By: Gabriel Williams, Staff Writer
*** This review contains some spoilers***
The renowned director Malcolm D. Lee is back with more comedy in his new film, “Night School.”
The story entails the journey of a group of ordinary adults who are high school dropouts. They are determined to pursue their dreams by taking a night class in hopes of getting their General Educational Development (GED) diploma.
The film stars comedian Kevin Hart and actor Tiffany Haddish who mock the typical student-teacher relationship.
Hart plays Teddy Walker, a high school dropout struggling to find a job that will help maintain his relationship with his fiancé. Though love is more of a prize to him, he finds it very hard to focus in class after being diagnosed with dyslexia.
His reputation as a comedian suited him for the role as he used his funny charisma to take on the character.
A notable scene for Hart was in the beginning of the film when he walks out on a test.
The gratifying transition from youth to adult ages in the movie showed the consequences of being distracted and a reckless attitude towards being successful.
Haddish plays the role of Carrie, who teaches the night class and tries to keep the students focused despite their personal lives and distractions.
Other stars such as Rob Riggle and Mary Lynn Rajskub resembled the average group of friends who make high school a laughable and enjoyable experience rather than a more serious one.
There were also other great scenes such as a jump over a 15 ft. building and a house exploding. The film is well shot and made good use of the Atlanta area high school it was filmed at along with other shooting locations.
I expected the film to be funnier because of the collaborative effort from Hart and Haddish. Some humor from all of the characters felt overly done and pretty average at times which strayed away from the storyline.
However, the actors demonstrated a great sense of teamwork and partnership in representing unity amongst each other.
The ending could have been longer to reveal more about Teddy’s life after being granted his diploma. Overall, the message was great in that it reemphasizes the importance of getting a college degree and graduating high school.
No matter the age, anyone can achieve their dreams if they put in the work to do it.
“Night School” is a great film that makes you reflect on your high school years and get a sense of how hard work can pay off in the end.
It gets a rating of 7 out of 10. The film is in theaters now.
