Detention

I really don’t know how to review this movie, because there is so much I can’t say if I want people to go into this movie as one should: unprepared. The fabric of the movie is integral to describing why I absolutely, unapologetically, madly love this movie. So, if this comes out evasive or weird, sorry, I did my best. The movie concerns Riley, a misfit at high school. She ends up being stalked by a killer who is using the costume of the villain of a popular movie within Detention. That is as much of the plot as I can tell you without going into major spoilers. What I can say is that, right off the bat, you will get this movie’s sense of humor and style. It is wild, it is frenetic, and it is intelligent. The rapid-fire pacing can be a turn off to some, and I get it. The pop culture savvy dialogue might also grow tiresome, and I get that too. And the movie is so full of ideas, it sometimes feels like the movie’s seams are barely holding together, and I get that too. But not me. I loved the dialogue; I found it to be razor-sharp and believable (and, in one character’s case, there’s storyline justification). It knows when to inject humor and when not to, and I never felt any tonal whiplash. I adored the rapid pace; the movie kept my attention every step of the way without feeling exhausting or jumbled. And as for the ideas … look, maybe it is over-stuffed. But once this movie kicks into high gear and nails you with the first out of the blue twist, you know all bets are off. This movie is not afraid to take big, bold, bizarre swings, and I loved how many it tries. I can’t think of the last movie that tried even half as many things as this does and manages to keep all the plates spinning. Maybe RRR? Yeah, it’s the horror-comedy version of RRR; just adrenaline and insanity and throwing everything at you and giving you no time to question any of it. I came into this expecting a simple horror comedy, like The Breakfast Club meets Scream. What I got was something very, very different, but I am so happy with what I got. This is a director I’ll be following, for sure.