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Movies / Upcoming / Pressure Cooker
Pressure Cooker

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Pressure Cooker (2009)

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Reviews Counted:18

Fresh:16

Rotten:2

Average Rating:7.1/10

Rated: Not Rated

Genre: Education/General Interest

Theatrical Release:May 27, 2009 Limited

Synopsis: Three seniors at Philadelphia's Frankford High School find an unlikely champion in the kitchen of Wilma Stephenson. A legend in the school system, Mrs. Stephenson's hilariously blunt boot-camp... Three seniors at Philadelphia's Frankford High School find an unlikely champion in the kitchen of Wilma Stephenson. A legend in the school system, Mrs. Stephenson's hilariously blunt boot-camp method of teaching Culinary Arts is validated by years of scholarship success. Against the backdrop of the row homes of working-class Philadelphia, she has helped countless students reach the top culinary schools in the country. And under her fierce direction, the usual distractions of high school are swept aside as Erica, Dudley and Fatoumata prepare to achieve beyond what anyone else expects from them. Filled with excitement and emotion, Pressure CookerL takes you inside the lives of these aspiring students and their passionately committed and determined teacher. --© BEV Pictures [More]

Director: Mark Becker, Jennifer Grausman

Director: Mark Becker, Jennifer Grausman
Studio: BEV Pictures

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Reviews for Pressure Cooker

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1 - 18 (sorted by date)
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An earnest crowd-pleaser that could have used an extra helping of dramatic tension -- but it succeeds by placing us in an interesting world with characters who are impossible not to root for.

Full Review Source: San Francisco Chronicle | comment Comment
08/21/09
San Francisco Chronicle
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Wilma Stephenson...definitely deserves a subtler cinematic testament than this lazily inspirational documentary.

Full Review Source: Chicago Reader | comment Comment
08/20/09
Cliff Doerksen
Cliff Doerksen
Chicago Reader
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

If the filmmakers do little to expand the vocabulary of the genre, they enhance our appreciation of that most undervalued sector of the American workforce, the city schoolteacher.

Full Review Source: Washington Post | comment Comment
07/17/09
Jan Stuart
Jan Stuart
Washington Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Pressure Cooker is not about pressure so much as clarity of purpose. It's about a unique teacher's way of building confidence and pride, with results that joyously speak for themselves.

Full Review Source: Seattle Times | comment Comment
07/10/09
Jeff Shannon
Jeff Shannon
Seattle Times

A heart-grabbing, awe-inspiring work that needs no embellishment.

Full Review Source: Philadelphia Inquirer | comment Comment
06/11/09
Steven Rea
Steven Rea
Philadelphia Inquirer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

I grew a deep hunger while watching Pressure Cooker, not just from the students' mouthwatering dishes, but from the fact that teacher/chef Wilma Stephenson could uniformly inspire such success.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
06/07/09
Matthew Sorrento
Matthew Sorrento
Film Threat

These stories move and inspire as tales of youth in need cooking up opportunity from scratch.

Full Review Source: Metromix.com | comment Comment
06/01/09
Matt Pais
Matt Pais
Metromix.com

High school teacher Wilma Stephenson nourishes her culinary arts students in their hungry bids for better lives. An inspiration, 'Pressure Cooker' is a welcome antithesis to slice and dice.

Full Review Source: About.com | comment Comment
05/31/09
Jennifer Merin
Jennifer Merin
About.com

It's convincing because of the force of Wilma Stephenson's personality and the fierce love she bestows on her culinary arts students at Philadelphia's Frankford High School.

Full Review Source: Critic's Notebook | comment Comment
05/30/09
Robert Levin
Robert Levin
Critic's Notebook

At times, you wish the directors were more challenging of their premises; these graduating seniors are learning the value of precision, yes, but also, subtly, how to serve. Is that escape enough?

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
05/28/09
Joshua Rothkopf
Joshua Rothkopf
Time Out New York

Pressure Cooker is both a tribute to a teacher who actually cares and kids who actually want to learn. Would that there were more people like them.

Full Review Source: New York Post | comment Comment
05/28/09
V.A. Musetto
V.A. Musetto
New York Post
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Neither the filmmakers nor the students—nor, for that matter, Stephenson—are fishing for sympathy. What they really want most is to give back—to provide nourishment, literal and figurative, to those who have so generously helped nourish them.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
05/28/09
Wade Major
Wade Major
Boxoffice Magazine

An engaging, uplifting, well-edited and occasionally suspenseful documentary that leaves you hungry for more insight into the lives of the culinary arts students and their Judge Judy-like teacher.

Full Review Source: NYC Movie Guru | comment Comment
05/27/09
Avi Offer
Avi Offer
NYC Movie Guru

A fitting tribute to a selfless role model with an big heart and an indomitable spirit. Let's face it, they don't make 'em like Wilma Stephenson anymore.

Full Review Source: NewsBlaze | comment Comment
05/27/09
Kam Williams
Kam Williams
NewsBlaze

Stephenson looms largest as a reminder of what the right teacher can mean to a kid looking for a way out; it takes a strong woman and a special grace to not only let her protégés go, year after year, but practically shove them out the door.

Full Review Source: Village Voice | comment Comment
05/27/09
Michelle Orange
Michelle Orange
Village Voice
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Pressure Cooker belongs to the honorable genre of inspirational films dedicated to the proposition that one passionate teacher can make a difference in the lives of students.

Full Review Source: New York Times | comment Comment
05/27/09
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
New York Times
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Such a heartfelt inspirational story that one can fully understand why it seemed like such a worthwhile effort to capture the results of Stephenson's efforts on film.

Full Review Source: ComingSoon.net | comment Comment
05/26/09
Edward Douglas
Edward Douglas
ComingSoon.net

Wilma Stephenson is a charismatic teacher who does great things for her charges, but her job appears not as difficult as you might think.

Full Review Source: Compuserve | comment Comment
05/18/09
Harvey S. Karten
Harvey S. Karten
Compuserve
 
 
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June 17, 2009: Trailer & Poster review Opens in new window
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May 28, 2009: Uplifting documentary chronicles dedicated teacher's tireless effort to inspire pupils. Opens in new window
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