A college professor lives his life with reckless abandon after being diagnosed with a terminal illness.
Johnny Depp can give an exquisite performance when he wants to. Let’s forget about all of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies for now, although he’s always been fun to watch in those. Think of his performances in “Black Mass,” “Public Enemies,” “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” and “Finding Neverland,” to name but a few. Go back even further to films like “Blow,” “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” and “Donnie Brasco,” and they should jog your memory to remind you that Mr. Depp is one hell of an actor. Of course, how can we forget his first big-screen appearance in Wes Craven’s classic, “A Nightmare on Elm Street”?
In “The Professor,” Mr. Depp plays Richard Brown, a college lecturer who finds out he only has a few months left to live after been diagnosed with Stage 4 Lung Cancer. Although he is still married to his wife Veronica (Rosemarie DeWitt) and they both live at home with their twenty-something daughter Olivia (Odessa Young), their relationship is strained and has been for a very long time. At dinner one evening, Richard plans on telling his wife and daughter the bad news but they both dominate the conversation with Olivia disclosing that she is gay and Veronica admitting to Richard that she is having an affair with the Dean of the college where they both teach. With neither Richard nor Veronica having been intimate in years, Richard decides to live the remainder of his short life the way he wants to and tells Veronica that she can sleep with whomever she wants and that he can do the same, but for Olivia’s sake, they both agree to be discreet.
From this point forward, Richard throws everything he’s ever learned out the window and starts over from scratch. He tells his English class that if any of them want to leave, they can do so and they will get an automatic C. If they stay and put forth some effort, a C+. And if they stay till the end of the semester and manage to survive, a B. Granted, they will get higher marks if they actually do what he asks of them but he takes all of his teaching techniques and flushes them down the toilet. Utilizing sarcasm and humor to offset anything that reminds him of his diagnosis, he continues to push family and friends away as he resorts to smoking marijuana and drinking on school property.
When Henry (Ron Livingston), the college Dean, tries to lecture him on his objectionable behavior, Richard shuts him down by letting him know of the affair he is having with his wife and if he wants to keep it quiet, he will sign off on a sabbatical that will allow him to spend his final days in peace, far away from the college and everyone in it. Richard continues to live by his own rules, drinking, smoking, having sex with whomever he wants, but gradually, his condition worsens, and he slowly comes to the realization that he is really dying, the dialogue he received from his doctor wasn’t just empty talk, it pertained to him, specifically to him, but he chose to ignore it and now he must face the music.
As he slowly comprehends that his time is running out, he embraces the rest of the school year clear-headed. Choosing to forego chemotherapy and cancer medication, he opens up to his class and teaches them the importance of living, and of cherishing every minute, big and small. As he looks back over his own life and the choices he made and the decisions he could have made, he realizes that he was capable of doing so much more.
Mr. Depp takes what could have been a one-dimensional, stereotypical character and imbues him with assured confidence and a neverending supply of hilarious cynicism, guaranteeing he will always have a pithy comeback for whatever comes his way. Danny Huston plays Richard’s best friend Peter and it is so refreshing to see him play a nice guy, as he typically plays the villain in shows like “Yellowstone” and in movies like “30 Days of Night” and the forthcoming Gerard Butler action pic, “Angel Has Fallen.” When Richard finally tells him about his diagnosis, Peter does his best to keep strong, for the two of them, as Richard will never admit it. He regards Richard as his closest friend but also a brilliant human being and his fondness and affection for him is obvious from the very first scene and Richard knows this and thanks him for always being there for him.
In the end, “The Professor” offers nothing new to this particular genre that hasn’t been done a thousand times before but it is the performances from the entire cast that elevate it above mediocrity. Writer/Director Wayne Roberts lays all his cards out on the table for you to look at so while you can see what’s coming a mile away, he occasionally manages to covertly slip in an unexpected card that you don’t see coming, and this piques your interest enough to want to see more.
Available on Blu-ray™ (plus Digital), DVD and Digital July 9th from Lionsgate
