''Mr. Holland's Opus'' is a 1995 American

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

film directed by

Stephen Herek Stephen Herek (born November 10, 1958) is an American film director. Born in San Antonio, Texas, he studied film at the University of Texas at Austin. He is best known for directing the 1989 film ''Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure''. Career His ...

, produced by Ted Field, Robert W. Cort, and Michael Nolin, and written by Patrick Sheane Duncan. The film stars

Richard Dreyfuss Richard Stephen Dreyfuss ( ; Dreyfus; born October 29, 1947) is an American actor. He emerged from the New Hollywood wave of American cinema, finding fame with a succession of leading man parts in the 1970s. He has received an Academy Award, a ...

in the title role of Glenn Holland, a dedicated high-school music teacher who attempts to compose his own music while struggling to balance his job and life with his wife and profoundly deaf son. The cast also includes Glenne Headly,

Olympia Dukakis Olympia Dukakis (June 20, 1931 – May 1, 2021) was an American actress. She performed in more than 130 stage productions, in some 60 films, and in approximately 50 television series. Best known as a screen actress, she started her career in the ...

William H. Macy William Hall Macy Jr. (born March 13, 1950) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, and producer. He is a two-time Emmy Award and four-time Screen Actors Guild Awards, Screen Actors Guild Award winner, and has been nominated for an Acade ...

, and Jay Thomas. The film was nominated for the

Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay The Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay – Motion Picture is a Golden Globe Award given by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. Winners and nominees 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Multiple wins ...

in 1995. Richard Dreyfuss received nominations for the

Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama Golden means made of, or relating to gold. Golden may also refer to: Places United Kingdom *Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall *Golden Cap, Dorset *Golden Square, Soho, London *Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershi ...

and the

Academy Award for Best Actor The Academy Award for Best Actor is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It has been awarded since the 1st Academy Awards to an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading ...

Plot

In the fall of 1964, 30-year-old Glenn Holland is a successful and talented musician and

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...

from

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. He switches gears, taking a position as a music teacher at John F. Kennedy High School so that he can spend more time with his young wife Iris and work on his symphony. The film covers his 30-year teaching career, set amongst the changes in American society. Holland at first struggles in his new job, but learns how to connect with his students by using

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

and other popular music to convince them that music is a fun and worthwhile pursuit. He becomes a popular teacher at the school and rises to the task of creating a school marching band with help from the football coach, Bill Meister, with whom he becomes lifelong friends. Holland persuades principal Helen Jacobs to maintain funding for the school's arts programs, despite a shrinking budget and the objections of vice principal Gene Wolters. The time Holland devotes to his classes, the marching band, orchestra, productions and mentoring both struggling and talented students leaves him little time to work on his symphony, or to spend with his family. When his son, Cole, is found to be

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

, he is severely disappointed that he will never be able to share his love of music. He fails to learn

American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that i ...

properly, leaving him unable to communicate with his son and creating a rift between him and Iris, who has to raise Cole mostly by herself. As the years progress, Holland grows closer to his students at Kennedy High and more distant from his own son. An argument with his teenage son finally makes Holland realize the error of his ways and he learns to communicate with his son and help him visualize the music he can't hear, and repairs his relationship with his wife. In 1995, Wolters (who is now the principal) shuts down the school's arts programs, citing further cuts from the Education Board and the need to prioritize reading, writing and math, and Holland is laid off as a result. Holland makes an impassioned plea to the Board to no avail and becomes despondent, believing that his teaching career has amounted to nothing. On his last day, Holland's wife and son, now a teacher himself, help him clear out his office and quietly leave the otherwise empty school. Passing the auditorium, Holland finds it is packed full of current and former students who greet him with a standing ovation. Gertrude Lang, a struggling clarinetist from Holland's first year teaching, now

Governor of Oregon The governor of Oregon is the head of government of Oregon and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The title of governor was also applied to the office of Oregon's chief executive during the provisional and U.S. ter ...

, gives a speech praising Mr. Holland, that his legacy is more than just the symphony; it is all the people he has helped and influenced, all the lives he has touched, over 30 years. She joins past members of the school's orchestra, who have been practicing the symphony in secret, on stage. Mr. Holland conducts them in its premiere performance.

Cast

as Glenn Holland, a

who becomes a music teacher at John F. Kennedy High School. * Glenne Headly as Iris Holland, Glenn's wife. * Jay Thomas as Bill Meister, the gym teacher and coach of John F. Kennedy High School's football & wrestling teams who befriends Glenn. *

as Principal Helen Jacobs, the principal of John F. Kennedy High School, who retires in 1972. *

as Vice Principal Gene Wolters, the

vice-principal In larger school systems, a head teacher principal is often assisted by someone known as a vice-principal, deputy principal, or assistant/associate principal. Unlike the principal, the vice-principal does not have quite the decision-making author ...

of John F. Kennedy High School who later becomes principal in 1972. *

Jean Louisa Kelly Jean Louisa Kelly (born March 9, 1972) is an American actress and singer. After making her film debut as Tia Russell in '' Uncle Buck'' (1989) alongside John Candy, she appeared in a wide range of other films including ''The Fantasticks'' (1995 ...

as Rowena Morgan, a talented singer who seeks to embark on a showbiz career. *

Joanna Gleason Joanna Gleason (née Hall; born June 2, 1950) is a Canadian-American actress and singer, known for her performances in theatrical musicals and plays, and on film and television. In theatre, Gleason originated the role of the Baker's Wife in Ste ...

as Gertrude Lang, an aspiring clarinet player who eventually becomes the

. ** Alicia Witt as younger Gertrude Lang * Damon Whitaker as Bobby Tidd, one of Glenn's students. **

Forest Whitaker Forest Steven Whitaker (born July 15, 1961) is an American actor, filmmaker, and activist. His accolades include an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards and the Best Actor Award at the ...

as adult Bobby Tidd (uncredited) *

Terrence Howard Terrence Dashon Howard (born March 11, 1969) is an American actor performing on film and television. He has received a Screen Actors Guild Awards, Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a Golden ...

as Louis Russ, a football player and wrestler who becomes a bass drum player in the marching band. After graduation, he serves in the Armed Forces, presumably in the Army, presumably in the infantry, sent to South Vietnam, where he is killed in action. * Alexandra Boyd as Sarah Olmstead, a drama teacher. * Anthony Natale as Coltrane "Cole" Holland (age 28), Glenn and Iris's son, who is 90% deaf. ** Joseph Anderson as Coltrane "Cole" Holland (age 15) ** Nicholas John Renner as Coltrane "Cole" Holland (age 6) * Beth Maitland as Deaf School Principal, the principal of a deaf school where Cole is enrolled.

Music

The film features an

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

l score by

Michael Kamen Michael Arnold Kamen (April 15, 1948 – November 18, 2003) was an American composer (especially of film scores), orchestral arranger, orchestral conductor, songwriter, record producer and musician. Early life Michael Arnold Kamen was born in ...

and many pieces of

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

. Kamen also wrote '' An American Symphony'' ("Mr. Holland's Opus"), the work on which Mr. Holland is shown working throughout the movie. Kamen's arrangement won the 1997 Grammy for Best Instrumental Arrangement.

Soundtrack releases

Two soundtrack albums were released for this film in January 1996. One is the original motion picture

score SCORE may refer to: *SCORE (software), a music scorewriter program * SCORE (television), a weekend sports service of the defunct Financial News Network *SCORE! Educational Centers *SCORE International, an offroad racing organization *Sarawak Corrido ...

, and includes all of the original music written for the film by Michael Kamen. The second album is a collection of popular music featured in the film: # "Visions of a Sunset" – Shawn Stockman (of

Boyz II Men Boyz II Men ( ) is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. Formed in 1985, they have been a trio composed of baritone Nathan Morris, tenor Wanya Morris, Wanyá Mo ...

) # " 1-2-3" –

Len Barry Leonard Warren Borisoff (June 12, 1942 – November 5, 2020), known professionally by the stage name Len Barry, was an American singer, songwriter, lyricist, record producer, author, and poet. Life and career Born on June 12, 1942, and raised ...

# "

A Lover's Concerto "A Lover's Concerto" is a pop song written by American songwriters Sandy Linzer and Denny Randell, based on the 18th century composition by Christian Petzold, " Minuet in G major", and recorded in 1965 by the Toys. "A Lover's Concerto" sold m ...

" –

The Toys The Toys were an American pop girl group from Jamaica, New York, which was formed in 1961 and disbanded in 1968. Their most successful recording was " A Lover's Concerto" (1965), which sold more than two million copies and reached the number ...

# "

Keep On Running "Keep On Running" is a song written and first recorded by Jackie Edwards. It became a hit in the UK for The Spencer Davis Group; their version reached number one in the charts. Recordings "Keep On Running" was written by Jamaican singer-songwri ...

" –

Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British blues and R&B influenced rock band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (vocals, keyboards, and guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). ...

# " Uptight (Everything's Alright)" –

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

# " Imagine" –

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

# " The Pretender" –

Jackson Browne Clyde Jackson Browne (born October 9, 1948) is an American rock musician, singer, songwriter, and political activist who has sold over 30 million albums in the United States. Emerging as a teenage songwriter in mid-1960s Los Angeles, he had his ...

# " Someone to Watch Over Me" – Julia Fordham # " I Got a Woman" –

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...

# " Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)" – John Lennon # "Cole's Song" –

Julian Lennon Julian Charles John Lennon (born John Charles Julian Lennon; 8 April 1963) is an English musician, photographer, author, and philanthropist. He is the son of Beatles member John Lennon and his first wife Cynthia; Julian is named after his pate ...

and

Tim Renwick Timothy John Pearson Renwick (born 7 August 1949) is an English guitarist. He is best known for his association with Al Stewart in his early career and for his long-standing role as lead guitarist for the Sutherland Brothers & Quiver. His single ...

# ''An American Symphony'' ("Mr. Holland's Opus") –

London Metropolitan Orchestra The urban culture of London concerns the music, museums, festivals, and lifestyle within London, the capital city of the United Kingdom. The city is known for its theatre quarter, and its West End of London, West End theatre district has given ...

and

Reception

Box office

In the United States, gross domestic takings totaled

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

82,569,971. International takings are estimated at US$23,700,000, for a gross worldwide takings of $106,269,971.

Critical

''Mr. Holland's Opus'' holds a 76% "Fresh" rating from 29 reviews at

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, 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 ...

. The site's consensus states: "A feel-good story brought to life by a terrific ensemble cast, ''Mr. Holland's Opus'' plucks the heartstrings without shame -- and with undeniable skill."

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

reported that audiences gave the film a rare "A+" grade. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' film review cited Dreyfuss for "a warm and really touching performance"; '' Variety'' also called his performance "quite effective and surprisingly restrained". ''Variety'' further noted the "nostalgic aura" that permeates the film, "which encourages viewers to think fondly of — and pay tribute to — the one teacher in their lives who made a difference".

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert ( ; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American Film criticism, film critic, film historian, journalist, essayist, screenwriter and author. He wrote for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. Eber ...

gave the film 3 1/2 out of 4 stars, commending its starring and supporting casts and agreeing with the film's message of the ability of high school teachers to inspire their students, as well as the importance of cultural offerings on the curriculum. Writer Patrick Sheane Duncan was nominated for the

at the

53rd Golden Globe Awards The 53rd Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television for 1995, were held on January 21, 1996 at The Beverly Hilton and were televised on NBC in the United States. The nominations were announced on December 21, 1995. Winners a ...

. Dreyfuss was nominated for the

and the

The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation

Inspired by the motion picture, its composer, Michael Kamen, founded The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation in 1996 as his commitment to the future of music education.

Musical version

A world premiere musical version adapted from Duncan's screenplay was staged from August 12 to September 17, 2022, at the Ogunquit Playhouse in Ogunquit, Maine. Book, lyrics and direction are by Tony Award winner

BD Wong Bradley Darryl Wong (born October 24, 1960) is an American actor. Wong won a Tony Award for his performance as Song Liling in '' M. Butterfly'', becoming the only actor in Broadway history to receive the Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, Outer Crit ...

with music by Wayne Barker.

References

External links

* * *
The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation
{{Stephen Herek 1995 films 1995 drama films American drama films American Sign Language films Films about classical music and musicians Works about performing arts education Films about composers Films about deaf people Films about educators Films directed by Stephen Herek Films set in the 1960s Films set in the 1970s Films set in the 1980s Films set in the 1990s Films shot in Portland, Oregon Films set in Portland, Oregon Hollywood Pictures films Interscope Communications films PolyGram Filmed Entertainment films Films set in schools Films scored by Michael Kamen 1990s English-language films 1990s American films