why doesnt william h macy seem to age at all in this film??
am i the only one who thought that?
shareHe aged very gracefully
:-)
MovieChat Forums > Mr. Holland's Opus (1996) Discussion > why doesnt william h macy seem to age at...
He did age a little. In the scenes in the 90's, his hair is a little grayer. Look closely.
shareMacy's character not aging is part of the, what's the word for that type of symbolism...it escapes me. But it's part of his character's non-development. He doesn't age, change, or grow as a person. Part of the gag, so to speak.
shareI was going to say, it's probably some kinda idea of VP (later Principal) Wolters being one of those guys stuck in his 1960s way of thinking, at least up until 1995 whilst attending Mr. Opus's sendoff.
Mr. Holland: "Well, congratulations, Gene. You've been looking for a way to get rid of me for 30 years, and they finally gave you an excuse."
Principal Wolters: "You know, I'm not as popular as you. I'm not anybody's favorite anything."
Mr. Holland: "That's because you're the enemy, Gene. You just don't know it."
Yeah that bugged me too, and I said that to myself while watching the movie for the first time. When they went from the 60's to the 80's he looked identical...Same hair cut and all...And very 60's looking I might add. BUT Dreyfuss also looked the same too until much later in the movie. It was almost like the timeline was not originally intended to be the 80's and they changed their minds in post production.
share[deleted]
Better question: why doesn't William H. Macy age AT ALL? He still looks the same after 15 years.
shareYes, it doesn't seem like he ages (much). There was a character in "Back to the Future" (Mr. Strickland) who was about the same (Marty McFly: Geez! Didn't that guy ever have hair?).
On repeated viewings of the movie, the William H Macy principal character stands out more and more. It starts off when he makes that crack about Mr. Holland's Corvair at the beginning. And when Mr. Holland, Coach Meister and the drama teacher manage to pull off a successful "Gershwin Review," the principal is impressed and even caught up with singing along during some of the numbers.
And of course he is visibly moved during the grand send-off for Mr. Holland at the end.
This is a testament to what a good actor William H Macy is. He plays dweebs ("Boogie Nights", "The Cooler"), good guys ("Air Force One," "Down Periscope") oddballs ("SeaBiscuit"), and unlikeable cads like the principal equally well.
Actually, when Marty says that line, he is standing far away from Strickland so he cannot see that Strickland has some hair in the 50's. Maybe later on, he realized he was wrong.
shareSome people just hold their age really well.
I'm more concerned about Holland's age. There's no way on earth he looks 30 at the start of the film, but he gradually matches his real-life age as the film progresses. By the end, he looked comfortable playing a 60-year-old, even though he was only about 48 in real life.
Amazing what the make-up department can do.
Macy's character is one of those buzz-cut authority freaks who looks pretty much the same at age 25 and 55.
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4) You ever seen Superman $#$# his pants? Case closed.
I just watched this movie for the first time tonight and I absolutely loved it. Literally my only complaint about this movie was how much of a distraction it was that W.H. Macy's character didn't seem to age. Couldn't agree any more, and no, you weren't the only one who thought it.
shareEven though Holland had plenty of dislikable traits throughout the film (i.e. selfishness, bitterness, neglect for family, etc.), I rooted for him and his music more than I would have without it. Wolters was actually my least favorite character. He was pompous and arrogant much of the time, and clearly was not all that keen on music in the curriculum anyhow.
shareIt's to reinforce him being stick in the mud
share