bombersflyup To Sir, with Love was a so so to reasonable film, but nothing special.They seem to think it was special, with the photo collage ending and the music solo like it's James Bond or something. It ain't "From Russia with Love". So a class of punk kids, stop acting like punks because Mr. Thackeray gets rids of the books and starts preparing them for life. That's fine, but what's great about it? They all kind of gave in pretty easily, Thackeray wasn't tested much, whenever he said sit down, they did. It's not like they said, no make us. They were basically compliant. Sidney Poitier was solid in the lead, but this would have to be one of his lesser films. None of the other characters stood out to me. There was no tribulation at all. Where is the struggle? Give me something to care about. Everything ends on a happy note like it's some Christmas movie.

HotToastyRag Twelve years earlier, Sidney Poitier played one of a classroom full of rowdy kids in a poor school taught by do-good-er Glenn Ford in Blackboard Jungle. In 1967, Sidney grew up and played the role of the noble teacher in To Sir, with Love. Well, to be honest, it's not exactly a remake of the 1955 film, but the premises are so similar, and the casting is pretty ironic. This marked one of Sidney's most iconic films and roles, partially because it was fun to see him in the reverse role, and partially because of the title song that skyrocketed to the top of the charts.One major difference between the two films is the setting; To Sir, with Love takes place in England. Sidney deals with the rough students with their Cockney accents, but there's more social problems for him to deal with than violence, as was the case in Blackboard Jungle. There's a bit of a student-teacher romance for him to juggle, as well as a flirtatious rapport with a colleague, and audiences get to watch him dance the "in" dance moves of the 1960s. Besides the fun stuff, there are lots of great scenes about maturity and teaching life lessons as well as academics. It's a must-see for Sidney Poitier fans, as well as those who like classroom dramas.

Leofwine_draca TO SIR, WITH LOVE is a fine little film which provides a neat snapshot of secondary school life in the late 1960s. It's one of those films which has a fairly simplistic storyline, but don't be fooled by the deceptive simplicity: this is actually a movie of great depth, exploring racial tensions, student/teacher romance, childhood vs. adulthood, and much more besides. It's easy to overlook these undercurrents given how subtly they're portrayed, but combine them together and you have a quite wonderful movie.Much of this film's success comes from the central casting Sidney Poitier, which must have been an unusual decision back in the day. Poitier makes the film his own and gives the movie a sentimental heart, although his emotions are hidden for the most part. His acting reminds me of the likes of Japanese actors such as Toshiro Mifune, displaying a stony face on the outset while putting across hints at the feelings bubbling beneath.Elsewhere, we get fun scene-setting in the form of '60s music and dance, enhanced by the presence of pop starlet Lulu. Judy Geeson is completely believable as the besotted student, and there are many familiar faces who would go on to future success (Patricia Routledge, Geoffrey Bayldon, Chris Chittell, Suzy Kendall). Although this is very much a feel-good film with scenes of sentimentality, its depiction of a realistic social milieu makes it uplifting without being sickly.

SnoopyStyle Mark Thackeray (Sidney Poitier) is an unemployed engineer from British Guiana originally and a few years in California. Unable to get an engineering job, he reluctantly takes a teaching job at the North Quay Secondary School in the lower class East End neighborhood of London. His class is compose of some of the worst rejects from other schools.The cockney accent is quite thick but the movie is mostly understandable. Poitier is doing his stoic acting with some flashes of power. The kids are generally nice looking trying to act tough. None of them has any real edge especially compared to modern movies. It may actually be the idea that these are good kids trying to be bad. It plays more like a less intense sentimental movie. The song is great though. I don't want to say the movie is too soft. Just by having Poitier, the race issue is being dealt with. The main thing is that Poitier is never truly outmatched by the kids. He projects so much presence that the kids don't have anything equal to him.