Three new American documentaries including "Waiting for Superman," "The Lottery, Race to Nowhere" and one British entry, "We are the People We've Been Waiting For," have animated school reform debates. Each of these documentaries seeks to disturb the entrenched thinking by claiming that our educational institutions are suffering from a malaise that is preventing them from adequately preparing students for the 21st century. A common element running through the four films is the message that it is no longer helpful to talk about students who fail school without also talking about schools that fail students. These documentaries have helped to stimulate the American public at a time when complacency and inaction are not real options. The Canadian situation is vastly different from the American; by international standards, our education is one of the finest in the world. Still, it remains to be seen whether the conversation in the United States will have any lasting impact on the ongoing Canadian discourse about deep educational transformation.