Editing Mr. Holland's Opus

{{short description|1995 film by Stephen Herek}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}

{{Infobox film
| name           = Mr. Holland's Opus
| image          = Mr Hollands Opus.jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[Stephen Herek]]
| writer         = [[Patrick Sheane Duncan]]
| screenplay     = 
| story          = 
| based_on       = 
| producer       = [[Ted Field]]<br /> [[Robert W. Cort]]<br /> [[Michael Nolin]]<br /> Patrick Sheane Duncan
| starring       = {{Plainlist|<!--Per poster billing-->
* [[Richard Dreyfuss]]
* [[Glenne Headly]]
* [[Jay Thomas]]
* [[Olympia Dukakis]]
}}
| narrator       = 
| cinematography = [[Oliver Wood (cinematographer)|Oliver Wood]]
| editing        = Trudy Ship
| music          = [[Michael Kamen]]
| studio         = [[Hollywood Pictures]]<br />[[Interscope Communications]]<br />[[PolyGram Filmed Entertainment]]
| distributor    = [[Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures|Buena Vista Pictures Distribution]] (North America)<br />PolyGram Filmed Entertainment (International)<ref>{{cite web|title=Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)|website=[[BBFC]]|access-date=12 July 2021|url=https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/mr-hollands-opus-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmzczndq}}</ref>
| released       = {{Film date|1995|12|29}}
| runtime        = 143 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English<br> [[American Sign Language]]
| budget         = $31 million<ref>{{cite web|url=http://powergrid.thewrap.com/project/mr-hollands-opus|title=Mr. Holland's Opus - PowerGrid|work=thewrap.com|access-date=May 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313074732/http://powergrid.thewrap.com/project/mr-hollands-opus|archive-date=2016-03-13|url-status=dead}}</ref>
| gross          = $106.3 million
}}
'''''Mr. Holland's Opus''''' is a 1995 American [[Drama (film and television)|drama]] film directed by [[Stephen Herek]], produced by [[Ted Field]], [[Robert W. Cort]], and [[Michael Nolin]], and written by [[Patrick Sheane Duncan]].<ref>{{cite news| url=https://movies.nytimes.com/movie/135565/Mr-Holland-s-Opus/details | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114085719/http://movies.nytimes.com/movie/135565/Mr-Holland-s-Opus/details | url-status=dead | archive-date=2012-11-14 | department=Movies & TV Dept. | work=[[The New York Times]] | date=2012 | title=Mr. Holland's Opus (1995)}}</ref> The film stars [[Richard Dreyfuss]] 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]], [[William H. Macy]], and [[Jay Thomas]].

The film was nominated for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay]] in 1995.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Archives |first=L. A. Times |date=1995-12-22 |title=Film, TV Nominees for the Golden Globes |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-12-22-ca-16740-story.html |access-date=2024-05-26 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}</ref> Richard Dreyfuss received nominations for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama]] and the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]].

==Plot==
In the fall of 1964, 30-year-old Glenn Holland is a successful and talented musician and [[composer (music)|composer]] from [[Portland, Oregon]]. 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]] 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 [[Deafness|deaf]], he is severely disappointed that he will never be able to share his love of music. He fails to learn [[American Sign Language]] 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]], 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==
* [[Richard Dreyfuss]] as Glenn Holland, a [[composer]] 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 [[Physical education|gym teacher]] and [[Coach (sport)|coach]] of John F. Kennedy High School's football & wrestling teams who befriends Glenn.
* [[Olympia Dukakis]] as Principal Helen Jacobs, the [[Head teacher|principal]] of John F. Kennedy High School, who retires in 1972.
* [[William H. Macy]] as Vice Principal Gene Wolters, the [[vice-principal]] of John F. Kennedy High School who later becomes principal in 1972.
* [[Jean Louisa Kelly]] as Rowena Morgan, a talented singer who seeks to embark on a showbiz career.
* [[Joanna Gleason]] as Gertrude Lang, an aspiring clarinet player who eventually becomes the [[Governor of Oregon]].
** [[Alicia Witt]] as younger Gertrude Lang
* Damon Whitaker as Bobby Tidd, one of Glenn's students.
** [[Forest Whitaker]] as adult Bobby Tidd (uncredited)
* [[Terrence Howard]] 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==
{{unreferenced section|date=May 2025}}
The film features an [[orchestra]]l score by [[Michael Kamen]] and many pieces of [[european classical music|classical music]]. 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 [[39th Annual Grammy Awards|1997 Grammy]] for [[Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella|Best Instrumental Arrangement]].

===Soundtrack releases===
Two soundtrack albums were released for this film in January 1996. One is the original motion picture [[film score|score]], 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]])
# "[[1-2-3 (Len Barry song)|1-2-3]]" – [[Len Barry]]
# "[[A Lover's Concerto]]" – [[The Toys]]
# "[[Keep On Running]]" – [[Spencer Davis Group]]
# "[[Uptight (Everything's Alright)]]" – [[Stevie Wonder]]
# "[[Imagine (John Lennon song)|Imagine]]" – [[John Lennon]]
# "[[The Pretender (Jackson Browne song)|The Pretender]]" – [[Jackson Browne]]
# "[[Someone to Watch over Me (song)|Someone to Watch Over Me]]" – [[Julia Fordham]]
# "[[I Got a Woman]]" – [[Ray Charles]]
# "[[Beautiful Boy (Darling Boy)]]" – John Lennon
# "Cole's Song" – [[Julian Lennon]] and [[Tim Renwick]]
# ''An American Symphony'' ("Mr. Holland's Opus") – [[London Metropolitan Orchestra]] and [[Michael Kamen]]

==Reception==
===Box office===
In the United States, gross domestic takings totaled [[US$]]82,569,971. International takings are estimated at US$23,700,000, for a gross worldwide takings of $106,269,971.<ref>{{cite news|title= Field Marshal|publisher= [[Newsweek]]|url= http://www.newsweek.com/1997/02/09/field-marshal.html|access-date=2010-12-22}}</ref>

===Critical===
''Mr. Holland's Opus'' holds a 76% "Fresh" rating from 29 reviews at [[Rotten Tomatoes]]. 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."<ref name="Rotten Tomatoes Rating">{{Cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/mr_hollands_opus|title=Mr. Holland's Opus - Rotten Tomatoes|date=19 January 1996|website=Rottentomatoes.com|access-date=June 28, 2023}}</ref> [[CinemaScore]] reported that audiences gave the film a rare "A+" grade.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cinemascore.com/press/cinemascore-matters-box-office/|title=Why CinemaScore Matters for Box Office|first=Pamela |last=McClintock|date=August 19, 2011|access-date=October 16, 2019|publisher=[[CinemaScore]]}}</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]'' film review cited Dreyfuss for "a warm and really touching performance";<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1996/01/19/movies/film-review-a-teacher-who-once-had-dreams.html|title=FILM REVIEW; A Teacher Who Once Had Dreams|first=Janet|last=Maslin|date=January 19, 1996|access-date=October 16, 2019|work=[[The New York Times]]}}</ref> ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' also called his performance "quite effective and surprisingly restrained".<ref name=variety>{{cite web |url=https://variety.com/1995/film/reviews/mr-holland-s-opus-1200444701/|title=Mr. Holland's Opus|first=Emanuel|last=Levy|date=December 31, 1995|access-date=October 16, 2019|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> ''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".<ref name=variety/> [[Roger Ebert]] 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.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/mr-hollands-opus-1995|title=Mr. Holland's Opus|date=January 19, 1995|access-date=October 16, 2019|publisher=Rogerebert.com}}</ref>

Writer [[Patrick Sheane Duncan]] was nominated for the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay]] at the [[53rd Golden Globe Awards]]. Dreyfuss was nominated for the [[Academy Award for Best Actor]] and the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama]].{{citation needed|date=May 2025}}

===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.<ref name=MHOF>{{Cite web|url=https://mhopus.org/|title=Mr Holland's Opus Foundation – Keeping Music Alive in Our Schools|website=Mhopus.org|access-date=June 28, 2023}}</ref>

==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]] with music by Wayne Barker.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://deadline.com/2022/01/the-nutty-professor-mr-hollands-opus-stage-musical-adaptation-ogunquit-playhouse-regional-theater-1234920089/ | title='The Nutty Professor' and 'Mr. Holland's Opus' Set for Regional Stage Musical Adaptations |website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]| date=26 January 2022 }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of films featuring the deaf and hard of hearing]]
* "[[Mr. Lisa's Opus]]", a 2017 episode of the [[The Simpsons (season 29)|twenty-ninth season]] of ''[[The Simpsons]]'' which spoofs ''Mr. Holland's Opus''.

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{IMDb title|0113862}}
* {{TCMDb title|300922}}
* {{Mojo title|mrhollandsopus}}
* [http://www.mhopus.org/ The Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation]

{{Stephen Herek}}

[[Category:1995 films]]
[[Category:1995 drama films]]
[[Category:American drama films]]
[[Category:American Sign Language films]]
[[Category:Films about classical music and musicians]]
[[Category:Works about performing arts education]]
[[Category:Films about composers]]
[[Category:Films about deaf people]]
[[Category:Films about educators]]
[[Category:Films directed by Stephen Herek]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1960s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1970s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1980s]]
[[Category:Films set in the 1990s]]
[[Category:Films shot in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:Films set in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:Hollywood Pictures films]]
[[Category:Interscope Communications films]]
[[Category:PolyGram Filmed Entertainment films]]
[[Category:Films set in schools]]
[[Category:Films scored by Michael Kamen]]
[[Category:1990s English-language films]]
[[Category:1990s American films]]