School Ties

Inglourious Basterds, Defiance, Schindler's List...what do all of these movies have in common? They all have Jewish lead characters of course! Duhh. School Ties is no different. In fact, School Ties is a precursor to most of these movies, despite its having nothing to do with World War II or the persecution of Jews in Europe. No, this story tells the persecution of Jews in a far worse place, a place where unimaginable atrocities occur, a Massachusetts prep school for Boys.

School Ties is the story of David Greene (Brendan Fraser) and his attempts to hide his Jewish identity at a prestigious private school where anti-Semites rule. David finds racial slurs in every classroom and must fight the urge to knock out every single Jew hater in the school, including his teachers and headmaster. What makes this movie even more rewarding is that Greene is a fantastic football player. However, this tiny detail makes me question the movies realism.

Matt Damon plays Charlie Dillon, a legacy at the school whose only goal in life is to please his family and make a name for himself. As Greene and Dillon start to become better friends, Greene's religion still unbeknownst to his classmates, the plot thickens with intrigue. Greene falls in love with Dillon's best friend (Amy Locane) which causes tension between the two. Just when the audience believes Greene could make a name for himself, free of any Jewish connotation, he is hit with a real zinger. His classmates find out he is Jewish and he is slapped up with cheating on an exam.

Even as an audience member, you think Greene might make it out of this one. But just like our people's reputation in history proceeds us, we get screwed over in the end. School Ties moral elements stem from humanities need to find a scapegoat and look past people's redeeming qualities. Damon, Cole Hauser, Ben Affleck, and Anthony Rapp give believable performances that assert their bigotry from the beginning. Time after time, however, Fraser accepts the verbal punishment that his people get.

Robert Mandel directed this school days classic and shot on location at Middlesex Academy. Being a fellow Massachusetts Prep school boy myself, I associated the brownstone buildings and orange and yellow foliage with everyday life at my school. I also made the close connection with how difficult it is sometimes to hide secrets, like young David Greene.

School Ties is definitely a learning opportunity. It can teach people to be accepting of all walks of life and not to judge those you do not know. It showcases talents that you would not expect from some that may just surprise you. This is one movie where I won't spoil the ending because it is a must see. All I will tell you is that my people finally get the upperhand. Yeehaw!