Remember back in high school that one teacher that everyone hated? Who the entire school deemed was pure evil? Well, what if some vengeful students framed them for murder? That’s the premise of The Prank (2022), the high school comedy film that premiered at SXSW earlier this month.
The film’s protagonist is the goody-two-shoes Ben (Connor Kalopsis), whose grand college plans are thwarted when his AP Physics teacher, the ruthless Mrs. Wheeler (Rita Moreno), discovers one student has cheated on an exam and decides to fail the whole class. Ben’s best friend and more slovenly counterpart Tanner (Ramona Young) decides to help him out by framing Wheeler for murder through a serious of social media rumor videos. Hijinks ensue.
With stronger writing, this could have been an awesome movie – Rita Moreno is (obviously) an absolute delight even at ninety years old, and she fully embraces the narrative absurdity of her character. Her younger counterparts struggle with their attempts at high school realism, though to be fair their script does them no favors. The film takes the ultra-relatable experience of a universally despised teacher and places it very specifically in the social media era; unfortunately, it lacks any grain of truth in its treatment of the current high school experience.
Besides the unbelievability of two high school students actually framing their teacher for murder, The Prank continues to push the limits when the community actually believes the rumors, leading to Mrs. Wheeler’s termination and arrest. The plot continues to predictably thicken over the course of the 90 minute runtime, leading to a ridiculous but somewhat amusing finale sequence. It feels as though the movie takes itself far too seriously for the first hour before letting loose and embracing the camp of the horror-comedy genre for the third act which, I’ll admit, I thoroughly enjoyed. The narrative mechanics of getting to that point were poorly constructed.
In spite of all its narrative shortcomings, perhaps even one likable protagonist would have helped. Ben is so terrifically uncool and annoying that no actor could spin him in such a way to be remotely appealing or sympathetic. Tanner is slightly better, but any attempt at edginess is crushed by writing that defines her as lazy and forces her to wear headphones with cat ears built in. The unpopular high school best friend duo is hard to get right especially after Booksmart (2019) did it so right, but the friendship between Ben and Tanner is so random and awkward that it’s frequently cringeworthy.
The glimmers of enjoyment come from the supporting cast who are written with no intention of seriousness. Moreno (again, obviously) carries the film and frequently resuscitates it, but Kate Flannery as a version of her character from The Office as a lunch lady is also a treat. Jonathan Kimmel and Keith David round out the supporting cast as the omniscient janitor and jealous principal, respectively, and their appearances in the film are necessary and enjoyable breaks from the narrative absurdities.
Overall, the film seems a bit confused. For the first two thirds, it is clearly trying to be a comedy – whether or not the jokes land is subjective, but jokes are certainly made. Indeed, the high school comedy seems a very specific and recognizable genre, and The Prank was certainly trying to fit into that box very neatly. As the plot gets more and more complicated and the stakes get higher, it becomes a trademark comedy-horror. This tonal shift is welcome after the rough first hour of the film but makes for a somewhat inconsistent viewing experience.
In general, it seems that once again, adult writers have failed to capture the experience of today’s high schoolers, resulting in all too familiar cringeworthy dialogue. Paired with its messy plot, The Prank fails to establish itself as a worthwhile film despite the delightful supporting cast led by superstar Rita Moreno.
The Prank was viewed in the Narrative Spotlight section of SXSW 2022.
Director: Maureen Bharoocha
Writers: Rebecca Flinn-White, Zak White
Rated: NR
Runtime: 90m
Rating: 2 out of 5
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Emmy is a big fan of all things TV and movies. Among her current favorites are The Matrix, Midsommar, Titane, and Fleabag. Catch her on Letterboxd @ewenstrup !
