The Teacher-Student Relationship in The Heartbreak Kid (1993)

What is it about?

This article examines the Australian school film, The Heartbreak Kid (1993). It examines the illicit love affair between the young female teacher and the male student at the centre of the narrative, comparing it to a similar real case. Does the film excuse the breach of trust when the teacher allows the erotic potential of the classroom to spill over into private romantic entanglement? What is the role of the adolescent student in the dynamics of the teacher-student relationship?

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Why is it important?

While this film has mainly been discussed in terms of its representation of gender and multiculturalism, this article shifts the focus to the ethics of the love affair between the teacher and the student.