Waiting for Superman, 2010
Waiting for Superman is a deceiving title for many reasons for one thing you have no idea what the film is about and if you had to guess you would probably pick something like an exploration of comics in popular culture and popularity of anime or manga. But no, Waiting for Superman is strangely about the American Public School system. Hate to break it to disappointed comic geeks this will not be looking at the rise of Superman but before you hate on the title for misleading you, Davis Guggenheim (director) does explain the reason for this relatively early in the film. Guggenheim is no stranger to the public school system as Waiting for Superman is very much a follow-up to his previous work when he followed school teachers around for a year. But Waiting for Superman is probably a less inspiring and more disturbing and definitely more tragic look at the failing school system. Much like what Michael Moore's Sicko was doing for the health system I feel Guggenheim is trying to do for the public school system with this film. Guggenheim indirectly highlights the pitfalls of being not wealthy enough to save you from the depths of the firry hell that seems to be America. Guggenheim humanises the issue at large by following 6 kids who are currently at the mercy of the public school education system and explores the greater issues and even possible solutions to the sinkhole that is the American public education.
Waiting for Superman is definitely a fantastic watch and as documentaries go this one definitely hits all the key essentials. 1) It has an interesting story or topic which definitely needs the attention of the public; 2) it is insightful and therefore shows the audience information about the topic that the audience may not know about and 3) its well argued. The first two points Waiting for Superman has got it but the 3rd is a little lacking. Guggenheim makes some really good arguments in the film and although his points are important however they do get confused among the animation and the way he presents his facts are sometimes hard to follow. I know part of the reason for this is due the complexity of the issue in the first place. And usually the use of animation breaks down the facts for the audience in a more comprehensive manner. Although many documentary makers in this process do break it down to a point when they only present one side of the story (e.g. Michael Moore). Guggenheim tries not to be obvious that he is arguing a point but in the process it does get a little confusing. I do like the cute animation but cut it down or make it little less hard to follow than you have a great documentary.
The use of children is definitely something has been done many times before and the fact Guggenheim only uses kids under the age of 12 make it a little sappy for some but they were all so cute thus it didn't bother me. Guggenheim does however side step the issue of money when it comes to going to college, as his argument was so many children in the public education system weren't going to college because they were not well prepared for it. Thus suggesting that getting to college in America was simply based on your academic credentials rather than your ability to pay for college. This annoyed me a bit but I would let that go because that seems like a topic for a whole another movie. Also for someone who is all pro-public education he actually doesn't send his kids to a public school and essentially weakens his arguments dramatically. How can he expect us to support public education when he himself is not supporting them! But brownie points for Guggenheim for admitting his own reluctance and his own double standards in many ways. Another argument he doesn’t explore is the difference between private schools and public schools, there is no reference to how much better off if they are than to the public schools and no identification of why private schools are better. Exploring these differences I believe would strengthen his argument.
Seems like good teachers are hard to find
Despite the shortcomings Waiting for Superman is a tragic, moving and many ways an inspiring film. Guggenheim has managed to strike the balance between tragic and inspiring without it becoming a day time TV movie or an episode of Oprah. There is an element of rawness, honesty and humility to the film that makes it less about making a movie for controversy but genuine concern and empathy for the people in the film and the whole issue. Furthermore among the doom and gloom Guggenheim has manage to find inspiring people who are actually trying make a difference but further than that he actively encourages his audience to engage with issue and be active and make some real change (or at least that’s what I hope so). As an Australian person living in Sydney the real concern for the public education was not as urgent but this made me reflective upon our public school education. What is the state of our public schools? Should I be concerned? As a product of public education I seem to be well off in terms of my educational achievements and so are my friends but looking at my friends are probably not indicative of the whole picture. How do we know what is happening in Australia is any better off than the US?
Verdict: Waiting for Superman is a thought provoking seemingly tragic story of the failing public school education in the States but actually inspires and provokes action towards change. With such a dark look at public schools it’s hard to not question the state of the public education in Australia. Forgiving the shortcomings of this film you really do have a really good documentary that should not be missed. 8.8/10
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