Analyzing One of My Favorite Movies

The film Dead Poets Society is a coming-of-age story that took place at Welton Academy in Vermont. This movie was staged in the 1950s, at a prestigious all-boys academy throughout the fall and winter semester. Dead Poets Society was directed by Peter Weir, and featured many well-known actors such as Robin Williams, Ethan Hawke, and Robert Sean Leonard. Robin Williams plays the most influential character in the film, Mr. Keating. As the movie moves along, viewers will begin to realize how Mr. Keating goes against the traditions of Welton Academy, and helps his students grow in their own way, regardless of their parent’s feelings or the schools respected tradition. Dead Poets Society shows the audience new levels of individualism, self-growth, and the effects of stress and pressure from family and peers.

Dead Poets Society is a roller coaster movie about a group of boys and their teacher, Mr. Keating, and the bond that they all form together. The group of boys are Neil Perry, Todd Anderson, Knox Overstreet, Charlie Dalton, Gerard Pitts, Steven Meeks, and Richard Cameron. It becomes very obvious within the first two scenes that each boy is drastically different. For example, Neil Perry is an outgoing, smart, talented student that is shadowed by his father, while his roommate Todd Anderson is a very shy student, who doesn’t want to be involved. Each boy is unique and different in their own way, but when Mr. Keating comes along he brings them all closer together and helps them allow their true self to shine, even if it means disappointing their parents or the school. At first, everyone was skeptical of Mr. Keating, but as the movie progresses, he forms unbreakable bonds with each student. Eventually, the main group of students in the film (mentioned above) discover Mr. Keating's former secret alliance, the Dead Poets Society. The Dead Poets Society is all about writing, poetry, art, and even music. After the boys reform the Dead Poets Society and start to truly dive into in Mr. Keating’s class, they begin to shine in new ways and learn more than they ever thought possible. Mr. Keating continually shows the boys how to express themselves and accomplish what they want, even though it means trouble in the future.

In the film, there are many different viewpoints, symbols, and subtle events that occur in order to make the story as powerful as it is. One of the most important things about the film is the point of view that the audience experiences while watching. While watching the movie there are no flashbacks or dreams, and everything falls into chronological order. Due to the simple camera work and point of view made for the audience, it almost feels as though you are in the film with the boys. At many times, one of the boys will be alone, but, due to the camera work, the audience is able to see what they are doing and predict how they are feeling.

Another important thing shown to the audience is the symbolism of candles and light throughout the entire film. For example, in the very first scene Headmaster Nolan has all of the boys light a candle that is known as the “light of knowledge.” At Welton Academy, candles are seen as symbols of enlightenment and tradition. Every year at the academy, more candles are lit in order to remind the students that they are following in other men’s footsteps. The simple camera work and symbolism shown by candles is important to remember throughout the whole film, and paying attention to those things can change an audience’s perspective and understanding of the film.

Another important thing to pay attention to is the setting. This may seem simple, but Welton Academy has many features that impact students in both negative and positive ways, but not many people realize that throughout the film. Welton Academy is a very prestigious and well-known boy’s academy, and because of their prestigious status they must be taken seriously at all times. Inside of Welton is where most of the film takes place, which means lots of dark, dreary and quite frankly boring views. During the film, when the boys are inside of Welton they appear to be more professional and kept-together; however, outside of Welton is a completely different story. There are only a few times in the film where the audience is able to see the outside, but it is obvious that the school cares about their outward appearance. In fact, right outside the doors of Welton is a lake, tons of beautiful trees, and even an amazing brick structure. Since it’s turning to fall, the outdoors of Welton begin to change and become even more appealing due to the color change and falling of leaves, but again, most of the film is shot inside where it is lifeless and gloomy. Whenever the Dead Poets Society meets, they leave Welton and sneak to the forest. In these scenes, the boys are more free spirited and become more like the teenage boys they should be allowed to be all the time. The setting of the film Dead Poets Society has an impact on how the boys act, and overall how the audience perceives Welton Academy.

Lastly, there are many themes throughout Dead Poets Society that allow the audience to understand the true meaning of the film. These themes include dreams, tradition, family, and literature. In Dead Poets Society it is a common mistake to think that each boy wants to graduate and follow the plan that their parents have laid out for them. For example, Neil Perry was pressured by his father very harshly to study in order to become a lawyer, when in reality Neil wanted to take a more artistic croute and study acting. In fact, Neil’s death was due to all of the school-related pressure he received from his father, and none of the other boys seemed to notice that he was taking it so hard. Another important theme is tradition. This one is fairly obvious, because Welton is all about tradition, and it is even one of their four pillars. The audience can see the importance of tradition through the hallways of Welton that are filled with photographs and trophies won by their alumni. The traditions and customs are so important that every boy entering Welton Academy must sit through a lecture about them before beginning that semesters classes. Family is another big theme throughout the film, because many students attending the academy receive large amounts of pressure from their parents. The parents of the boys at Welton get disappointed each time the boys want to step out of the academy’s boundaries, and this causes a lot of strain on the relationships of the boys and their parents.

One last theme is literature and writing, and this is important because all throughout the film Mr. Keating is teaching the boys how to express themselves through poetry and pieces of writing. Mr. Keating uses specific pieces of poetry in order to motivate his students to be themselves and step out of their comfort zone, and that is why literature and writing is consistent throughout the film. The themes in Dead Poets Society are all important, and they all show the audience different aspects of the film that may have been difficult to catch onto.

In conclusion, the film Dead Poets Society shows aspects of individualism, self-growth, and so much more. Dead Poets Society is an outstanding movie that shows the ups and downs of life at Welton academy, and just how much one person can impact your life in a short amount of time. It also accurately represents how influential a teacher can be, even if their teaching method is untraditional. This is definitely a story that will pull on your heartstrings and make you realize that being yourself is important, even if it doesn’t feel that way sometimes. Overall, Dead Poets Society is full of humor, happiness, sadness, and even some life lessons.