Picking up audience awards at festivals wherever it goes, Monsieur Lazhar is an almost impossibly charming French Canadian drama.
When, after a tragic event, a new teacher is needed at a local primary school, Algerian immigrant Bachir Lazhar steps forward. A rusty teacher, we watch as Bachir adjusts to life in the school and the various culture clashes that his young students and fellow teachers present. The film treads with great care as it navigates children coming to terms with grief and the associated guilt and confusion it brings to their lives, but niftily avoids getting soppy.
A nominee for this year’s Foreign Language Oscar, the film is being pitched like The Chorus with a bit of Etre et Avoir – a warm and ultimately uplifting experience, full of life learning by pupils under the tutelage of inspirational but imperfect teacher.
