Bad Teacher

2011 Comedy

A booze-swilling, pot-smoking, hard-swearing seventh-grade teacher rallies to get out of the classroom for good by wrangling a rich substitute teacher into marriage in this comedy from director Jake Kasdan (Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story). Cynical teacher Elizabeth (Cameron Diaz) hates her job. She can't wait for the day she finds a man who makes enough cash to let her walk away from her life of middle-school misery, and when her fiancé cancels their wedding plans, her frantic search intensifies. Just when it starts to look like Elizabeth will have to muscle her way through another semester of skull-crushing hangovers, however, handsome substitute Scott Delacorte (Justin Timberlake) shows up at school sporting a fancy wristwatch and the promise of a care-free future. But in order to earn her meal ticket, Elizabeth will have to out-cute perky fellow teacher Amy (Lucy Punch). And it won't be easy, because Scott is crushing on Amy hard. Now, if Elizabeth can just motivate her students to study so that she can win a state contest to earn enough cash for some new breast implants, perhaps she can finally find a means of diverting Scott's gaze. Meanwhile, much to Elizabeth's chagrin, wisecracking, self-effacing gym teacher Russell (Jason Segel) refuses to admit defeat despite being turned down for a date by his gold-digging colleague time and again. more..

Director: Jake Kasdan

Starring: Cameron Diaz, Lucy Punch, Jason Segel, Justin Timberlake, Phyllis Smith

Reviews

  • Ms. Diaz has found her down-and-dirty element in the kind of broad comedy that threatens to get ugly and more or less succeeds on that threat.

    Manohla Dargis - The New York Times

    29 November 2012

  • We're just watching a film try to pass off misanthropic blunt-wittedness as "edge."

    Owen Gleiberman - Entertainment Weekly

    29 November 2012

  • Of these characters, the rival played by Lucy Punch is the most colorful, because she's the most driven and obsessed. The others seem curiously inconsequential, content to materialize in a scene, perform a necessary function and vaporize.

    Roger Ebert - The Chicago Sun-Times

    29 November 2012

  • Bad Teacher keeps running away from its combustibly nasty premise. Damn shame.

    Peter Travers - Rolling Stone

    29 November 2012

  • A frustrating mix of smart flash and smirking impudence.

    Betsy Sharkey - Los Angeles Times

    29 November 2012

Awards

  • Favorite Movie Actress - Comedy/Musical

    ALMA Awards (2011)

     
  • Film Music

    BMI Film & TV Awards (2012)

  • Favorite Comedy Movie

    People's Choice Awards (2012)

     
  • Choice Movie Actor: Comedy

    Teen Choice Awards (2011)

  • Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actor

    Young Artist Awards (2012)