I rented Half Nelson on Friday Night. The film is by Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden, 26, who also edited the movie. They lived in Park Slope when the film was made; I’m not sure if they still live here.

Ryan Gosling, who plays a very believable young, Brooklyn schoolteacher, was nominated for a 2006 Academy Award for Best Actor.

The film, which is based on a short film by the filmmakers called, Gowanus, Brooklyn, opened a year ago. I heard about it on NPR, knew that it was gathering some acclaim, but never managed to see it. It

Well, I finally rented it on DVD and was very, very impressed.

Preparing for the film, Ryan Gosling spent time with a New York public schoolteacher in a Brooklyn school. he plays a very Brooklyn 20-something with lefty parents, who frequents Red Hook bars like the now defunct Lilly’s. He’s socially conscious guy who wants to change the world except his personal life is a total mess.

When one of his students discovers that he’s a crack addict,  he strikes up an unlikely friendship with her. Their mutually supportive friendship is the centerpiece of the movie.

Shareeka Eeps plays Dre, the student he befriends. She is the revelation of the movie. Discovered in a Red Hook middle school, she was in the original short, Gowanus, Brooklyn. Eeps plays a character who’s quiet strength and a maturity beyond her years, infuses the film with a gentle wisdom.

The film is slow paced and subtle. It lets things unfold in unpredictable ways. The dialogue was a little hard to hear at times but that’s a small complaint.

Half-Nelson is an amazing movie.