''Homeroom'' is a 2021 American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

directed and produced by

Peter Nicks Peter Nicks is an American filmmaker. Peter Olivera Nicks (born May 2, 1968) is an American film director, producer and writer. He began his career in television and served as co-producer and editor of the 2006 episode "Blame Somebody Else" of ...

. The film, which is the final chapter of Nicks' ''Oakland'' trilogy (following '' The Waiting Room'' and ''

The Force The Force is a metaphysical and ubiquitous power in the '' Star Wars'' fictional universe. "Force-sensitive" characters use the Force throughout the franchise. Heroes like the Jedi seek to "become one with the Force", matching their personal wil ...

''), follows the lives of the Oakland High School class of 2020 as they try to make the most of their final year in high school amidst district budget cuts and ultimately the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

and the

George Floyd protests The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internat ...

Ryan Coogler Ryan Kyle Coogler (born May 23, 1986) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. He is a recipient of four NAACP Image Awards, four Black Reel Awards, a Golden Globe Award nomination and an Academy Award nomination for Best Pictu ...

and

Davis Guggenheim Philip Davis Guggenheim (born November 3, 1963) is an American writer, director and producer. His credits include ''NYPD Blue'', '' ER'', '' 24'', ''Alias'', ''The Shield'', '' Deadwood'', and the documentaries ''An Inconvenient Truth'', ''It ...

, the latter of whom made a similar film, ''

Waiting for "Superman" ''Waiting for "Superman"'' is a 2010 American documentary film written and directed by Davis Guggenheim and produced by Lesley Chilcott. The film criticizes the American public education system by following several students as they strive to be ...

'', were executive producers on this film. The film was premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 29, 2021, where it was the inaugural winner of the Jonathan Oppenheim Editing Award - U.S. Documentary. It was released on

Hulu Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...

on August 12, 2021.

Synopsis

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay ...

as a tantalizing case study. In a city that struggles with rising crime and health care woes, its public school systems are not exactly equipped to prepare youth for the travails of young adulthood.

Release

The film premiered at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival on January 29, 2021. On April 20, 2021,

acquired the film's U.S. distribution rights and set it for an August 12, 2021 release.

Reception

Critical response

The review round-up at ''

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wan ...

'' for ''Homeroom'' had 85% of critics recommending the film, based on 47 reviews and an average rating of 7 out of 10. The critics consensus reads: "''Homeroom'' offers an encouraging -- and engaging -- look at young people preparing to leave high school behind and shape the future."

Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...

assigned the film a weighted average score of 68 out of 100, based on 12 critics, indicating "generaly favourable reviews".https://www.metacritic.com/movie/homeroom?ftag=MCD-06-10aaa1c Daniel Fienberg of ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'' wrote "You don't need heavy-handed foreshadowing to know that the class of 2020 is the COVID Class, to realize that the prom the bright-faced teens are looking forward to will never happen, that the graduation they're aiming for will be virtual, that the production of ''

In the Heights ''In the Heights'' is a musical with concept, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda and a book by Quiara Alegría Hudes. The story is set over the course of three days, involving characters in the largely Dominican American neighborhood of ...

'' scheduled to open on March 20 is never going to see its curtain raised. ''Homeroom'' is, in that sense, an inspiring tragedy, a portrait of resilient youth in unprecedented circumstances, the sort of thing that hasn't yet oversaturated Sundance, but probably eventually will. Brian Tallerico of ''

RogerEbert.com ''RogerEbert.com'' is an American film review website that archives reviews written by film critic Roger Ebert for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' and also shares other critics' reviews and essays. The website, underwritten by the ''Chicago Sun-Times ...

'' wrote:

"Nicks takes a verité approach to his subject, documenting students through the ups and downs of their final year in high school at a distance, letting them tell their own stories. The focus of the first half falls on a debate that would echo “
Defund the Police "Defund the police" is a slogan that supports removing funds from police departments and reallocating them to non-policing forms of public safety and community support, such as social services, youth services, housing, education, healthcare and ...
” months later as students and community members fight the board about removing police officers from Oakland High School. Like a bit too much of “Homeroom,” I could have watched these board meetings for hours, Wiseman-style. The debate over adults who think that officers keep their kids safe opposite students telling them that uniforms don’t equal safety for a lot of young people is fascinating. And it’s wonderful to hear these young people discuss their concerns so openly, even if a lot of them seem to often fall on deaf ears."

Lisa Kennedy of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' wrote:

"The Oakland students — and director Nicks — rise to the demands of overlapping crises. With its vibrant if abbreviated portraits and final scenes of burgeoning activism, “Homeroom” suggest that kids may not be alright, but they are very much on the case."

References

External links