Half-Baked

A lot of critics love Half Nelson. I wasn't so impressed. Weirder, a number of reviewers (here's one example) say the lead character, played by Ryan Gosling, is a good teacher. It's not that he smokes crack, though it's actually pretty clear by the end it's affecting his performance. No, he's a rotten teacher in any case.

He ignores the official syllabus and decides to teach the kids what he thinks is significant. It doesn't seem to me he's connecting with the students, nor does it seem he's teaching them anything valuable. (It's also doubtful he's teaching them good history, but that's almost beside the point.)

I don't see any of his students getting particularly excited about what he's teaching (at least the filmmakers were honest enough not to have cheap enthusiasm). It seems doubtful they'll go on to do further study in this area, or suddenly discover a thirst for knoweldge. They might remember this eccentric teacher, but that's about it.