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The Emperor's Club
(Reviewed November 7, 2002, by James Dawson)
-
Misguided, cynically sentimental slop that actually may be WORSE than "Dead Poet's Society."
Kevin Kline, continuing his "Life As a House"-like descent into the "smiling ruefully through life's sorrows" bog in which Robin Williams so regularly wallows, is a prep school teacher with a class full of ridiculously idealistic and well-mannered students...until an obnoxious little unloved douchebag Senator's son shows up. Kline cuts this creepy little supposed-to-be-charming sociopath a break by improperly allowing him to be one of three contestants in a competition known as "Mister Julius Caesar." (Kline thereby screws a more deserving student out of said opportunity...but hey, that kind of unfair leg-up is what bleeding-heart liberal affirmative-action is all about, even if in this case all involved are white, so it is easy to allow Kline's character this ethical lapse.)
Cut to 25 years later, when Kline is invited out of retirement to referee a rematch of said competition among former students who now have become captains of industry and the like. Will all of the things he taught about the importance of integrity, honor and character have borne fruit in his formerly fresh-faced charges?
I have to admit that the one good thing about this movie is its incredibly satisfying ending, which I won't ruin. Getting there, though, is not worth wasting two hours of your sweet, precious life. Go play a game of Dark Tower instead. I just found a copy of that 1981 electronic game at a yard sale, for a DOLLAR, and it's great! What does this have to do with reviewing "The Emperor's Club?" Hey, don't shave my buzz, man.
Back Row Grade: F
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