The School

2003
8m

IMDb RATING

YOUR RATING

The School the story of Edgar, a grade school teacher, who attempts to demonstrate the wonder life to his class through nature studies and other class projects. Despite his best intentions, ... Read allThe School the story of Edgar, a grade school teacher, who attempts to demonstrate the wonder life to his class through nature studies and other class projects. Despite his best intentions, each of the projects go badly and comically wrong. At a loss to explain why, Edgar is face... Read allThe School the story of Edgar, a grade school teacher, who attempts to demonstrate the wonder life to his class through nature studies and other class projects. Despite his best intentions, each of the projects go badly and comically wrong. At a loss to explain why, Edgar is faced with a class who attempt to grapple with the larger implications of these failures.

Director
- Jonathan Hayes
Writers
- Donald Barthelme
- Jonathan Hayes
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

6.6/10

YOUR RATING

Director
- Jonathan Hayes
Writers
- Donald Barthelme
- Jonathan Hayes
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Photos1

User reviews2

6.624

Featured reviews

Michael_Elliott

Version 1

School, The (2003)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

A school teacher (Russell Bennett) has various animals and plants die in his classroom, which makes the students wonder what death is and how life comes to be. Apparently there have been several versions of this film over the past few years including two from 2003. This is the only one I've watched and it was a pretty good little film that manages to be a little cute but at times it comes off rather creepy. The way the story is told is rather unique.

IFC shows this short quite a few times a month so you shouldn't have any problem viewing it.

6morgarita

An uneven experiment in voice-over...

The film begins adequately enough when a series of unexpected deaths plague a children's classroom. Animals and plants die with increasing rapidness and no one seems able to control it. Ah, the trials of elementary school.

The child actors in the film are passable, but none have that much charisma, and it's curious as to why the directors did not cast an older man as the teacher, for the actor who plays him displays more exuberance than maturity. There is nothing subtle about his performance. What starts as mildly entertaining soon derails into inconsistent sap. I sat there wondering what was happening and how a film about the importance of life could have bored me to death as steadily as it did. While the end of the film is congruent with that of the short story it still makes little sense. The film is mediocre at best.