Middle School – a great romp about rebellion and rules

In South African terms, moving up to ‘middle school’ is akin to the jump from Primary School to High School, Grade 8 (Standard 6) where you are initiated by the matrics and forced (in my day) to measure the rugby field with a matchstick, wear a raisin on your nose for a week, greet dustbins and generally be treated like you are nothing.

Watching “Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life” makes me believe that the US kids get off lightly to the torture of initiation. But this movie is all good fun.

The story is by James Patterson (yes, the thriller writer can you believe it) and Chris Tebbetts.
“Middle School” imagines a world in which institutions are evil, principals are tyrannical and all-out insurrection is the answer.

TRAILER:

It’s a fun, rebellious romp that celebrates creativity and outside-the-box thinking, though parents might hope that their children won’t be too inspired to copy the elaborate pranks that these characters pull off. Griffin Gluck plays Rafe, a dreamer and a doodler who is never far from his sketchbook.

Though he seems like a nice enough kid, he has a serious aversion to authority. Transferring into his third school of the year, he finds a worthy opponent in the rule book-obsessed, villainous principal, Mr Dwight (Andy Daly). You gotta love this guy and maybe we all had a teacher like him at some point!

Adopting the motto “rules aren’t for everyone” (R.A.F.E.), Rafe and his younger brother, Leo (Thomas Barbusca), set out to creatively break every rule in the book. We won’t give the game away with Leo – but it is a nice twist – and adds pathos to the story. Rafe is also up against Carl (Rob Riggle), the dirtbag charming his mum (Lauren Graham).

There’s a relevant message about recognising and standing up to tyranny and oppression, which is a fine lesson for any age, though a bit loosely sketched within this fantasy about tossing out the rule book.

6,5/10