Stand and Deliver

Edward James Olmos portrays the real-life Jaime Escalante, a no-nonsense mathematic teacher in a tough East LA high school. Handed a classroom full of "losers" and "unteachables," Escalante is determined to turn his young charges' lives around. Drawing from his own cultural heritage, Escalante forms ...more

Forsaking cornball sentimentality for a straight-ahead depiction of its subject, this true-life drama from PBS's superb American Playhouse not surprisingly plays a bit too much like a made-for-television movie, or even an adaptation of a play. Despite this drawback, the film's not-so-secret weapon is an awfully impressive one: A legendary, Oscar-nominated performance from star Edward James Olmos, who "delivers" easily the best work of his journeyman career, transforming his figure, face, hair, ...more