Stand and Deliver - A Movie Review

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"Stand and Deliver" was released in 1988. It's a true story about Jaime Escalante, a high school math teacher. Edward James Olmos was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Escalante. CAST Edward James Olmos - Jaime Escalante Estelle Harris - Secretary Virginia Paris - Racquel Ortega Will Gotay - Pancho Ingrid Oliu - Lupe Carmen Argenziano - Molina Rosanna DeSoto - Fabiola Escalante Vanessa Marquez - Ana Delgado Lou Diamond Phillips - Angel Guzman Lydia Nicole - Rafaela Fuentes James Victor - Ana's Father Andy Garcia - Ramirez It's 1974 and Jaime Escalante has left a higher-paying job in business to teach a computer class at James A. Garfield High School in East Los Angeles. However, the computers have not come in yet; so he becomes a math teacher. His students are mostly from working-class Hispanic families. They have no discipline and no motivation Their skills are, for the most part, below their grade level; and many have social problems. Escalante is not content to teach high school math. He wants to challenge the students; and so he begins to teach them AP (Advanced Placement) Calculus for college credit. Escalante tells his students that they must have ganas (desire or motivation) in order to succeed. In addition to the grueling hours of homework that Escalante assigns plus the classes on Saturdays, the students must also take 7-week summer courses. Escalante pushes, prods, encourages and inspires his students to excel...and they do. You'll have to watch the movie to see what happens. The AP Calculus test is so hard that only 2% of students nationwide pass. This is an inspiring film which shows exactly what can be accomplished with a teacher who can motivate his/her students. There are so many good movies that came out of the 1980s; and this is another one. The test of a good movie, for me, is if I've watched it more than once; and I've watched this movie about a half-dozen times. It never ceases to amaze me. Make sure to watch until the end of the movie when statistics are shown for students passing the AP Calculus test. It gives you hope for our American educational system. This movie is Rated PG. Photo Credit: Pixabay