Cameo Cinemas

The Story

WINNER – KARLOVY VARY FILM FESTIVAL – BEST ACTRESSFrom Oscar-nominated writer/director Jan Hrebejk (Divided We Fall), THE TEACHER is a wildly entertaining black comedy inspired by the true story of a Communist-era school teacher who manipulated her pupils and their families for unprecedented personal gain.The early 1980s, Czechoslovakia. It’s the start of a new term at a suburban high school, and the seemingly empathetic new teacher Maria Drazdechova (Zuzana Maurery) greets her class. Soon after, she begins to pressure both students and parents by seeking personal favours. The rules are simple: you help her out, your children do well. You don't? Well, life can be hard for those deemed enemies of the state. But when a serious incident finally draws her unscrupulous behavior to the attention of her colleagues, the principal calls a secret meeting, seeking parents to sign a petition to move “Comrade Drazdechova" on from the school. But her high connections with the Communist Party hang above everyone in the room, and it’s soon evident that standing up for what’s right may be much easier said than done.