Rating summary

Movie		2.5
Video		4.0
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.0
Overall		2.5

Won't Back Down Blu-ray Movie Review

Maybe it should back down just a bit.

Reviewed by Casey Broadwater February 2, 2013

No one is going to argue that the American K-12 education system is a shining beacon on a hill, illuminating the way for the rest of the world. We all recognize that the U.S. lags behind other developed nations in just about every objectively measurable scholastic category. That's a fact. What we argue about is reform, specifically, what and how to change. Unfortunately, the various sides of the argument tend to oversimplify what is a massively complex issue, each fixating on one area for improvement and holding up their limited ideas as a panacea for the entire broken system. One camp wants better standardized testing. Another wants teacher performance to be more closely regulated. A third agues for parental choice, propping up charter schools or homeschooling as the answer. Teacher pay increases, union rights, progressive education—all have their rabid supporters and detractors, and with such entrenched positioning, there's little room for rational conversation, let alone successful reform. Then there are the bleary-eyed think of the children appeals from every side, miring the whole argument in gooey sentiment.

In the finger-wagging edu-drama Won't Back Down, we have a film that exemplifies the exact same problems—a single-minded focus, an inability to make concessions to opposing viewpoints, and a treacly, faux-inspirational message that puts emotion far ahead of reason. It's essentially pro-charter school, anti-union propaganda, which suddenly makes sense when you realize that conservative multi-billionaire Philip Anshutz—a pal of the Koch brothers—owns Walden Media, the production company that made the movie and previously gave us the similarly themed documentary Waiting for Superman. Ah-ha. But here's the thing; if Won't Back Down took the opposite tact, and told a motivational pro- union, anti-educational corporatization story, it would be just as bad. The problem isn't that the film takes a side—not entirely, anyway—the problem is that this side unjustly demonizes the other and feigns that it alone has all the answers to such a multi-faceted dilemma.

Maggie Gyllenhaal stars as the poor-but-somehow-still-chicly-attired Jamie Fitzpatrick, a single-mom in Pittsburgh struggling to balance two low-paying jobs and look after the best interests of her dyslexic third-grade daughter, Malia (Emily Alyn Lind), who’s been recently booted from private school because they can longer afford the tuition. Malia now attends the dismal Adams Elementary—literally dismal, the opening scenes are cast in oppressive blues and grays—which has been given an “F” ranking for nineteen years running. Her union teacher, Deborah (Nancy Bach), is a lazy, tenured-after-only-two-years do- nothing who texts and shops online during class, and absolutely refuses to stay late after school to help Malia with her reading. Jamie fails at getting her daughter into a different classroom—the principal has his hands tied with class size regulations—and begins to lose hope when she fails to win Malia a spot in the admissions lottery for a successful charter school run by Principal Thompson (Ving Rhames), a fiery advocate for challenging the educational status quo.

Jamie finds her purpose when she hears about so-called "Parent Trigger" laws, which allow parents to effectively take over failing schools and fire the administration, get rid of low-performing teachers, and/or turn the schools into charters. These laws actually do exist—not, however, in Pittsburg, where the film is set—but they've only been "triggered" twice, both in California and neither successfully. For Jamie to succeed—and we know she will, this is that sort of film—she has to go up against the monolithic and unmovable local school board, cut through endless tangles of red tape, and convince at least 50% of the parents and teachers to join her cause.

To this end, she recruits wary teacher Nona Alberts (Viola Davis)—whose own son is mentally "slow"—to help her collect signatures and win over the rest of the unionized staff. Jamie also falls in love with the school's enthusiastic music teacher, Michael Perry (Oscar Isaac), who seems to exist in the film only to have an initially pro-union character who switches sides midway through. On the opposing team, we have union honcho Arthur Gould (Ned Eisenberg) and his attack dog underling, Evelyn Riske (Holly Hunter), who work in a soulless, cubicle-rowed office and disingenuously try to get Jamie to drop her campaign by finding Malia a spot in another grade-A private school. Just to reiterate: parents good, unions bad, privatized schools good, local school boards bad.

Writer/director Daniel Barnz paints school reform as an unnecessarily binary us-against-them struggle, making frequent symbolic allusions to war—Won't Back Down opens to the sound of gunfire as Malia tries in vain to read from the chalkboard—and moving the story towards a foregone conclusion that's manipulatively joyous and overly optimistic. Of course, the film's supporters would like to say that it isn't about unions or charter schools at all—that it's simply a David- versus-Goliath tale of triumph and empowerment—but it's hard to ignore the script's not-so-subliminal politicization of the issue.

Is the movie entertaining? Moderately, in a schmaltzy, starts-the-tears-a'flowin' kind of way. Are the performances good? Absolutely. Maggie Gyllenhaal gets her character's frazzled-under-fire but infinitely determined nature down perfectly, and Viola Davis makes a fine reluctant sidekick. Unfortunately, Won't Back Down is a shill for the forces that would like corporatize and profit from K-12 education, and its obvious agenda cheapens the story.

Won't Back Down Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

At first, I couldn't figure why Won't Back Down's 1080p/AVC-encoded transfer was so dreary. For the first act, the film's color grading is nearly post-apocalyptic, gray-toned with sucked out color and crushed shadows. But then, as Jamie and Nona make headway in their fight against the system, life is breathed back into the palette until it nearly glows with cheery hues and warm highlights. It's not exactly subtle, thematically, and it's arguably a little too stylized, but it works, I guess. The rest of the transfer does too. Shot on 35mm, the film retains its natural—if a bit chunky—grain structure here, with no evidence of digital noise reduction or overt edge enhancement. The thickness of the grain does cut into overall clarity somewhat, but the image is still plenty sharp, with fine facial and clothing detail that's easily visible in closeups, even from a distance. I didn't spot any obvious compression or encode issues, and it looks to me like the film's Blu-ray presentation is faithful to both the source materials and the filmmakers' stylistic intentions. No real problems here.

Won't Back Down Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Won't Back Down features 20th Century Fox's usual lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, which more than sufficiently handles the film's limited sonic demands. As an inspirational drama, dialogue is the priority here, and it's always presented cleanly and clearly, balanced with ease at the top of the mix. Below the voices, you'll usually hear some quiet and not particularly involving ambience in the rear speakers, from blowing wind and pouring rain and other outdoor noises, to classroom chatter, clapping, and hallway sounds. Overtly directional effects are limited, but the film doesn't really need any. This ain't The Expendables 2. Swelling up through and around the ambience is Marcelo Zarvos' lifting score, which uses orchestra-backed piano to set the mood for each scene. Overall, the mix is sharp, dynamic, and tidy, without calling much attention to itself. The disc includes optional Spanish and French dubs and subtitles, English SDH subtitles, and a descriptive audio track.

Won't Back Down Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Audio Commentary: Director Daniel Barnz talks us through the process of creating the film, from his early inspirations—both his parents were teachers—to the decision to shoot in Pittsburgh and the current problems, as he sees them, in American education.
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 8:42): Eight cut scenes, with optional commentary by director Daniel Barnz.
• A Tribute to Teachers (HD, 3:47): The film's cast and crew reminisce about their favorite teachers.
• The Importance of Education (HD, 5:14): Likewise, the film's director and cast give their opinions on the state of education in America.
• Theatrical Trailer (HD, 2:26)
• Sneak Peek (HD, 6:04)

Won't Back Down Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It should tell you something that Won't Back Down currently holds the record for worst box office performance for a film that opened nationally across 2,500 screens. What that something is is harder to say. Is it that no one wants to see a movie about education? Is it that the film wasn't heavily promoted? Or is it that Won't Back Down is a shill for the powers that would like to corporatized the American education system? How about all of the above? I'm sure there's a niche audience that will appreciate the movie and its agenda, but I suspect they know who they are already. For everyone else, I'd recommend either skipping it entirely—really, there are so many better films about education to watch—or giving it a cautious rental.