Our eager-beaver heroine suffers the kids' sarcasm, fails to earn their respect by bringing in a Tupac tape, then wins them over in a crucial scene that, fact-based or not, rings as false as anything in Dangerous Minds.
Apollo Guide
July 16, 2007
Worthwhile because of its honesty, because it tells a true story that's worth telling, and because Hilary Swank and company have done it so well.
EmanuelLevy.Com
July 03, 2011
The movie benefits from an interesting subject and good acting, I just wish it were more focused and deep.
Thanks to LaGravenese's empathetic writing and direction, and Swank's titanic force of will, Freedom Writers' unabashed earnestness proves unexpectedly powerful.
Corny? You bet. And worse when the plot veers into the glitz of a Dangerous Minds and the sappiness of a TV After School Special. But the movie, which Swank helped produce by using her clout as a two-time Oscar winner, gets to you.
CNN.com
January 06, 2007
Freedom Writers is another exceptional teacher scenario not so different from the norm.
Engaging but clichéd inspirational drama set during the time of the 1992 race riots in Los Angeles. On some level, just about any movie featuring never-say-die teachers is effective.
