A booze-swilling, pot-smoking, hard-swearing seventh-grade teacher rallies to get out of the classroom for good by wrangling a rich substitute teacher into marriage in this comedy from director Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story). Cynical teacher Elizabeth (Cameron Diaz) hates her job. She can't wait for the day she finds a man who makes enough cash to let her walk away from her life of middle-school misery, and when her fiancé cancels their wedding plans, her frantic search intensifies. Just when it starts to look like Elizabeth will have to muscle her way through another semester of skull-crushing hangovers, however, handsome substitute Scott Delacorte (Justin Timberlake) shows up at school sporting a fancy wristwatch and the promise of a care-free future. But in order to earn her meal ticket, Elizabeth will have to out-cute perky fellow teacher Amy (Lucy Punch). And it won't be easy, because Scott is crushing on Amy hard. Now, if Elizabeth can just motivate her students to study so that she can win a state contest to earn enough cash for some new breast implants, perhaps she can finally find a means of diverting Scott's gaze. Meanwhile, much to Elizabeth's chagrin, wisecracking, self-effacing gym teacher Russell (Jason Segel) refuses to admit defeat despite being turned down for a date by his gold-digging colleague time and again. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Director: Jake Kasdan
Cast: Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake, Jason Segel, Lucy Punch, John Michael Higgins
Release Date: Jun 24, 2011
Rated R for some drug use, nudity, sexual content and language
Genres: Comedy
Review:
Bad Teacher is supposed to be crass, rude and outlandish. While it’s hardly kid friendly the biggest shock is how incredibly unfunny the entire way through. Cameron Diaz is game throughout so it’s hard to lay the blame on her. She plays the superficial gold digging teacher with great gusto but she’s limited by a script that’s peppered with cartoon characters. A prime example of this is Lucy Punch’s character whose like so sort of freakazoid valleygirl which supposed to serve as a foil to Diaz. It never works and it provides some of the biggest dead spots in the film, it doesn’t help that Punch looks like some sort of Lady Gaga mannequin come to life. Justin Timberlake is handicapped in similar fashion. Jason Segel is the only supporting player that allowed to shine. Various others talented comedians pepper the film but it almost feels like window shopping since their never allowed to actually be funny. Jake Kasdan directs it all with incredibly broad strokes and he never finds a good rhythm for it. As a result the movie feels like it goes on forever, aimlessly without any narrative force and even worse no laughs.
D
It's a good review. I'm still looking forward to seeing it. I just never go opening night. I will go tomorrow to see it.
ReplyDelete--Diana Jillian
The whole premise of this left me cold and judgng from your D I wasn't far of the mark. Has Diaz ever appeared in anything half way decent since her 'Mary' days?
ReplyDeleteThank you D Ana, I'd love to hear what you think of it after you watch it.
ReplyDeleteBrent I was onboard with the premise and was hoping for something lik Bad Santa but it was just really boring and unfunny.
I didn't fancy the trailer so I am almost glad you gave it a D (unless you were just signing your blog :-)....)
ReplyDeleteIt means that I don't have to wonder about whether or not I am missing something ala Bridesmaids which I am still refusing to see.
I had to nosey at Diaz's IMDB page just to see what she has been in and it reminded me that I do have a soft spot for Charlie's Angels....1 and 2
Nope it's a D grade comedy. A real shame. I liked Charlies Angels as well but her high point for me was Something About Mary everything has been kind of eh, even though I did like Knight and Day.
ReplyDelete