It’s a film that would be deemed overly sentimental and unlikely if it weren’t true. The new movie “Freedom Writers” stars Hilary Swank as Erin Gruwell, the real life teacher who took a class of racially diverse, warring, inner city kids from Long Beach, Calif. and turned them into a family.

The story of Gruwell’s success story comes from her early years as a first-time teacher who abandoned plans of becoming a public defender in hopes of reaching the teenage troublemakers before they reached the courtroom.

When Gruwell, fresh faced and donning pearls, steps into her classroom at Wilson High in the early '90s, following the Los Angeles race riots, she has high expectations for her ability to make a difference with her students. What she isn’t prepared for, however, is the reality of these young kids’ lives. Gang violence, poverty, split families, incarceration, drugs and more make up the daily fabric of the lives of these students, most of whom are Asian, Latino and black. It’s a far cry from her Newport Beach upbringing.

Her students greet her with disrespectful behavior, ridiculing or ignoring her, and even hatred from some of the students because she is white. They don’t see the point in learning about things that can’t help them make it through one more day, which is how they view freshman English in room 203.

Administrators and other teachers at the school mock Gruwell’s belief that she can really teach these kids anything about literature or grammar and they make it clear that her idealistic attitude will change with time.

But through trial and error, Gruwell begins to reach her students through her unorthodox teaching methods which include having the kids keep a daily journal. Seeing Gruwell’s genuine interest, the students begin to open up in their journals, relaying stories from their lives. The journals of Erin Gruwell’s classes were compiled into a book that was published in 1999 called “The Freedom Writers Diary,” and excerpts from the real journal entries are used as voice-overs in parts of the film.

Erin Gruwell and her original team of Freedom Writers have since started a foundation to help similar programs get started in other schools around the country.

Going into this film, I had low expectations for what I figured may end up being “Dangerous Minds: Part Deux.” I was wrong though. Despite the traditional “white teacher comes to the ‘hood to teach minority students to rise above life inside the projects” story line, the film can’t help but touch you when you know that it’s true. In fact, some of the moments in the film that seem the most far fetched, were they to appear in any other film, are what make this movie what it is because these things actually happened. One scene which particularly pulls on heartstrings is when Gruwell begins to teach her students about the Holocaust. Not one of her students knew what the Holocaust was, but nearly every one of them had been shot at during their 14 or 15 years of life.

Gruwell throws out her meticulously planned lessons and takes on the task of educating her kids about tolerance through literature, field trips, films and guest speakers. Through two extra jobs, much to the chagrin of her husband, Gruwell uses her own money to pay for the trips she takes her students on, including a visit to the Holocaust Museum. The students find a reason to take interest in “The Diary of Anne Frank” when they realize she was a real girl, about their age, facing persecution for her race, much like themselves.

The class works together to raise funds to bring Miep Gies, the protector of the Frank family, all the way from the Netherlands to speak at their school.

Swank brings yet another strong performance to the screen as the remarkable Erin Gruwell. Strong and determined yet gracious and caring, Swank’s portrayal of Gruwell could cause even the iciest of hearts to melt. Swank’s costars also shine including Scott Glenn as Gruwell’s father, who starts out critical of her decision to teach school in Long Beach, and who eventually sees the importance of what she is doing; Patrick Dempsey as Gruwell’s husband, who starts out supportive and eventually feels alienated by all the time his wife puts into her classroom; and Imelda Staunton, who masterfully plays Gruwell’s biggest administrative opposition at the school, denying Gruwell access to resources she deems above the students’ learning capacity.

Some of the actors who bring to life the students in Gruwell’s classroom include April Lee Hernandez as gang member Eva; Mario as smart but cynical street kid Andre; and Deance Wyatt as cruel class clown Jamal.

With the intention of keeping the story as accurate as possible, writer-director Richard LaGravenese pulled stories from the journal of Gruwell and her students and placed them directly on screen.

“Freedom Writers” takes an extraordinary story of ordinary people and brings it to life on screen. If you find inspiration in underdogs-rising-above stories, “Freedom Writers” is a film that you should check out on the big screen.

***1/2

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