I only saw about 3/4 of this on a boring Saturday afternoon on Channel 5 (not famed for the quality of the films it shows - more usually soft porn). As it was the only thing on telly worth watching (out of 144 channels - that figures) I decided to stick with it. I'm glad I did. It turned out to be quite entertaining. "Dangerous Minds" with Michelle Pfeiffer was on ITV the night before, and I don't mind telling you that I thought UtDS was the superior movie. The acting was good all round, and though some of the lines were a little bit cliched and very 60's, I thought it was OK.
45 Reviews
Best Teacher Film
jlarkin526 July 2007
Rivals "To Sir, With Love" (released around the same time) as the best teacher film of all time. The difference: Sandy Dennis.
Dennis was one of those actors they don't make anymore (or at least don't showcase in Hollywood in 2007). She was strange, quirky, not conventionally pretty and she had that quality a lot of new female teachers have-that deer in the headlights look that makes the viewer root for her to make it "work" with those tough students.
The story is strong with some good subplots with the troubled students. It is dated but I would say the same issues facing Dennis here face contemporary teachers.
I take Dennis to Robin Williams in "Dead Poets Society" anyday.
Dennis was one of those actors they don't make anymore (or at least don't showcase in Hollywood in 2007). She was strange, quirky, not conventionally pretty and she had that quality a lot of new female teachers have-that deer in the headlights look that makes the viewer root for her to make it "work" with those tough students.
The story is strong with some good subplots with the troubled students. It is dated but I would say the same issues facing Dennis here face contemporary teachers.
I take Dennis to Robin Williams in "Dead Poets Society" anyday.
Up The Down Staircase
btreakle26 October 2019
Idealistic teacher in a 1960s inner city school
barryrd7 November 2014
This film, directed by Robert Mulligan (To Kill A Mockingbird, Love With A Proper Stranger), portrays an idealistic teacher with a masters degree, Sandy Dennis as Sylvia Barrett, who takes the plunge into the teaching world of a multicultural but disadvantaged New York neighbourhood. The school is named after Calvin Coolidge, an irony given the urban and cultural mix that was so far removed from the life of the Vermont-born, Republican President of the 1920's.
I like the polaroid colour of film for the opening street scene at the time (1967) when Miss Barrett emerges from a bus into the hazy neighbourhood overflowing with high school students, who would have been the early baby boomers of the period, although with far less privilege than most. We see one lonely student try to commit suicide; another who falls asleep in class because he spends his evenings working on cars, his first love; another who believes Miss Barrett's interest in after-school meetings is a come-on for time alone with him.
Her class does their best to unhinge the new teacher on the opening day but Miss Barrett is gifted with resilience and patience. We get to know the staff in the school with moments of comic relief, such as when the staff meeting shows the teachers grouching about issues ranging from whose drawer belongs to who and when the proposed $7 million school is going to be built, if ever.
Miss Barrett wants to make a difference for the students in her class. She knows that many of them have to climb a greasy pole to make a good life for themselves. She comes up against bureaucratic rules and teachers whose methods are more likely to reinforce the status quo. However, she is not one to shirk the challenge and one day, Miss Barrett tries to relate the world of Charles Dickens to their own and generates a tremendous enthusiasm that brings out an animated discussion about the Tale of Two Cities and "the best of times, the worst of times". Nevertheless, the litany of woes and misunderstandings that constantly undermine her idealism eventually cause her to face the reality of the decision to teach in an inner city neighbourhood.
Despite the drawbacks, she has tremendous support among the students, parents and staff. Sandy Dennis plays the part superbly and in the hands of a great director, we see a vivid portrait of an inner city school and a great teacher with ideals and spunk. To me, this movie is a classic, much under-rated in the history of American cinema.
I like the polaroid colour of film for the opening street scene at the time (1967) when Miss Barrett emerges from a bus into the hazy neighbourhood overflowing with high school students, who would have been the early baby boomers of the period, although with far less privilege than most. We see one lonely student try to commit suicide; another who falls asleep in class because he spends his evenings working on cars, his first love; another who believes Miss Barrett's interest in after-school meetings is a come-on for time alone with him.
Her class does their best to unhinge the new teacher on the opening day but Miss Barrett is gifted with resilience and patience. We get to know the staff in the school with moments of comic relief, such as when the staff meeting shows the teachers grouching about issues ranging from whose drawer belongs to who and when the proposed $7 million school is going to be built, if ever.
Miss Barrett wants to make a difference for the students in her class. She knows that many of them have to climb a greasy pole to make a good life for themselves. She comes up against bureaucratic rules and teachers whose methods are more likely to reinforce the status quo. However, she is not one to shirk the challenge and one day, Miss Barrett tries to relate the world of Charles Dickens to their own and generates a tremendous enthusiasm that brings out an animated discussion about the Tale of Two Cities and "the best of times, the worst of times". Nevertheless, the litany of woes and misunderstandings that constantly undermine her idealism eventually cause her to face the reality of the decision to teach in an inner city neighbourhood.
Despite the drawbacks, she has tremendous support among the students, parents and staff. Sandy Dennis plays the part superbly and in the hands of a great director, we see a vivid portrait of an inner city school and a great teacher with ideals and spunk. To me, this movie is a classic, much under-rated in the history of American cinema.
The one they'll always remember Sandy Dennis for.
Ddey6520 October 1999
If there's any movie that one can automatically associate with Sandy Dennis, "Up the Down Staircase" is the one. True, she did win an Oscar for "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?," but that was mainly a Richard Burton-Elizabeth Taylor movie. I saw this one night on television sometime after her death, and became a huge fan. Actually, I think I may have seen it several times or more before, and forgot about it. I fell for everybody involved, from the late Sandy Dennis, to Bel Kaufman, to Fred Karlin, who's musical score is one that I'm lucky to possess a copy of, and is long overdue to be re-released on Compact Disc. In addition, I also gained an appreciation for people like Jean Stapelton, and Sorrell Booke, who I previously couldn't think of as anyone else but Edith Bunker, and Boss Hogg, respectively. Patrick Bedford, however, sounded like he was trying to be the new Cary Grant. I was almost ready for him to shout out..."SYLVIA, SYLVIA, SYLVIA!!!" And how about the kids? None of them went on to fame and fortune, except for But Cort, who I still can't spot, but a few of them (Jeff Howard, Jose Rodriguez, Maria Landa, etc.,...) had roles as extras. It's also a shame that Lew Wallach, who played as Lou Martin was never on screen again. He was hilarious.
If you ever see a copy of this movie in a video store, pick it up. I did, and I'm glad.
If you ever see a copy of this movie in a video store, pick it up. I did, and I'm glad.
Every Teacher Should See This Movie!
Sylviastel25 August 2014
I felt that I was watching reality even forty years later. I too aspired to be an English teacher like Sylvia Barrett. Sandy Dennis was a terrific actress and this film shows her ability and wide range. The cast features well known and familiar faces. Sylvia endures a stark reality of the urban teaching world. Schools in the poorest sections of New York City are still under funded. The Calvin Coolidge High School appears more like a prison than a school. The atmosphere reminds me of going to the unemployment office where its grim and depressing. How can anybody believe learning is going on? Of course not, schools are supposed to prepare our students for the future but are terribly let down. Today's students believe technology will solve everything. We can't teach how to think as teachers. This film should be shown to all aspiring teachers about the reality of urban school teaching.
Compulsively watchable Sandy Dennis as naive schoolteacher...
Doylenf28 August 2006
Watching SANDY DENNIS cope with the things any schoolteacher has to deal with when working in an overcrowded city school in the worst part of town, has to seem familiar to all those who've seen GLENN FORD face the same kind of hurdles in the much earlier THE BLACKBOARD JUNGLE.
This time the schoolteacher is a woman, a very naive, well-intended schoolteacher who wants to bring out the best in a classroom full of bored misfits who would rather be anywhere else than school. It's based on a rather sketchy novel by Bel Kaufman, but Tad Mosel's screenplay pulls all the strands together nicely and puts the central focus squarely on Miss Dennis (where it belongs) and her crusade to bring meaning into the lives of some needy students.
Dennis is entirely up to the demands of such a role and gives one of her best portrayals. Eileen Heckart and Jean Stapleton do well in supporting roles but it's Dennis who must carry the film and she does so with honesty, integrity and her own brand of quirky charm. The school atmosphere is well captured with much of the filming done inside a real city school that serves as Calvin Coolidge High School.
Summing up: An altogether winning little film, largely forgotten, that should be more appreciated--still timely and relevant.
This time the schoolteacher is a woman, a very naive, well-intended schoolteacher who wants to bring out the best in a classroom full of bored misfits who would rather be anywhere else than school. It's based on a rather sketchy novel by Bel Kaufman, but Tad Mosel's screenplay pulls all the strands together nicely and puts the central focus squarely on Miss Dennis (where it belongs) and her crusade to bring meaning into the lives of some needy students.
Dennis is entirely up to the demands of such a role and gives one of her best portrayals. Eileen Heckart and Jean Stapleton do well in supporting roles but it's Dennis who must carry the film and she does so with honesty, integrity and her own brand of quirky charm. The school atmosphere is well captured with much of the filming done inside a real city school that serves as Calvin Coolidge High School.
Summing up: An altogether winning little film, largely forgotten, that should be more appreciated--still timely and relevant.
Excellent on every level
greenleafie11 November 2007
Warning: Spoilers
And there are many levels....
The late Sandy Dennis gave a tour de force performance as the rookie teacher who not only enters where angels fear to tread- New York's inner city Calvin Coolidge High School- but also has the guts to retain her compassion against overwhelming odds and even fight a system that would crush her students into urban oblivion. Her Sylvia Barrett is portrayed with nuance and grace that is a real pleasure to see.
The large supporting cast is equally fine: Jeff Howard, as the tragically wasted Joe Ferone; Sorrell Booke, as the wryly humorous school principal, Dr. Bester; Jose Rodriguez, as Jose Rodriguez, the shy boy who quietly soaks in the value his new teacher has to offer. Patrick Bedford, as the frustrated writer, who breaks free of the trap he finds himself in. And there are many, many more.
Tad Mosel's script, based on the best-selling novel by Bel Kaufman, touches a wide range of human situations, dramatic, romantic, humorous. One of my favorite lines: Pupil: (As Miss Barrett instructs her class on taking mid-term exams.) "If you're standing at the back of the room, how do we know who you're watching?" Miss Barrett: (Correcting his grammar.) "Whom. '....Whom I'm watching.'"
Robert Mulligan is a very underrated director with a long string of wonderful films, including To Kill A Mockingbird and The Stalking Moon, but Up The Down Staircase may be his best achievement. He brings together a microcosm of society- people, processes, authority, and the struggle against ignorance- all embodied in one small New York City neighborhood, and offers it up with wisdom and love.
Fred Karlin's highly original musical score provides whimsical counterpoint to the stark realism of the settings (all filmed on location) and reinforces the optimistic theme of the story, and yet retains a funky edginess to underscore the more serious moments of the film. I catch myself humming his tunes now and then.
Sylvia Barrett is just a woman, an individual swept up- and nearly swept away- by the complexities of modern city life. But more than anything else, this movie is about courage- hers and that of her students.
I first saw Up The Down Staircase in '67, when I was in high school, and it's stayed with me ever since. If only I had had a teacher like Syl Barrett! For all its realism, adversity, bureaucracy, and pessimism- and while not epic in scale- Up The Down Staircase remains one of the most inspiring, uplifting shows I know of. A triumph of the human spirit. Very highest rating.
The late Sandy Dennis gave a tour de force performance as the rookie teacher who not only enters where angels fear to tread- New York's inner city Calvin Coolidge High School- but also has the guts to retain her compassion against overwhelming odds and even fight a system that would crush her students into urban oblivion. Her Sylvia Barrett is portrayed with nuance and grace that is a real pleasure to see.
The large supporting cast is equally fine: Jeff Howard, as the tragically wasted Joe Ferone; Sorrell Booke, as the wryly humorous school principal, Dr. Bester; Jose Rodriguez, as Jose Rodriguez, the shy boy who quietly soaks in the value his new teacher has to offer. Patrick Bedford, as the frustrated writer, who breaks free of the trap he finds himself in. And there are many, many more.
Tad Mosel's script, based on the best-selling novel by Bel Kaufman, touches a wide range of human situations, dramatic, romantic, humorous. One of my favorite lines: Pupil: (As Miss Barrett instructs her class on taking mid-term exams.) "If you're standing at the back of the room, how do we know who you're watching?" Miss Barrett: (Correcting his grammar.) "Whom. '....Whom I'm watching.'"
Robert Mulligan is a very underrated director with a long string of wonderful films, including To Kill A Mockingbird and The Stalking Moon, but Up The Down Staircase may be his best achievement. He brings together a microcosm of society- people, processes, authority, and the struggle against ignorance- all embodied in one small New York City neighborhood, and offers it up with wisdom and love.
Fred Karlin's highly original musical score provides whimsical counterpoint to the stark realism of the settings (all filmed on location) and reinforces the optimistic theme of the story, and yet retains a funky edginess to underscore the more serious moments of the film. I catch myself humming his tunes now and then.
Sylvia Barrett is just a woman, an individual swept up- and nearly swept away- by the complexities of modern city life. But more than anything else, this movie is about courage- hers and that of her students.
I first saw Up The Down Staircase in '67, when I was in high school, and it's stayed with me ever since. If only I had had a teacher like Syl Barrett! For all its realism, adversity, bureaucracy, and pessimism- and while not epic in scale- Up The Down Staircase remains one of the most inspiring, uplifting shows I know of. A triumph of the human spirit. Very highest rating.
No Shouting No Swearing No Fighting
moonspinner555 January 2010
Bel Kaufman's book concerning the frazzled first term for an idealistic young schoolteacher in a tough, underfunded New York high school becomes literate, if unexciting dramatic film. Sandy Dennis (indeed frazzled, but with a firm jaw) slowly gains control of her homeroom, which is full of the usual rabble rousers and teenage clichés: the apple-polisher, the quiet kid awaiting a breakthrough, the lonely poetry-lover, the tough kid in his leather jacket, the racial hothead, the class clown, et al. Those in the administration and faculty are predictable cut-outs as well, and the actors (though well-cast) cannot overcome their overly-pointed vignettes with such facile dialogue (as with the librarian complaining about an overdue book checked out by a student who attempted suicide). Once our heroine announces her intended resignation, all we have left to wait for is one student to tell her she's made a difference. It's terribly well-meaning, but not very cognizant of honest human behavior. We can chart Dennis' progress and growth as a teacher, but we never get to know her personally (and this seems deliberate). One can easily read a book while the film is on and still catch all the programmed nuances it carefully slips in. **1/2 from ****
Great Drama
someinfo15 January 2003
Reminds me of the wonderful movie "To Sir, with Love" starring Sidney Poitier, which came out one year earlier in 1966. Both have an academic setting and emphasize reaching difficult young adults through intellect and respect. The direction and the script on this one is somewhat darker, and scenes are allowed to build up suspense with realistic danger that comes very close to the edge. The film explores the spectrum of student characters and the delicate balance a teacher has with both students and faculty. A very hard to find film, I've seen it only once just after midnight and commercial free on a highly rated classic movie channel, Turner Classic Movies. I highly recommend at least one viewing of this great drama.
Unrealistic by today's problems with public schools
imbluzclooby16 May 2009
As a former teacher in Title 1 School Districts I can attest that this movie fails to mirror reality on numerous levels. With "Up the Downstair case" we have simply established a meek, fragile and naive teacher attempting to begin her teacher career in a rough inner-city school district. Perspicously this is a fish out of water story where an idealistic person ventures into a realm far alien to her natural element. So the intrigue is to see how her challenges unfold in an environment filled with reprobates, corrupt faculty and chaos.
In the end the ultimate conclusion brings forth a committed and dedicated soul who feels the altruistic need to nurture these young dregs. And when the situation arises she can rise to the occasion and make a difference in the lives of some people. Sandy Dennis is one of those actresses that always seems to be suffering from some form of anemia, as if she always has a cold. The casting is correct when you match her slight, waspish, and frail appearance next to the coarse creatures who inhabit the school, and she does look very out of place. Although her performance was admirable I didn't find it realistic nor believable that she could have subsisted an entire year in those conditions.
Inner city schools today are literally hopeless and an anathema to American society. Completely dysfunctional and replete with juvenile delinquents, Title 1 schools are virtually gang lands where decadent and anti-social behavior breed. Up the downstair case barely scratches the surfaces of today's problems and conundrums pervading our urban landscapes. I am still waiting for a film that will accurately display an honest, forthright and succinct story where viewers can see the truth. The Principal (1987) with James Belushi focused more on the violence and ever present dangers in inner city schools, unfortunately a bit over the top it captures the feel and environment more truthfully. Up the Downstair case may be a valiant effort on one level of idealism, but it fails to present the real picture.
In the end the ultimate conclusion brings forth a committed and dedicated soul who feels the altruistic need to nurture these young dregs. And when the situation arises she can rise to the occasion and make a difference in the lives of some people. Sandy Dennis is one of those actresses that always seems to be suffering from some form of anemia, as if she always has a cold. The casting is correct when you match her slight, waspish, and frail appearance next to the coarse creatures who inhabit the school, and she does look very out of place. Although her performance was admirable I didn't find it realistic nor believable that she could have subsisted an entire year in those conditions.
Inner city schools today are literally hopeless and an anathema to American society. Completely dysfunctional and replete with juvenile delinquents, Title 1 schools are virtually gang lands where decadent and anti-social behavior breed. Up the downstair case barely scratches the surfaces of today's problems and conundrums pervading our urban landscapes. I am still waiting for a film that will accurately display an honest, forthright and succinct story where viewers can see the truth. The Principal (1987) with James Belushi focused more on the violence and ever present dangers in inner city schools, unfortunately a bit over the top it captures the feel and environment more truthfully. Up the Downstair case may be a valiant effort on one level of idealism, but it fails to present the real picture.
Loved this Movie
hdianep10 May 2018
I loved this movie, I watched it two times in two days as I dvr'd it from TCM. After watching it I ordered the book and purchased the movie. Sandy Dennis was so endearing in her role. It was so good that I also had to look up all of the actors and read their history and backgrounds etc. I usually do not go so overboard but this movie caught ahold of me. I was only two years old when it was released and do not know how I have gone for so long without seeing it but so glad I ran across it. You will not be disappointed with it. There were some familiar faces in the movie such as Jean Stapleton, Sorrell Booke and even Bernice from Fish :)
Fair but unoriginal story
encyes14 May 2019
Sandy Dennis is wonderfully sweet, innocent, naïve, optimistic and down-trodden in this 1967 movie about a young female English teacher in an inner-city New York high school. The theme I'm sure has been done a thousand times before, but Dennis' acting gives a nice freshness to the story. However, it's the story that bring this film down. With so many subplots, it's not surprising that many of them are not finished up by the end of the film - or was that the point? The gritty sixties look is what makes this movie, and I dare anyone to not roll their eyes or giggle at the running gag of bureaucratic paperwork that fills so many scenes. It's worth a watch, but don't expect any great storyline. Although it feels very much like the pilot to a series, it's more of a young woman's graduation to fitting in - as well as the faculty's anguish and acceptance - to a dilapidated school system than that of any of the students moving on.
Phony novel by unethical teacher makes stupid movie
max von meyerling8 April 2009
Warning: Spoilers
The writer of the source material for this film, the novel UP THE DOWN STAIRCASE, Bel Kaufman, was Yiddish author Sholem Aleichem's granddaughter. She was also the film's "technical adviser". She was my home room and English teacher at Taft High School in The Bronx circa 1960. Decades later when she was interviewed she admitted that she deliberately ignored the boys in her classes so she could concentrate on teaching the girls. Only the girls.
Ms. Technical Adviser permitted the dreadful lie that she taught in some "inner city hell" of a school. Taft at the time was located one block from the Grand Concourse that hadn't even begun the long slide to become the notorious South Bronx. Neither phrase, "inner city" nor "South Bronx" had yet been invented. In fact in the mid sixties a huge Jewish center (now the Bronx Museum of the Arts) and the Executive Towers co-op, the tall white building seen in the background of shots taken from behind home plate at Yankee Stadium, were built. It was a comfortable, middle class Jewish neighborhood. The idea that there were all these tough, armed kids roaming the halls was pure crap. The real tough kids were shipped out to other schools such as the all-boys DeWitt Clinton or a technical High School like Evander Childs. The really tough High Schools in The Bronx were located in the east Bronx or below 149th St.
Anyway, in the world of Hollywood films the dedicated teacher must be fighting their way up hill against dead head thug students from underprivileged background who, well some of them, become enlightened. We can celebrate her successes but recognize that, sadly, she can't reach everyone. What crap. That's every teacher movie (except the sensitive bullied boy/girl in boarding school movie).
The story revolves around a male teacher whom a shy, overweight girl student is infatuated with. He returns her plaintive love note to her corrected for grammar and spelling. The girl commits suicide by jumping off the roof. The male teacher is the designated villain. According to today's ethics he behaves faultlessly. If the novel and film were to be rewritten today the girl would be killing herself because she was sexually assaulted by the male teacher. Of course he is nothing but the designated villain. Whatever terrible thing would send an impressionable girl spinning to her doom is to be ascribed to the "evil" man. Whatever it would take to move the script the man is the designated villain. So very much like the man-hating castrating author of the piece. So many of the teachers in this era in The Bronx must have been like this but never so celebrated so that their confessions years later were not recorded as was Kaufman's. This generation of women, because of prejudice, went to Hunter and not Harvard, became schoolteachers and not something more glamorous or remunerative. Only a few, I imagine, were as unethical as Bel Kaufman, to take it out on their male students and make a male teacher the ethically challenged villain of their novel.
The phoniness of the novel was multiplied again by the dishonesty of the film script set in some cliché "inner city" Hell Hole High, as if a teacher's profession were ignoble unless inspiring "at risk youth" from "underprivileged" backgrounds. The book and the movie are both crap, an advertisement and not literature, propaganda and not a film. A lie from beginning to end.
Ms. Technical Adviser permitted the dreadful lie that she taught in some "inner city hell" of a school. Taft at the time was located one block from the Grand Concourse that hadn't even begun the long slide to become the notorious South Bronx. Neither phrase, "inner city" nor "South Bronx" had yet been invented. In fact in the mid sixties a huge Jewish center (now the Bronx Museum of the Arts) and the Executive Towers co-op, the tall white building seen in the background of shots taken from behind home plate at Yankee Stadium, were built. It was a comfortable, middle class Jewish neighborhood. The idea that there were all these tough, armed kids roaming the halls was pure crap. The real tough kids were shipped out to other schools such as the all-boys DeWitt Clinton or a technical High School like Evander Childs. The really tough High Schools in The Bronx were located in the east Bronx or below 149th St.
Anyway, in the world of Hollywood films the dedicated teacher must be fighting their way up hill against dead head thug students from underprivileged background who, well some of them, become enlightened. We can celebrate her successes but recognize that, sadly, she can't reach everyone. What crap. That's every teacher movie (except the sensitive bullied boy/girl in boarding school movie).
The story revolves around a male teacher whom a shy, overweight girl student is infatuated with. He returns her plaintive love note to her corrected for grammar and spelling. The girl commits suicide by jumping off the roof. The male teacher is the designated villain. According to today's ethics he behaves faultlessly. If the novel and film were to be rewritten today the girl would be killing herself because she was sexually assaulted by the male teacher. Of course he is nothing but the designated villain. Whatever terrible thing would send an impressionable girl spinning to her doom is to be ascribed to the "evil" man. Whatever it would take to move the script the man is the designated villain. So very much like the man-hating castrating author of the piece. So many of the teachers in this era in The Bronx must have been like this but never so celebrated so that their confessions years later were not recorded as was Kaufman's. This generation of women, because of prejudice, went to Hunter and not Harvard, became schoolteachers and not something more glamorous or remunerative. Only a few, I imagine, were as unethical as Bel Kaufman, to take it out on their male students and make a male teacher the ethically challenged villain of their novel.
The phoniness of the novel was multiplied again by the dishonesty of the film script set in some cliché "inner city" Hell Hole High, as if a teacher's profession were ignoble unless inspiring "at risk youth" from "underprivileged" backgrounds. The book and the movie are both crap, an advertisement and not literature, propaganda and not a film. A lie from beginning to end.
A Breath of Fresh Air (from 32 years ago!!!)
Freak-3017 October 1999
It's hard to compare this movie with other films of the genre. "The Principal", "Dangerous Minds", "Lean on Me", and "Stand and Deliver" really don't have much in common with UtDS. Nevertheless, this film is very good and Sandy Dennis is outstanding as the young teacher who is starting out in a tough New York City high school.
What makes UtDS unique is that there's no focus on gang fights, or ghetto culture, or the teachers' private lives. Instead, the story focuses almost entirely on the classroom. More specifically, it focuses on an English teacher (Dennis) and her students. That may seem boring, but this movie is anything but. The student characters are well developed and their relationships with each other, their parents, their teachers, and the school administrators are extremely realistic.
Anyone who is tired of the mindless, inhuman **** being shown in multiplexes all over America should give this film a look. It'll be a breath of fresh air. It's a positive, intelligent, engrossing story.
Unfortunately, it's not likely to be in your local video store. But if you should have the rare opportunity of seeing UtDS - perhaps on premium cable or on a VHS tape from a public library - you will not be disappointed!
What makes UtDS unique is that there's no focus on gang fights, or ghetto culture, or the teachers' private lives. Instead, the story focuses almost entirely on the classroom. More specifically, it focuses on an English teacher (Dennis) and her students. That may seem boring, but this movie is anything but. The student characters are well developed and their relationships with each other, their parents, their teachers, and the school administrators are extremely realistic.
Anyone who is tired of the mindless, inhuman **** being shown in multiplexes all over America should give this film a look. It'll be a breath of fresh air. It's a positive, intelligent, engrossing story.
Unfortunately, it's not likely to be in your local video store. But if you should have the rare opportunity of seeing UtDS - perhaps on premium cable or on a VHS tape from a public library - you will not be disappointed!
UP THE DOWN STAIRCASE (Robert Mulligan, 1967) **1/2
Bunuel19764 January 2009
Having watched the film, it seems quite appropriate now that during one of its key sequences, schoolteacher Sandy Dennis is guiding her unruly English literature students through the famously antithetical opening of Charles Dickens' "A Tale Of Two Cities". That's because the sheer glossiness of UP THE DOWN STAIRCASE makes its intended 'realistic' portrayal of the American school system self-defeatingly superficial. On the other hand, however, its cliché-ridden narrative the troubled class punk is truly a highly intelligent individual, a sensitive soul bearing an unrequited love for the school's playboy-teacher attempts suicide, a painfully shy student finally blossoms into a flamboyant actor, the schoolteacher eventually sticks her neck out for her put-upon students but, ungratefully, almost gets 'raped' into the bargain, she is about to quit her job but, naturally, thinks better of it at the end, etc. is actually what makes it enjoyable viewing. It also helps that Sandy Dennis is very good in the lead, as she herself gains confidence in her dealings with the kids as the film moves along (to Fred Karlin's playful score).
A truly fantastic film
ailsagirl10 August 2004
What can I say? I read the book and enjoyed it. I saw the film and absolutely fell in love with it. I loved Sandy Dennis and her unique method of acting-- yes, I know she sometimes stammered, but don't we all in "real life?" I give high marks for Mulligan's directing because the movie had so many wonderful facets: it could be funny, it could be disturbing, and it could be so moving. The penultimate scene with Jose in the auditorium was so touching, so meaningful, and yet so simple. But exceedingly powerful. I found myself relating to Dennis in every way. Her bewilderment at The System, her deep desire to reach her students, her frustration, her idealism, her disappointment. And, when she finally experiences a victory, her sincere gratification. One reviewer called the film "slick." I don't at all agree. It was subtle, meaningful, and true. And the other actors did such a superb job of acting that it all seemed unscripted. There was no sex, nudity, swearing-- none of the things that today's movies are so laden with. I have a theory that these gimmicks are used for shock value, as filler, or to cover up the inadequacies of the film makers. You can tell that those who made this film were classically educated because the movie's foundation was strong and true. There wasn't a wasted line nor a meaningless exchange. Just full, rich film making at its finest!! Make no mistake: a film needn't be an action thriller or sexy to be compelling. I'm disappointed by today's movies because they lack something: heart, soul, meaning-- I'm not sure-- but I liken them to "cinematic junk food." So if you like pure cinema, see this film. (I don't think there's any comparison to "To Sir With Love," by the way. The latter was entertaining, but that was about it.)
Better than its Successors: Up The Down Staircase
arthur_tafero22 February 2022
Several films have featured teachers as a central figure in cinema. Recently, I had occasion to view Teachers with Nick Nolte, which was quite lively, but no more rewarding than watching Up the Down Staircase for a second time. Sandy Dennis is not one of my favorite actresses, but this and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf are her two best efforts. This film is actually a tad better than Teachers made in 1984, about another NYC high school. It is better because the performances are understated and more realistic. Even the teacher room in this film is more realistic than Teacher, made 17 years later. Both films get their point across that American cares far more about its school budgets, test scores, and covering one's own ass, rather than caring about the students learning. I speak as a teacher with over 40 years experience. This film gets it.
Robert Mulligan directed 1967
sjanders-8643015 November 2021
Calvin Coolidge High is the setting for Sandy Dennis first year teaching. The kids are racially mixed. One girl Ellen O'Mara falls for her English teacher. Another Jeff Howard has a high IQ but can't focus. Harry A. Kagan the class president wears a suit every day.
Jean Stapleton smothers the school in paper work. Patrick Badford corrects grammar instead of talking to the amorous student. Eileen Heckart the guidance counselor has a tricky system that categorizes the students. Up the down staircase means Dennis is new to teaching and uses the wrong staircase.
Tale of Two Cities is her breakthrough moment with her class who suddenly realize their lives can be both awful and wonderful simultaneously.
After a close call with Jeff Howard she thinks of resigning.
Then a mock trial changes her mind.
Sandy Dennis is like Celia Johnson in Brief Encounter; so natural one forgets she is acting.
Jean Stapleton smothers the school in paper work. Patrick Badford corrects grammar instead of talking to the amorous student. Eileen Heckart the guidance counselor has a tricky system that categorizes the students. Up the down staircase means Dennis is new to teaching and uses the wrong staircase.
Tale of Two Cities is her breakthrough moment with her class who suddenly realize their lives can be both awful and wonderful simultaneously.
After a close call with Jeff Howard she thinks of resigning.
Then a mock trial changes her mind.
Sandy Dennis is like Celia Johnson in Brief Encounter; so natural one forgets she is acting.
Determined rookie high school teach experiences boot camp in an inner city school
weezeralfalfa5 June 2019
Warning: Spoilers
Sandy Dennis, as Sylvia Barrett, is a new teacher at Calvin Coolidge High School in inner NYC. As principle Dr. Bester articulates, there are certainly better schools in NYC, but there are also worse. Symbolizing her disorientation during her first day on the job, she tries to get on an elevator, but is told it's only for teachers, she being perceived as a student. Thereupon, she finds an empty staircase, and begins to ascend it. However, she meets Dr. Bester(Sorrel Booke) coming down the stairs, who admonishes her that this is the down staircase, a point soon reinforced by a horde of students coming down, almost trampling her..........Towaard the end of the film, when Sylvia makes known to Dr. Bester her desire to resign her position as English teacher, at the end of the semester, Bester tells her that she is a born teacher. She complains that she doesn't think she is getting through to the students, and perhaps would be happier at a private school, where the students hopefully would be more receptive. However, an event occurred that made her change her mind at the last minute, for better or worse. She was supervising a mock trial, in which Jose, a very shy, nonparticipating boy, was chosen as the judge. Very surprisingly, he made a forceful impression, wearing a graduation cap and gown to add to the perception of authority. Afterward, he remarked that he regarded Sylvia's class as his favorite. Thus, she felt she had gotten through to at least one student, and tore up her resignation form. Perhaps with more experience, she could get through to more?........Among the other faculty she conversed with, the most important was Paul Berringer(Patrick Bedford), outspoken head of the English department, and a frustrated wanna be writer. Don't know if he was single, but during his various contacts with Sylvia, I got the impression he was trying to flirt with her. However, their relationship was severely tested over an incident where one of Sylvia's students: a homely, love-starved studious girl, had a crush on Berringer, and didn't know how to tell him except through a love letter she left in his pigeon hole. He told her to see him after classes. He only commented on her grammar mistakes, without comment on the content: a slap in the face. She waited until his classroom was empty, then jumped out the window, apparently surviving, with serious injury. Dr. Bester called a conference. Both he and Sylvia were appalled that he didn't even comment on the purpose of the note, saying something positive, but not encouraging an affair. If allowed, I think I would have held her hand while commenting. as the best compromise(She did dance with him at a school dance). Sylvia avoided speaking to him the next time they met. Quite bizarrely, he broke into her class, and proceeded to spout various points of philosophy, especially toward reading, and writing........Sylvia had to deal with a handsome student who was on probation. She complemented him on his good grade(86) on his last exam. When the VP (Roy Poole, as Mr. McHabe) expressed the opinion that he must have cheated, she defended him. Unfortunately, he got the impression she might have some romantic feelings toward him. He caught her alone in her classroom, turned out the lights, and advanced toward her. A half kiss is all he extracted from her, being rather timid.(censors?.).......Sylvia had several run-ins with Dr. McHabe, not unexpectedly. In the beginning, she was disappointed that common materials, such as chalk, were in short supply or non-existent, and that it was weeks before the text books would be delivered. I didn't detect any ethnic problems in the classroom, perhaps because there was such a variety. However, she had to signoff for an African American boy who was dropping out. His explanation was that his brother had graduated, but whites took each job he applied for. His love was fixing up cars, and he couldn't see how English classes would help with that.........I didn't notice any of Sandy's said quirky mannerisms. However, her classroom persona was often guarded, understandably so. She seldom smiled in class. She lacked the natural smiley face that many young women have. Her mouth was rather small; however, I did find her upper overbite moderately sexy, along with her dirty blond hair, arranged in an attractive way.
Public School in 60s
slicksilly18 November 2001
I just saw this movie on Turner Classic Movies channel and I was drawn in by the gritty look and feel of the movie, as well as the tough guy attitudes of many of the students and the pretty new naive teacher that cares about them. Sandy Dennis is very cute and appealing to my eyes in this role. You almost expect that something really bad is going to happen to her in this South Philly style environment during the turbulent 60's. All innocence is lost by this time in our history, and student uprising was part of the American culture. But, the movie takes you through the hallways, loud bells, and unruly classroom environment that students and teachers face daily at Calvin Coolidge high in a typical diverse middle lower to lower middle class neighborhood in the city. The principal does a good job of not taking flak from the students and the teacher is pushed to the edge of tolerance. An interesting and memorable film. Fab
My fave book, but film has no humor
eoswaldbigred20 February 2023
This is my all time favorite book. I've read it more times than I can count. I have never laughed out loud more reading any other book. I finally had the chance to see the film version. It is almost completely devoid of the humor of the novel. That's not to say that it's a bad film - Sandy Dennis was an amazing actress and she surrounded here by many better-known character actors. The drama is still there. The craziness that inner city teachers had to deal with even back in the 1960s is still there. But there is zero humor and that is what made the novel great. The book is uniquely written in that it is made up of school memos, notes in the teacher's suggestion box, papers the students have written, letters the teacher writes to her college mentor, with hilarious results. The ridiculous way in which the school is managed is mostly missing from this film as well. The pathos is there, the direction, the poignancy, but the humor that is the heart of the novel is gone and it leaves the film sadly lacking.
Well-done comedy drama
preppy-323 April 2018
Sandy Dennis plays a young teacher who is assigned to an inner city school in NYC in the early 1960s. You see here deal with tons of red tape at the school and students who don't care.
Based on a 1964 book written by an actual NYC teacher. The tone of the film (and book) is light but it doesn't ignore the problems the students have. It offers no solutions but brings up some interesting questions. Shot at an actual NYC high school during the summer break which helps lead realism to the movie. All the acting is excellent.
Based on a 1964 book written by an actual NYC teacher. The tone of the film (and book) is light but it doesn't ignore the problems the students have. It offers no solutions but brings up some interesting questions. Shot at an actual NYC high school during the summer break which helps lead realism to the movie. All the acting is excellent.
Will Inner City Blues Make Sylvia Wanna Holler?
wes-connors30 October 2010
Idealistic young Sandy Dennis (as Sylvia Barrett) gets her first teaching job, as an English and homeroom teacher at "Calvin Coolidge High School" in New York City. She can quote Emily Dickinson and Charles Dickens, but Ms. Dennis not prepared for an overcrowded and unruly classroom. Dennis gets some of the stereotypical students you've seen, probably, in more movies than high schools. Additionally, she must contend with shrill office secretary Jean Stapleton (as Sadie Finch) shouting orders demanding paperwork; and, everyone has to listen to what has to be the worst bell you will ever hear in a high school setting. No wonder Dennis goes "Up the Down Staircase"...
Eileen Heckart, Ruth White, and Frances Sternhagen are credible school personnel. Outstanding (in more ways than one, as he doesn't arrive in time to claim one of the classroom's limited seats) is handsome Jeff Howard (as Joe Ferone), a misunderstood delinquent who mistakes Dennis' teacherly interest as sexual. Also notable is awkward Ellen O'Mara (as Alice Blake), who has a crush on frustrated writer-turned-teacher Patrick Bedford (as Paul Barringer). Highly intelligent and ethnic, but low academic performers fill in other seats. The students call Dennis "Teach" (that's short for "Teacher") derisively, as the school year rolls along...
Warner Bros. must have had high hopes for "Up the Down Staircase", with accomplished director Robert Mulligan steering Sandy Dennis immediately after her award-winning performance in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966). Unfortunately, this film was blown out of the theaters by Columbia Picture's immensely popular Sidney Poitier film "To Sir, with Love", which was released almost simultaneously. Another problem was the fact that the high school teenagers in "Up the Down Staircase" do not possess the level of infectious juvenile delinquent appeal present in "To Sir, with Love", "Blackboard Jungle" (1955), and others...
"Up the Down Staircase" was entered in Moscow's film festival, where its depiction of slummy American schooling enjoyed guarded praised. Ms. Dennis received "Best Actress" nominations from the "Film Daily" (she placed third) and the "New York Film Critics" (she placed seventh). Moody newcomers Jeff Howard and Ellen O'Mara received "Film Daily" nominations in the juvenile award category, and the trade publication placed the film itself at #7 for the year. Definitely a passing grade.
****** Up the Down Staircase (7/19/67) Robert Mulligan ~ Sandy Dennis, Patrick Bedford, Jeff Howard, Eileen Heckart
Eileen Heckart, Ruth White, and Frances Sternhagen are credible school personnel. Outstanding (in more ways than one, as he doesn't arrive in time to claim one of the classroom's limited seats) is handsome Jeff Howard (as Joe Ferone), a misunderstood delinquent who mistakes Dennis' teacherly interest as sexual. Also notable is awkward Ellen O'Mara (as Alice Blake), who has a crush on frustrated writer-turned-teacher Patrick Bedford (as Paul Barringer). Highly intelligent and ethnic, but low academic performers fill in other seats. The students call Dennis "Teach" (that's short for "Teacher") derisively, as the school year rolls along...
Warner Bros. must have had high hopes for "Up the Down Staircase", with accomplished director Robert Mulligan steering Sandy Dennis immediately after her award-winning performance in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966). Unfortunately, this film was blown out of the theaters by Columbia Picture's immensely popular Sidney Poitier film "To Sir, with Love", which was released almost simultaneously. Another problem was the fact that the high school teenagers in "Up the Down Staircase" do not possess the level of infectious juvenile delinquent appeal present in "To Sir, with Love", "Blackboard Jungle" (1955), and others...
"Up the Down Staircase" was entered in Moscow's film festival, where its depiction of slummy American schooling enjoyed guarded praised. Ms. Dennis received "Best Actress" nominations from the "Film Daily" (she placed third) and the "New York Film Critics" (she placed seventh). Moody newcomers Jeff Howard and Ellen O'Mara received "Film Daily" nominations in the juvenile award category, and the trade publication placed the film itself at #7 for the year. Definitely a passing grade.
****** Up the Down Staircase (7/19/67) Robert Mulligan ~ Sandy Dennis, Patrick Bedford, Jeff Howard, Eileen Heckart
Dated drivel from fantasyland!
hemisphere65-16 December 2021
Incredibly unrealistic situations and cardboard cut-out characters, none worse than the "unpublished writer" English teacher played by Bedford.
This entire movie is best viewed as a straight comedy, in which case it is much funnier than the appalling "Teachers" from the 80s!
Don't waste your time watching this, or "To Sir, with Love" either. That one might be worse!
This entire movie is best viewed as a straight comedy, in which case it is much funnier than the appalling "Teachers" from the 80s!
Don't waste your time watching this, or "To Sir, with Love" either. That one might be worse!
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