To Sir, with Love
Short description
Mark Thackeray, an engineer from British Guiana, takes a teaching job at a secondary school in London's East End after failing to find work in his field. His students are unruly and show little interest in lessons, and the school environment is hostile to a newcomer like him. He initially tries conventional teaching methods, but when these fail he turns to a different approach, aiming to earn the class's respect and to teach them something about mutual consideration.
The film was directed by James Clavell, who also wrote the screenplay with E.R. Braithwaite and produced it, and it was released in 1967. Sidney Poitier plays Thackeray, with Christian Roberts as Denham, Judy Geeson as Pamela Dare, Suzy Kendall as Gillian Blanchard, Lulu as Barbara Pegg and Ann Bell as Mrs. Dare among a credited cast of 48. The title song was performed by Lulu, who appears in the film.
At the worldwide box office it took in about 42 million dollars, a strong return for a British drama of its period. On IMDb it holds 7.6 out of 10 from around 22,000 votes, and on TMDB 7.4 out of 10 from roughly 362 votes, showing a widely favourable audience response. A critics' rating of 7.2 out of 10 from 29 reviews places it close to the audience scores.
What's left behind the scenes
- The film is based on the semi-autobiographical novel of the same name by Eustace Edward Ricardo Braithwaite (1912-2016), published in 1959, about teaching at a school in London's East End in the 1950s, although the portrayal of Braithwaite in the adaptation did not entirely correspond to reality. According to his former students, Braithwaite was a strict and stern man who did not shy away from corporal punishment, and was far from the sympathetic character played by Sidney Poitier (1927-2022).
- Producers applied to the British Museum administration for permission to film inside the building, but were denied this permission just days before the scheduled start of filming. However, they were allowed to take photographs, and staff photographers Laurie Ridley and Dennis Stone were sent to the museum.
- Audiences in the USA greeted the film with such enthusiasm that Columbia Pictures even conducted research to understand the reasons for its popularity. It turned out that viewers were going to cinemas to see Sidney Poitier.
Auditions in India
Casting calls in USA
Castingi w Polsce
Кастинги в Україні
