Mr. Holland's Opus

Revealing mistake: Anytime the camera is on Richard Dreyfuss' hands while he's playing the piano, it is clear that he is not actually playing; his hands are frequently in the wrong part of the keyboard for the sound being produced. At other times, when his hands are moving down the keyboard, the pitch we hear is going up, or vice-versa.

Revealing mistake: Anytime the camera is on Richard Dreyfuss' hands while he's playing the piano, it is clear that he is not actually playing; his hands are frequently in the wrong part of the keyboard for the sound being produced. At other times, when his hands are moving down the keyboard, the pitch we hear is going up, or vice-versa.

More mistakes in Mr. Holland's Opus

Vice Principal Wolters: I care about these kids just as much as you do. And if I'm forced to choose between Mozart and reading and writing and long division, I choose long division.
Glenn Holland: Well, I guess you can cut the arts as much as you want, Gene. Sooner or later, these kids aren't going to have anything to read or write about.

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Trivia: All the American Sign Language used in the movie is accurate. When Iris tells Cole to open the window, Cole's response is not translated and she says "don't bust my butt." What he signed was, "Tell him to open the window himself."

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Question: Why can't Glenn understand anything Cole signs, leaving Iris to translate? Glenn knows and uses sign language when talking to Cole so it seems strange that he doesn't know anything that Cole tells him when Cole uses sign language.

Answer: Iris knows and understands sign language much better than her husband. Glen can communicate on a basic level, but when Cole is ready to tell off his father, he wants to make sure Glen understands exactly what he's saying. Remember how Glen didn't know the sign for 'a***hole'.

Brian Katcher

Answer: Glenn was passionate about music and wanted to be a great composer, something relatively few people are able to attain. At least initially, taking a part-time music teacher position was not what he wanted to do or be - but it provided the resources to support himself/his family while giving him enough time to pursue his dream (music composition/opus). Glenn had an on-again/off-again (mostly "off") relationship with his son Cole, perhaps sometimes due to his lack of commitment, time constraints, frustration, sense of failure, and emotional pain over his belief that he could not successfully nurture the love of music in his near-deaf son. (Glenn was aware of the difficulties Beethoven had.) In some ways, Glenn (selfishly) was saying, "I don't have time for this" (communicating in sign language or providing the fatherly devotion and sacrifice necessary to understand and develop a good rapport with his "special needs" son).

KeyZOid

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