a film that continually defy expectation and whether it be through the plot and characterization and or performance of the actor . while you may not end up where you expect to and you be ultimately glad you go along for the ride . it 1959 and and at weldon academy and tradition be everything . weldon and however and be about to be shake up by the arrival of john keating ( robin williams in an unusual dramatic turn ) and who encourage his student to look at thing with new eye . among those who take his message most to heart be neil perry ( robert sean leonard ) and son of an overbearing and unpleasant father ( the truly evil kurtwood smith ) and and his roommate and todd anderson ( ethan hawke ) and ignore young brother of a previous weldon valedictorian . while the student who form the dead poet society have good intention and participation in the group lead to neil defiance of his father and which in turn lead to tragedy . todd have mostly be an observer throughout this and but the loss of one of the few people who care about him and and the potential loss of another finally bring him out of his shell and and allow him to take his first stand . this be an interesting script and in that it lead you to believe youre go to have a happy end and and then snatch that end away so quickly you hardly know what have happen . before you can catch your breath and a suicide have occur and the surviving parent be hound the school and teacher and student be turn against each other and and the truth be bury under expediency and leave the viewer wonder what be be teach in prep school in the 1950 . in the end and keating be use a a scapegoat to appease the anguished father and but the film leave one more lesson to be teach before keating leaf weldon forever . unfortunately and several plot point introduce prior to the suicide be simply drop after it and leave the viewer wonder what happen to the bud romance of one of the student and a town girl and as well a a few other thing that just get left rather than address . the setting of the prep school work rather well in this film and make it almost a world unto itself . the stone building represent the unchanging tradition value so highly at weldon . nothing move the stone while nothing change the school . this further emphasize the gulf between the student and the rest of the world on the occasion in which they enter it . in spite of the flaw in the script and the performance be uniformly strong . smith be the epitome of evil and ooze malice out of every pore in every scene he be in . unfortunately and this work against him when he lose his son and in that we feel no sympathy for him at all . williams give a surprisingly restrained performance a keating . what comedy there be in this film do not come from him . he play keating a a man of passion and integrity and who accept his fate with grace and class . while leonard can be a bit cloying and he do an excellent job of portray neil and especially the vulnerability which be behind the bravado . the most remarkable performance in the film hawke todd . not only do you see wonderful character development and but some of hawke most expressive acting occur when he have no dialogue at all . it be through todd eye that we see the end of the film his upset that one of the dead poet society have turn traitor and get another expel and his disbelief that the others have join in the persecution of keating and and his inability to take a stand against that injustice . most impressive be the scene where todd watch keating pack to leave the school and rather than pay attention to class . todd have no dialogue throughout and yet hawke portrayal be so skillful that you see everything he be feel and and the buildup to his outburst . a truly unforgettable scene . this be a movie with an unhappy and yet satisfy end . an injustice have be commit and but it have also be recognize and and perhaps a lesson learn . a thoughtful film and well worth watch repeatedly .