The Class

Director: Laurent Cantet

Genre: Drama, Adaptation

Release Date: January 30, 2009

Duration: 128 minutes

Cast: François Bégaudeau, Franck Keita, Amrabt Nassim, Laura Baquela, Esmeralda Ouertani, Huang Wei, Cherif Bounaidja Rachedi, Juliette Demaille, Rachel Regulier

Overview: Based on an autobiographical novel by Francois Begaudeau, a drama that follows the year in the life of a French teacher who works in a secondary school in a tough neighborhood of Paris. Ethnicities, cultures and attitudes often clash in the classroom. As amusing and inspiring as can be teenage students, their difficult behavior can still jeopardize any teacher's enthusiasm for the use of low pay. Francois insists on an atmosphere of respect and diligence. Neither stuffy nor severe, his extravagant frankness often takes students by surprise. But his kind of ethics is put to the test when his students begin to question his methods.