You won't be disappointed!

Touches You

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

My wife told me I had to watch this movie with her because of how good it was. She was right! Front of the Class tells the inspiring story of Brad Cohen, based on the real life person. Brad (played by TV actor James Wolk) grows up in a broken family after his mom and dad divorce. Since his youth, Brad started making uncontrollable odd noises at random, with no ability to control them. His Mom, played wonderfully by Patricia Heaton (Raymond TV series), won't take the doctor's diagnosis of basically no explanation. She digs and digs and discovers Tourette's Syndrome, a neurological disease, with no cure. With unbelievable love and patience, much like Sally Fields in Forest Gump, she supports and encourages her son to pursue his dream of becoming a teacher.Brad goes through a tough time that demonstrates the ignorance of supposedly educated human beings as he interviews over and over for jobs in the education field. He has all the credentials from his studies - he needs a break.The film nicely weaves back and forth between the young Brad dealing with people not accepting him then, versus adults not accepting him as he's an adult. I can only imagine how frustrating this must have been.The movie also weaves in a complicated father/son relationship, nicely delivered by Treat Williams, a very strong performance. The ending will have you cheering, so yes, Hallmark movies are sappy. But this one will give you a nice warm heart. It's a perfect holiday movie to pick up your spirit and give you hope for a better world.See Front of the Class - you will enjoy it!

1. Frequently in films where the same character is shown as a child and an adult, the two actors bear little resemblance to each other. In this movie, the two actors who play Brad as a child and as an adult looked remarkably alike.2. Young Brad seldom smiled, and often hung his head in sorrow/self-pity. The older Brad never quit smiling and laughing. The personality change was perhaps a bit too much? 3. Before I watched the movie, I said to myself, "A Hallmark Hall of Fame movie about an elementary teacher. Hmmm. Bet one of the cutest, most vivacious children turns out to have a fatal disease." Sure enough.Goodness, folks, the film twanged our heartstrings aplenty without THAT.

This is a really good story and made nicely into this TV movie. It is based on a real person. We saw it on DVD from our public library.Jimmy Wolk is grown up Brad Cohen, new college graduate, attempting to get a job as a teacher in Atlanta. He knows it will be difficult because most school administrators don't believe he can be effective in the classroom with his verbal ticks. But he doesn't give up easily and vows to apply at every school in the greater Atlanta area.Also very effective is young Dominic Scott Kay as the Young Brad Cohen, perhaps 10 or 11. We see the difficulties he has at school and also within his family. For years the doctors missed the diagnosis, they just thought he was hyperactive and made noises for attention. Only Patricia Heaton as his mother, Ellen Cohen, believed her son. On her own she went to the library and read medical books until she came up with Tourette.Brad's family was fractured, he grew up in St Louis while his father, Treat Williams as Norman Cohen, re-married and moved to Atlanta where he was in the construction business. Acceptance by his father was always an issue with Brad.Dating was always a problem with Brad but when he met Sarah Drew as Nancy Lazarus things turned around. She accepted him for who he is, a very smart and generous person, and they were able to build a life together.A very good movie, even though I was sleepy when I started to watch it I never became sleepy as the movie played.SPOILERS: Brad eventually received a return interview and at a progressive school was hired as a 2nd grade teacher. He discussed Tourette openly when his students asked and allowed them to ask any question. Not only was he accepted and loved by the students, he also was able to reach a young troublemaker and turn him around. At the end of the school year he was chosen as the best rookie teacher in the state of Georgia.

One common denominator of most films dealing with schoolteachers, they're usually quite good but are totally unrealistic. "Front of the Class" falls into this category.Marvelously staged with a wonderful cast, the film deals with a young man afflicted with Tourette's Syndrome who wishes to teach.Based on a true story, the film chronicles the life of Brad Cohen from childhood, where he meets up with unsympathetic teachers. (Naturally, how can they maintain order by having his noises allowed in class?)His father, stoically played by Treat Williams, can't accept the problem and is divorced from mom, Patricia Heaton. Heaton is the diligent mother who researches Tourette's when no one is willing to admit that young Brad is suffering from this illness. Even if they knew, the so called experts don't know how to handle the situation. When Heaton takes Brad to a support group, she quickly pulls him out after hearing a parent saying that schooling these children is a complete waste of time.Of course, Brad grows up wanting to be a teacher to show that all children can learn and to show that he is the teacher who can accomplish this, while giving the dig that none of his teachers ever understood him. Brad, they may have understood you but they had other children to deal with.After getting the run-around, Brad finally lands a job teaching 2nd graders when the assistant principal nudges the principal to hire this young man despite his handicap.Wonderfully, most of the children in the class cooperate while one exceptional child in the class is dying from cancer. Interesting to note that a veteran teacher in the grade "dumped" her most unruly student on Mr. Cohen. Naturally, he is able to handle him because he "understands" him. If only Mr. Cohen came into an urban classroom and saw the realities of the situation.I guess that Mr. Cohen succeeds because he is the most disruptive influence in the class. The film tries to build bridges and urge cooperation and understanding with people having physical handicaps. If society as a whole were only so tolerant, what a perfect world we'd live in.