'The Class' is a revealing, intelligent film

Both Hollywood and France have already given “The Class” an “A.” This slice of inner-city school life won the prestigious Palme d’Or at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. And for this weekend, it is considered the front-runner — along with Israel’s nominee “Waltz with Bashir” — to win an Academy Award in the best foreign language film category.

I’m not so sure that “The Class” deserves such extra credit. But it is a revealing, intelligent if slightly scattered pastiche of cinema verite and “To Sir With Love.”