When I first saw the trailer for Bad Teacher, I was almost instantaneously sold, because not only am I a fan of both Cameron Diaz and Jason Segel, but I could also easily imagine her raunchy character teaching at my old high school. While, at first glance, the superhero adventure seems to be the dominant genre of the 2011 Summer Movie Season, the fact remains that after considering Bridesmaids, The Hangover: Part II, and upcoming releases like Horrible Bosses and The Change-Up, it is clear that the raunchy comedy will remain the most continuous presence in theaters over the next few months. Even though she isn’t usually the first name that comes to mind when one considers “adult humor,” many tend to forget that Cameron Diaz is actually at her funniest when she isn’t constrained by a PG-13 rating…remember There’s Something About Mary? You also have to give filmmakers credit for not trying to oversell the audiences, since the trailers made it clear that Bad Teacher would simply showcase Diaz’s destructive character and her quest to afford plastic surgery; anyone expecting any kind of deep storyline would be severely disappointed. Ready for a good laugh, I was optimistically looking forward to this controversial comedy.
As expected, the story behind Bad Teacher is razor-thin, but as anyone could have told you, the chief appeal of this film was watching Cameron Diaz’s character emotionally abuse her students while drinking on the job. Diaz is an absolute riot and the always-funny Jason Segel delivers, but the real surprises in the cast include two actors whose fame is almost exclusively relegated to television. Eric Stonestreet (Cameron from Modern Family) and Phyllis Smith (Phyllis from The Office) may have had small roles in Bad Teacher, but they still managed to steal every scene they appeared in, and I can only hope to see more of both of them on the silver screen in the near future. The laughs are plentiful throughout, but I still feel that the end result could have been far funnier with a few riskier story elements and some small casting changes…Justin Timberlake tried to be funny, but largely failed. Bottom line, despite a few missed opportunities and the qualification that audiences shouldn’t expect much beyond what was shown in the trailers; Bad Teacher remains an edgy comedy that audiences will be sure to enjoy.
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Overall Recommendation: Medium
