BY MIKEY MIGO
Flat out, I liked this movie. It was over the top, vulgar, and pretty offensive. Some can call a lot of it toilet or garbage humor, but so what? This movie doesn't try to hide what it is. It's a small elementary school where the teachers are worn out, broken down, addicts, and assholes. I didn't count, but there's a few times when the teachers and adults tell children to their little well acted faces to "go fuck themselves". Will Sasso of Mad TV fame is the gym teacher and has some of the best moments with a small child about his life problems. The side joke is that he forces the kid to box a bigger kid and the kid gets his ass kicked and apparently his brain is hemorrhaging. "Boston Legal"'s Monica Potter plays a depressed teacher who doesn't care at all about the kids in her class and doesn't hesitate to let them know. Nat Faxon, Jill Latiano, Matt Walsh, Kyle Gass(!), and some other very strong and underrated comedic actors make up the rest of the supporting cast, all with their own fucked up views, stories, and scenes. The plot is a bit cliché in that Jason Biggs, the nice guy Vice Principal, finds out that the evil Principal (Corddry) is embezzling money from the school and is going to let it get shut down. And who is the inspector? Eva Longoria Parker, (shocker alert!) who just so happened to be Bigg's high school crush. Awwww. Eva is actually the funniest I've seen her. Her comedic timing here is MUCH better than "Over Her Dead Body", but she can still improve. I've always discarded her as just another "Desperate Housewife" actress, but I'm starting to appreciate the chances she's taking on low brow comedies like this. Jason Biggs holds this movie together though. He's quickly becoming one of my favorite underrated comedy actors out there. He's not like a Tom Cruise or Will Smith leading man, but he can carry a mid-budget comedy better than most. He has managed to fade out the whole "pie fucker" image he's famous for in at least one viewer's eyes. If you like vulgar, over the top, 80's-like comedies then THIS is for you. It's not going to change your life, but it will make you laugh. A lot.
|
