Eugenio Derbez is Radical in True Tale of Inspiration

It’s always amazing to me how little attention is paid to children and communities that are deemed as less than.  In the Mexican border town of Matamoros, plagued by neglect, corruption and violence, a frustrated Sergio (Eugenio Derbez) tries a radical new method to unleash the curiosity and potential of his students…and sometimes even their genius.

Based on a true story, “Radical” is proof it just takes one person to fuel the flames of creativity within the educational system.  For me, in high school, it was Brenda Gray and at Howard University it was Professor Vera Katz.  As a former Adjunct Professor at PACE University and Master Class teacher for the Spotlight Program, I’ve witnessed my own unconventional teaching methods encourage even the shyest of students and infuriate the most independent.

As Sergio, Eugenio Derbez is equally yoked straddling comedy and drama.  The depths he rides through in “Radical” prove there is more beyond the surface than what meets the eye with this brilliant, underestimated artist.

Feeling like a mashup between an updated “To Sir With Love,” “Coda” (where Derbez also starred as a tough, unconventional teacher) and “Dead Poets Society” “Radical never falls short for one iota of a second.

Thank goodness in 2013, WIRED magazine published “A Radical Way of Unleashing a Generation of Geniuses” as it made way to introduce us to the world of Nico, Lupe, Paloma and Sergio Juárez Correa by way of heartfelt direction from Christopher Zalla.

Zalla not only captures the unbridled energy in the classroom, but the realism that infiltrates the lives of this teacher and his students outside the classroom.  From the child who is running contraband for the local cartel to the young girl who helps her Dad with the bills sifting through mountains of trash to a bone chilling scene where one student is mistakenly gunned down in the streets, we know unequivocally that this is no fairytale.

However, watching the end credits and learning that Correa’s dogma resulted in Paloma Noyola Bueno continuing her career as a dedicated teacher, while sharing her innovative teaching methods with other educators is awe-inspiring.

In 2016, she founded the non-profit organization LITOS (Learning and Innovation for Transforming Our Schools), aiming to provide training and resources to teachers in Mexico and other countries to enhance their teaching practices. Paloma Noyola Bueno has also participated in various education initiatives and global forums, such as the Global Education and Skills Forum and the World Innovation Summit for Education.

“Radical” is the perfect example of so many municipalities throughout the world where it only takes one person with passion to make a difference in young lives who easily could have been the result of dreams on life support.