Vice Principals
2016
Original language: English
- comedy
The story
After North Jackson High's long-time principal steps down to tend to his ailing wife, Neal Gamby and Lee Russell, the school's vice principals, are forced to put their mutual disdain aside and form an unholy alliance in order to sabotage the newly appointed principal, Dr. Belinda Brown.
What it’s like
Flat, sun-bleached suburban daylight: fluorescent hallways, humid Carolina parking lots, and the faded pastel and beige of a middle-American school that has stopped trying to look nice. Director-style framing leans on tight two-shots and awkward silences, with a lot of rooms where the camera simply holds while people say the wrong thing. The score is sparse and jaunty, more a comic sting than a mood bed, and the sound design favours buzzing ceiling lights, car radios and the clack of empty corridors. The vibe is petty, caustic and sweaty, a bitter-sweet comedy of bad men behaving badly with a hint of unexpected tenderness. It suits a late-night binge, a sardonic comfort rewatch, or anyone who enjoys watching egos self-destruct. Pacing is brisk but deliberately uncomfortable, and the humour runs on humiliation, profanity and escalating schemes. Expect frequent crude language, sexual references, heavy drinking, drug use, and sharp, cringe-inducing cruelty, with occasional physical comedy and a few brief moments of violence. The emotional register is cynical, though two lead men slowly reveal wounded, lonely cores. Made for viewers who like dark, acidic character comedy with an unapologetically nasty edge.
More TV shows like Vice Principals
Closest in mood, pacing and theme. Tell us why you loved Vice Principalsand we’ll explain which ones fit you.
