Hugh Jackman's best work of his
career," and they're right. It's shocking how just visually slicked-back hair, a
suit, and a clean shave can get people to forget about Logan... and
On top of that, this movie was also competing against, at least to me, similar
outlandish scandal movies like Adam McKay's
Again, it
succeeded, but it did it by staying connected to the consequences of what these
people did and the viewer's own curiosity about the mechanics of the
scandal.
Bad Education is directed by Corley Finley, written by Mike Makowsky, and
it's an adaptation of the
New York Magazine article by Robert Kokler
about school administrators who stole millions from their district. If the theft
alone wasn't newsworthy, this being a top district in the country certainly
pushed the story to national attention at the time, back in the early 2000s. The
administrators are superintendent Frank Tassone (Hugh Jackman) and assistant
superintendent Pam Gluckin (Allison Janney)
It's rare to see school administrators cast in a positive light onscreen, just
look at most 80s movies, but this one starts out with Tassone preparing to greet
an adoring, thankful community. Michael Abels's score opens with music that's
literally angelic. I'm surprised his name didn't pop into my head, after what he
did with Jordan Peele's
Us (reviewed
here). Anyway, Tassone's work life and personal life slowly are revealed to be
increasingly more complex than initially believed, and Jackman realizes every
moment. A lot of the performance is non-verbal and comes across thanks to his
face and his height. On top of that, he's able to go from courteous, and a
student or teacher's best friend, to something else entirely, but not in the way
you'd expect from Jackman. Maybe I'm off-base because I'm not an actor, but it's
like this, calm to wronged and violent (Logan) is easy. Calm to angry,
underhanded, but controlled (Tassone) is very hard. And it happens in seconds,
successfully.
With Allison Janney, I'd compare her performance in this to the one she gave in
I, Tonya. Both great, but I liked this one more. She's playing a much
worse person this time around, but she doesn't come off that way. It's probably
because Gluckin is a less wound-up person, and that gave Janney more room to
breathe. A lot of the funny moments come from her, like when she's teasing
Tassone about his diet, with a sandwich. Her chemistry with Jackman is
excellent, and it's felt even when they're not in the same scene together, but
that's to be expected when they have their own kinder, schoolhouse version of
The Devil Wears Prada relationship. It's what makes the movie feel
re-watchable, and the writing and directing are complementing that.
So, people going into this movie expecting a tone similar to
The Big Short or
Vice may have to put something else on right
after to get their fix, but they shouldn't walk away disappointed. The scandal
itself and the people involved are every bit as engaging as McKay's non-linear
storytelling. This, for those who haven't heard of the Roslyn School District
before, is the first great mystery movie of 2020. The investigation scenes, led
by high school journalist Rachel Bhargava (Geraldine Viswanathan) are a lot of
fun...although, it helps that a lot of the investigating involves forensic
accounting, and I'm also a bookkeeper. If that doesn't do it, the dialogue can.
One speech about a chained up race car, chained like school officials are to the
demands of students and teachers, has a way of pulling the whole experience
together and showcasing
Bad Education's greatest strengths.
So, whether you come for the characters or want to follow the money, you're
sure to enjoy Bad Education.