – this is his huge tour de force on the back half; made over $100 million in the '90s.
- Jean Louisa Kelly – probably her peak despite 8 years of Yes, Dear.
- Jay Thomas – definitely.
- The 'trying not to cry' face – apex mountain; nobody has done it better.
- How do 500 people sneak into the auditorium without Mr. Holland noticing?
- The bus station logistics: midnight bus from Portland to NYC, no parents, leaving before graduation.
- The Governor's speech is kind of mean: 'He wanted to be rich and famous, but he's not rich and he's definitely not famous'.
- Why was William H. Macy invited to the final goodbye and seated in the front row?
Actually a good idea – Netflix should do a show about a teacher over the course of time, each season a new decade.
- Are we sure the final opus song was good?
- Are we sure the football coach wasn't gay?
- Is this a better or worse movie if Rowena is at the final opus?
- Movie-used conductor's baton from the final opus (Bill's pick).
- Dreyfuss's mustache (Sean's pick).
- Mr. Holland's drum major uniform (Van's pick).
Richard Dreyfuss – the cap on his career, Academy Award nominated, and he's great in the movie.