Rating: 
Summary: Great Movie - Problem with the DVD
Review: This is a fine classic movie: others have reviewed it more expertly than I could, so I will confine my remarks to the DVD I received through my Amazon order.
I did not view it for about two months after receiving it. When I did watch it, I found that Side A, the full screen version, played fine. Side B, which promised a widescreen version, instead contained an entirely different movie: a dubbed version of a Japanese film 'Godzilla vs. Space Godzilla.' I am completely at a loss.
So, buy the DVD, but check out Side B.
Rating:
Summary: Inarguably Essential.
Review: This is one of the best movies I have ever seen, and now that it's pure 60's nostalgia, a must-own in every form. I must confess that I've played my VHS tape so many times that I'm surprised it hasn't broken yet! Sidney Poitier has never disappointed me in any of his roles--not even when the film itself wasn't up to his dignified standards. This is among the finest of his roles, along with Lilies of the Valley and A Patch of Blue.
The movie is based on E.R. Braithwaite's bestselling novel about his experiences back in the forties as a black teacher with impressive engineering credentials having no choice but to take a job in England teaching rough, young British teenagers. The movie updated his story to the swinging 60's and changed his character's name to Thackery, but I'm not one to complain as I find the movie to be more my cup of tea than Braithwaite's book. It still captures the essence of his story, and that's the most important thing.
It is both inspiring and a revelation to watch a man go from being as frustrated as the other teachers before him to being the one who discovers that (note a slight parallel to Mr. Holland's Opus) maybe he's found his true calling after all. What's really impressive, as the kids also observed, is that he never swears at them or lowers himself to their immature standards where others might.
The cast that surrounds Mr. Poitier is perfectly suitable, and the conflictual situations are beautifully handled as much as the sweet and touching moments when it's easy to see that he's really making an impact in these kids who simply just need a combination of firmness and respect. Most notable among the students is Judy Geeson who plays Pamela Dare, at first one of the worst brats in the class who later blossoms into a respectable young woman, thanks to her crush on Sir and her willingness to be open-minded.
Christian Roberts reminds me of a young John Lennon as the most rebellious leader of the kids. It's he, Pamela Dare, and Barbara Peg (played effectively by singer Lulu) that heavily determine the kids' willingness to accept Sir, but ultimately it's Mark Thackery himself who influences them the most.
If you really love 60's films that are the complete embodiment of their time after the Beatles became a household word, I can't think of a better film. The look, the feel, the sounds are all there, and this movie is a great nominee for time capsule content as a very good representation of 60's pop culture. It also contains one of the best soundtracks from that time, featuring the Mindbenders and Lulu. One thing is for sure; you can never get the movie out of your head whenever you hear Lulu singing the title song on the oldies station. Excellence defined.
Rating: 
Summary: Heartwarming Film
Review: Poitier is a stunning actor. This is a heartwarming film. This is a good feel-good movie for anyone who may be feeling down! Jeffrey C. McAndrew
author of "Our Brown-Eyed Boy"
Rating:
Summary: A BEAUTIFUL FILM
Review: "To Sir With Love" was a beautiful story about a black teacher, Sidney Poitier, who overcomes racial barriers to teach West London toughs and toughettes the meaning of life. It was, literally, banned in Alabama, which was ruled entirely by...the Democrat party. In 1967, Poitier again stirred the red-necks with "In the Heat of the Night", where he plays Virgil Tibbs, a competent Philadelphia cop stuck overnight in a Mississippi town. It must be 110 degrees at night. The white boys sweat like stuck pigs while Virgil is as cool as a cucumber in a Savoy Row suit. The sheriff, Rod Steiger, is discomfited by circumstances in which Tibbs is "lent" to him to solve a murder that happens to occur when he is there. In working together, layer after layer of characterization is stripped away in marvelous fashion, through the skill of director Norman Jewison (who tells everybody he is not a Jew, he is Methodist), until understanding between the two men become a metaphor for the healing of a divided America. Very good stuff. STEVEN TRAVERS
AUTHOR OF "BARRY BONDS: BASEBALL'S SUPERMAN"
STWRITES@AOL.COM
Rating:
Summary: To Mr. Heath McEwan, with disgust
Review: The tape came quickly and was very accurately described. It was in excellent condition. Thanks.
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