Strangers with Candy
2006 · Directed by Paul Dinello
Original language: English
- comedy
The story
A prequel to the critically acclaimed series featuring Jerri Blank, a 46 year old ex-junkie, ex-con who returns to high school in a bid to start her life over.
What it’s like
Bright, flat, deliberately cheap-looking suburban sitcom light: fluorescent hallways, primary-coloured lockers, lunch trays and drab classroom sets, all framed in static, centred shots that let the awkwardness sit. The score is a bouncy, after-school-special jingle, and the humour lands through deadpan stares, stilted line readings and sudden lurches into talk-show earnestness. The vibe is sincerely cringe, goofy and mean-spirited in a knowing, satirical way, the sort of thing to put on for a late-night laugh or a comfort rewatch with friends who already love the TV series. Pacing is brisk and sketch-like, with scenes that stop short before they can get sentimental. Its central figure is a middle-aged ex-addict returning to school with bluster and no self-awareness, and the arc is a bumbling, oblivious attempt at reinvention that refuses to become tender. Intensity is moderate: drug and alcohol use, sexual innuendo and an illicit teacher-student entanglement are played for laughs rather than shown explicitly, with some crude slapstick and a few brief, cartoonish scuffles. There is no gore and little real menace, though the humour is often nasty and uncomfortable. Made for fans of deadpan, transgressive cringe comedy who enjoy satire of school-film clichés.
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