"Half Nelson" ***1/2 (out of four): Difficult tale of the bond that forms between a drug-addicted teacher and one of his young charges features brutally honest performances from Ryan Gosling and newcomer Shareeka Epps.

Ryan Gosling has been an actor to watch ever since he played a Jewish neo-Nazi in 2001’s fierce “The Believer”. After floundering a bit in films like “Murder By Numbers” and “Stay” – and a rather turgid detour into “The Notebook” – the actor finally finds a worthy follow-up role as Daniel Dunne, a junior high history teacher with a vicious drug habit in the indie stunner “Half Nelson”.

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