By Popular Demand — THE LAST CLASS is a nuanced and deeply personal portrait of master educator Robert Reich teaching his final course and reflecting on a period of immense transformation, personally and globally. It is a love letter to education. The former Secretary of Labor might be famous for his public service, best-selling books and viral social media posts, but he always considered teaching his true calling. Now, after over 40 years and an extraordinary 40,000 students, Reich is preparing for his last class.
“All in all, it’s heartening to hear a major figure in American political history talking about the future as if it might actually happen.” —Matt Zoller Seitz, rogerebert.com “This film by no means serves as a vanity project. Kirschner could have certainly compiled an A-list cast of academics and political power players to gush about Reich, but instead we see him interacting with his preferred colleagues, the students…. This cinematic memoir delivers numerous upbeat anecdotes about democracy, leadership and critical thinking — and he means it when he says, ‘pessimism is fine, cynicism is not.’” —Tobias Jeg, Exclaim “In an era of fiercely partisan political documentaries, THE LAST CLASS strikes a conspicuously quiet and gentle tone…. The film succeeds beautifully as a study of a beloved teacher, capturing the warmth and wit of its subject.” —Andy Punter, In Session Film
