Sylvia

Sylvia Ashton-Warner develops her own teaching methods based on the emotional, personal life of the children in her classroom. She achieves wondrous results but is more than just a teacher, and in a remarkably sensitive portrayal, Eleanor David depicts her artistry, nervousness, gift for friendship, cultural isolation, and courage. Unfortunately, Firth concentrates on her passing romance with a sympathetic schools’ inspector (Terry). With tantalising glimpses of the uneasy coexistence of white man and Maori, but with little individualisation of the children or understanding of their background, this is a sympathetic biopic when it could have been something altogether more inspirational and fascinating.