Night School — .5 Gavels Rotten 30% Tomatoes

Turn out the lights.  Darkness is upon us.  When Hollywood figures out that gross is not funny, perhaps comedies will again return to the forefront.   Kevin Hart can be funny.  Tiffany Haddish can be funny.  Naughty might be funny.  Risque might be funny.  Pubic hairs in cheesecake, discussed ad nauseum, is not funny, nor is cracking walnuts with, well, you know.  Sadly, humor in movies degenerates to the Saturday Night Live level at its worst.   Seriously, comedians need to revolt.  This is just so lazy and boring.  I give it .5 Gavels and it receives a 30% Rotten Tomatoes rating.

Plot 

In 2001, Teddy Walker understands that he is not going to graduate, but lets the world know that he will be successful, with a fine job and a fine car and a fine girl.  Seventeen years later all appears to be on track except it is smoke and mirrors.  When he loses his job, he must get his GED.  At night school, he finds an old nemesis, and a no-nonsense teacher.   Teddy is a hustler, not the type to study.  Anyway, his classmates are not the type to form a study group.

Actors

Kevin Hart is Teddy, clearly trying hard to make this funny, without success.  Tiffany Haddish is Carrie, the tough teacher.  Ditto, for her.  Al Madrigal plays Luis, a fired waiter, wannabe singer and dental hygienist, and fellow classmate.  He is the only one who is even remotely watchable.  The rest are horribly miscast, but then the material is so bad that it is hard to tell.

Final Thoughts

Do not waste your money.  Rarely do I find a movie a complete waste of time.   This is such a movie.  Made at a cost of $29 million, it projects to make that this weekend.  Heaven help us if it does so well that we get Night School 2.  Phil Villareal of ABC Tucson says, “A waste of talent and time that makes you remember your own school days, watching the clock as it moves too slowly until it frees you from the classroom doldrums.”  And that pretty well sums it up.  Hollywood thinks we lemmings will go see anything.  Hopefully, we will prove them wrong.