Spelling the Dream

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Spelling the Dream

2020

Documentary

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Popcornmeter

92%

Tomatometer

26 Reviews

90%

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Udita Jhunjhunwala

Scroll.in

The documentary holds strong because the children are impressive and the competition is a window into a peculiar tradition that, quizzically, enjoys "sports" status.

Dec 9, 2020

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Robert Levin

Newsday

There is plenty to like about "Spelling the Dream," an affecting documentary with admirable ambitions. But it tries to be a sports movie, a multicharacter study, a work of sociological inquiry and a history piece all in the span of 82 minutes.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 8, 2020

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Tim Cogshell

FilmWeek (KPCC - NPR Los Angeles)

I absolutely adored this movie.

Jun 6, 2020

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Mark Meszoros

The News-Herald (Willoughby, OH)

While Spelling the Dream doesn't quite pack the engaging punch of that work and some of the other best documentaries of the last several years, it is wholly entertaining and informative in its own right.

Rated: 2.5/4

Feb 28, 2021

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Alex Bentley

CultureMap

Spelling the Dream makes the case that, due to their upbringing and other factors, Indian Americans know the value of hard work and what will come because of it. There is rarely anything more inspiring than that.

Feb 8, 2021

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Carla Hay

Culture Mix

The film also has a lot to say about how the work ethic that goes into preparing for these contests is a reflection of how several Indian immigrant families feel about their cultural pride and the American Dream.

Jul 21, 2020

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spencer p

A great showcase for learners of all ages and backgrounds of pushing your mental boundaries and productive goal-setting.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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yash b

"Spelling the Dream" is a documentary that is interesting enough but also one that is very investing. It is a well-known statistic that Indian Americans have dominated spelling bees in the last few decades, and this movie does a good job exploring that. I liked seeing this sort of representation pop up on Netflix and thought the movie left me in a good mood. I felt like the movie could have explored some things even more in-depth, but as a whole, it did a solid job keeping my interest. What works really well about this movie is how it made me genuinely care about all of the efforts of the talented youth involved. Overall, this is a movie that made me proud to be an Indian American and invested me more than I anticipated.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

I am generally not fond of documentaries but this is a good one. Interesting to watch and you get caught up in it. All the kids were wonderful. I could not take my eyes off of it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

Audience Member

A good insightful documentary. It was incredible to see these Indian American kids put so many hours and so disciplined. Great to see some of these kids have other activities apart from academics. Good character study of four kids.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/20/23

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Audience Member

A fabulous documentary of real people. It is fun and intense documentary to see who is finally going to win. Really loved this movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/18/23

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Audience Member

Don't miss Spelling the Dream on Netflix. Friends recommended this movie, truly inspirational! Highly recommend if you haven't seen it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/03/23

Full Review

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Sam Rega

Director

Sanjay Gupta

Actor

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Director: Sam Rega
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 3, 2020