Night School (2018) Review
9:23 AM
Back to comedy school?
Night School has been unfairly hit with a 31% Rotten Tomatoes score. Although it is not one of the strongest comedies I have seen this year, its charismatic cast and fun setup make Night School a perfectly serviceable yet admittedly forgettable flick. This is definitely a step-down for director Malcolm D. Lee who headed up last year's Girls Trip; Night School is missing the hilarity, message and chemistry that made Lee's last film so successful. Night School runs for 110 minutes and, unlike most school lessons, it never becomes tedious.
Night School has a handful of funny moments, but its humour is never hilarious or that smart. The most amusing thing about Night School is that it features countless overt sexual references and plenty of bad languages - a very risky 12A/PG-13. That being said, it would be a very tame 15/R. The characters talk about their sex lives and make mildly offensive remarks. It is disappointing that a room of six writers was unable to come up with effective jokes. Maybe they should go back to comedy school? Night School's humour is derivative. Lee's Girls Trip included a character who made ignorant comments that appropriated African American culture (Kate Walsh's Elizabeth). Night School has Taren Killam's Stewart who puts on a "black voice". Killam's delivery kept the recycled gag funny, but if Lee continues to use it in his films, it will quickly lose effect.
Night School is mostly harmless. However, some of the jokes could be interpreted as mocking learning difficulties. Kevin Hart's Teddy is diagnosed with dyslexia, dyscalculia and a processing disorder. Viewers are expected to laugh at Teddy as he struggles during tests, gets easily confused and lacks intelligence. Although Lee and his writers could have omitted this sensitive subject, it is delicately handled; Teddy is never humiliated and Haddish's Carrie eventually supports him to success. The film's message becomes clear in the third act (a little late?): with passion and determination, success can be achieved and the greatest obstacles can be overcome. If Night School had been louder and prouder about its themes, it might have been more noteworthy.
Tiffany Haddish and Kevin Hart are two of Hollywood's hottest comedic talents right now. Hart is coming off of the biggest hit of his career, Jumanji, and Haddish's breakout role in Girls Trip put her star on the map. This combination should have been an instant laugh fest. Their chemistry is somewhat underwhelming, but they both individually give solid performances. Kevin Hart embodies a youthful grown man who returns to school. Hart's performance is more understated than usual, toning down the screaming and high-pitched voice he so often does. Haddish similarly tones her performance down, exhibiting her character's maturity and authority. There is a touching scene where Haddish's Carrie helps a child with learning difficulties. In the film's final moments, it is revealed that Carrie is a lesbian. This is treated like a twist as it reassures Teddy's partner that there is not any romantic chemistry between him and Carrie. When will sexuality stop being used as a way to surprise the audience? Hart and Haddish both have their humorous lines and moments, but Night School should have been an extremely funny film, not a somewhat funny one.
Night School has a promising concept: a drop-out returns to school many years later to correct their career path. There is room for plenty of commentary on schooling - from the perspectives of students and teachers. The six-man script does touch on teacher relations and the importance of tests but it definitely could have delved deeper. The fact that Teddy could have easily avoided the problems he faces in the third act by simply having a conversation with his partner is a tad annoying, but I guess there wouldn't be a film if he had.
Night School is a surface-level comedy with a light tone and fast pace. As expected, most of the film is spent in the classroom. This does lead to some 'educational' (everyone should understand Pythagoras theorem after watching) scenes but luckily Teddy's classmates are interesting. Night School's cast is diverse but the adult students seem to each be from a different demographic (tokenism?). There is: Teddy and Jayden (Romany Malco), two African-American men; Mila (Anne Winters), a Caucasian teenager who is mocked for representing Trump's America; Theresa (Mary Lynn Rajskub), a mother who is overpowered by her strict husband; Mackenzie (Rob Riggle), the alpha male tool; and Luis (Al Madrigal), a Mexican immigrant - the film emphasises this many times. This diverse group make the educational scenes more entertaining. Watching Night School is like being in a lesson full of class clowns, except they never become too irritating.
Night School is a light, forgettable comedy that is mostly harmless and perfectly serviceable. Night School is also aggravating because it could have been so much more than those things. Lee doesn't offer as many laughs as he did with Girls Trip. I wouldn't be surprised if people will still recall Girls Trip as his most recent film because Night School just isn't memorable. Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish deliver good performances but don't quite have the electrifying comedic chemistry that one would expect. With such risky humour, it is surprising that Night School passed with a 12A - parental guidance is strongly advised. Night School doesn't deserve its negative rep but there is room for improvement. C+.
Night School has a handful of funny moments, but its humour is never hilarious or that smart. The most amusing thing about Night School is that it features countless overt sexual references and plenty of bad languages - a very risky 12A/PG-13. That being said, it would be a very tame 15/R. The characters talk about their sex lives and make mildly offensive remarks. It is disappointing that a room of six writers was unable to come up with effective jokes. Maybe they should go back to comedy school? Night School's humour is derivative. Lee's Girls Trip included a character who made ignorant comments that appropriated African American culture (Kate Walsh's Elizabeth). Night School has Taren Killam's Stewart who puts on a "black voice". Killam's delivery kept the recycled gag funny, but if Lee continues to use it in his films, it will quickly lose effect.
Night School is mostly harmless. However, some of the jokes could be interpreted as mocking learning difficulties. Kevin Hart's Teddy is diagnosed with dyslexia, dyscalculia and a processing disorder. Viewers are expected to laugh at Teddy as he struggles during tests, gets easily confused and lacks intelligence. Although Lee and his writers could have omitted this sensitive subject, it is delicately handled; Teddy is never humiliated and Haddish's Carrie eventually supports him to success. The film's message becomes clear in the third act (a little late?): with passion and determination, success can be achieved and the greatest obstacles can be overcome. If Night School had been louder and prouder about its themes, it might have been more noteworthy.
Tiffany Haddish and Kevin Hart are two of Hollywood's hottest comedic talents right now. Hart is coming off of the biggest hit of his career, Jumanji, and Haddish's breakout role in Girls Trip put her star on the map. This combination should have been an instant laugh fest. Their chemistry is somewhat underwhelming, but they both individually give solid performances. Kevin Hart embodies a youthful grown man who returns to school. Hart's performance is more understated than usual, toning down the screaming and high-pitched voice he so often does. Haddish similarly tones her performance down, exhibiting her character's maturity and authority. There is a touching scene where Haddish's Carrie helps a child with learning difficulties. In the film's final moments, it is revealed that Carrie is a lesbian. This is treated like a twist as it reassures Teddy's partner that there is not any romantic chemistry between him and Carrie. When will sexuality stop being used as a way to surprise the audience? Hart and Haddish both have their humorous lines and moments, but Night School should have been an extremely funny film, not a somewhat funny one.
Night School has a promising concept: a drop-out returns to school many years later to correct their career path. There is room for plenty of commentary on schooling - from the perspectives of students and teachers. The six-man script does touch on teacher relations and the importance of tests but it definitely could have delved deeper. The fact that Teddy could have easily avoided the problems he faces in the third act by simply having a conversation with his partner is a tad annoying, but I guess there wouldn't be a film if he had.
Night School is a surface-level comedy with a light tone and fast pace. As expected, most of the film is spent in the classroom. This does lead to some 'educational' (everyone should understand Pythagoras theorem after watching) scenes but luckily Teddy's classmates are interesting. Night School's cast is diverse but the adult students seem to each be from a different demographic (tokenism?). There is: Teddy and Jayden (Romany Malco), two African-American men; Mila (Anne Winters), a Caucasian teenager who is mocked for representing Trump's America; Theresa (Mary Lynn Rajskub), a mother who is overpowered by her strict husband; Mackenzie (Rob Riggle), the alpha male tool; and Luis (Al Madrigal), a Mexican immigrant - the film emphasises this many times. This diverse group make the educational scenes more entertaining. Watching Night School is like being in a lesson full of class clowns, except they never become too irritating.
Night School is a light, forgettable comedy that is mostly harmless and perfectly serviceable. Night School is also aggravating because it could have been so much more than those things. Lee doesn't offer as many laughs as he did with Girls Trip. I wouldn't be surprised if people will still recall Girls Trip as his most recent film because Night School just isn't memorable. Kevin Hart and Tiffany Haddish deliver good performances but don't quite have the electrifying comedic chemistry that one would expect. With such risky humour, it is surprising that Night School passed with a 12A - parental guidance is strongly advised. Night School doesn't deserve its negative rep but there is room for improvement. C+.
58
/100
What did you think of NIGHT SCHOOL? Did you expect more from Haddish and Hart? - COMMENT BELOW
1 comments
This is a great post thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDelete