❝ That there’s like infinite things, music you can’t even imagine in other places, and the weather, and love, and maybe nothing but ruin, but who knows? Who knows? The disaster changes shape and it becomes tomorrow’s joy or whatever.❞
Steve struck me like a rainbow appearing in the midst of a storm, a promise of hope within chaos. Netflix’s Steve powerfully explores the question, “What does a person live for?” through idealistic teachers. The story is set at Stanton Wood, a last-chance school for young men shunned by society, unwanted even by their families, and on the brink of falling into crime.
Some of these boys can’t fit into societal norms, either because of their families or the storms raging in their own minds. In a place where everyone looks at them with disdain, a handful of teachers are trying to save their lives through a different model of education.
Don’t think the teachers are unaffected by their own hurricanes. The head teacher, Steve—played by Cillian Murphy—finds himself trapped in a labyrinth of his own past demons and the chaos of the school. He’s caught in responsibility and guilt, and turns to alcohol to avoid drowning.
The show portrays the school’s struggles through parallel narratives of a teacher and a student. We’re drawn into the whirlpool of a student nicknamed Shy and Steve. Though they appear different, they are bound by a string etched with each other’s pain and dreams. This bond is depicted in a scene so intense that it’s impossible not to be mesmerized.
I was most moved by the teachers who dedicate their lives to these boys, especially by Steve’s naivety, kindness, and idealism. The series makes subtle references to complex topics like mental health, the education system, bureaucracy, social policy, and politics, weaving them all into a seamless narrative. The camera work, along with the ebb and flow of the music, perfectly complements the story. I was captivated by the emotionally charged narrative, born from chaos and rebellion, and by Cillian Murphy’s deeply moving performance.