Mr. Holland's Opus

Director: Stephen Herek Stephen Herek

Overview

"Richard Dreyfuss stars in this passionate tale of dreams and inspiration, arriving on DVD from Walt Disney Video. Presented in 2.35:1 widescreen and featuring a closed-captioned Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, this release features no alternate audio options or subtitles. Aside from the standard chapter selection, the sole extra feature on this release is a production featurette."

Product Details

Release Date:	08/24/1999
UPC:	0717951003096
Original Release:	1995
Rating:	PG
Source:	Walt Disney Video
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[stereo, Dolby Digital]
Language:	English
Time:	2:23:00

Special Features

Widescreen [2.35:1]; Dolby Digital 5.1 Audio; French-language track; Production featurette; Chapter search

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Richard Dreyfuss	Actor
Glenne Headly	Actor
Olympia Dukakis	Actor
Jay Thomas	Actor
Damon Whitaker	Actor
Terrence Howard	Actor
Alexandra Boyd	Actor
Alicia Witt	Actor
Nicholas John Renner	Actor
Joseph Anderson	Actor
Anthony Natale	Actor
Joanna Gleason	Actor
Beth Maitland	Actor
Patrick Fong	Actor
Benjamin J. Dixon	Actor
Kathryn Arnett	Actor
Freeman O. Corbin	Actor
Pal Bernard	Auditioner
Moira Feeney	Actor
Joshua Minnick	Actor
Ashley Hamrick	Actor
Janine Shouse	Actor
Donnie Burns	City Official
Spencer Riviera	Actor
Daniel J. Vhay	Actor
Sean Bevington	Actor
John Henry Redwood	Actor
Ted Roisum	Actor
Mark Daniels	Actor
Kaili Carlton	Actor,Actor
Adam Fitzhugh	Actor
Eric Michael Cole	Actor
Joe Campbell	Actor
Tomiko Peirano	Actor
Kasey Nelson	Actor
Zoe McLellan	Actor
Kelly M. Casey	Actor
Michael Mendelson	Actor
Alex Dudgeon	Actor
Rachel Wooley	Actor
Aurora J. Miller	Actor
Paul Bernard	Actor
Mary Kay O'Mealy	Actor
Dieffyd Gilman-Frederick	Actor
Tara Eng	Actor
Jay Frank	Actor
Conan Doherty	Actor
Stacey Siegel	Actor
Nicolas Sirianni	Actor
Jacob Adams	Actor
Chris Marth	Actor
Brent Archie	Actor
Kevin Calaba	Actor
Keith Swift	Actor
John Boyer	Actor
Linda Williams Janke	Actor
David Clegg	Actor
Don Burns	Actor
Dennis Biasi	Actor
William H. Macy	Wolters
Michael Kamen	Musician,Composer
Jean Louisa Kelly	Actor

Technical Credits

Stephen Metcalfe

Patrick Sheane Duncan

Stephen Herek	Director
Stephen Metcalfe	Screenwriter
Patrick Sheane Duncan	Screenwriter,Executive Producer,Executive Producer
Robert W. Cort	Producer
Ted Field	Producer
Sharon Bialy	Casting
Steve Boyum	Stunts
Scott Kroopf	Executive Producer
Michael Nolin	Producer
Bob Riggs	Special Effects
Judith James	Producer
William Teitler	Producer
Tim Chau	Sound Effects
Kay Colvin	Sound Effects
Kirk Francis	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

Richard Dreyfuss gives a stirring performance in director Stephen Herek's sentimental tribute to a music teacher's career. Dreyfuss plays an aspiring composer of symphonies whose ambition fades as his life is increasingly taken over by his job has a high school music teacher. Although it ignores the fact that nearly all serious (read classical) composers earn their living as teachers, the film is a rare entry in a once flourishing genre: the tribute to a life of selfless dedication. A specialty of director John Ford, the genre seems to have dried up in recent decades as narcissism has taken center stage in American life. Like most such films it's awash in sentimentality, but here the schmaltz is balanced by Dreyfuss' natural irascibility and comic energy. The intensity of his histrionics and eventual commitment to awakening his students' interest to the world of music make his effectiveness credible, though the scenes manifesting their growth lean toward cliché. With heavy-handed irony, the script also gives the teacher a deaf son, and the subplot concerning his supposed indifference to his family is too undeveloped to have much weight. Yet, Olympia Dukakis as the sympathetic school principal and W.H. Macy as one of Dreyfuss' hissable colleagues join the star in bringing life to a familiar tale.