Bad Kids Go to Hell (2012) - 2.5/4

Probably every reviewer that took on Bad Kids Go to Hell has described it as "The horror version of The Breakfast Club." Yes, there is even a Judd Nelson cameo. I suppose to some extent that's true. To a greater extent, I think Bad Kids Go to Hell is really one big joke--and not a bad one, actually.

The plot of Bad Kids Go to Hell is that a bunch of private school rich kids--and one not-quite-as-rich kid--with behavioral issues and seething resentment for each other get stuck in an 8-hour detention in the school's new library. By coincidence, all the students present had something to do with the library's construction on land once owned by a stubborn old Injun. When the students are a-dyin', either they're killing each other or it's a good ol' fashioned Injun ghost curse.

I'm not sure if it comes through in that plot description, but the whole scenario is over-the-top and tongue-in-cheek. You have the Poltergeist Indian curse deal, The Breakfast Club, the privileged teens, and the preposterous reason for locking them in one spot. I don't think director Matthew Spradlin had the least intention of treating this seriously. This is not a sneering attack on privileged children, an ironic treatment of horror themes, or a realistic take on The Breakfast Club. It's a joke.

The spitfire venomous dialogue in which every character expresses Tennessee Williams-level hatred for one another only makes the situation even sillier. These people are so hateful and acerbic. You certainly want them to die. But that's not the point either. The point is that it's all intentionally overblown. You can't take it seriously.

The best part of Bad Kids Go to Hell by far, however, is the series of flashbacks to what these kids are like in everyday highschool. With peppy techno music and slow motion, their wacky antics are presented with such deadpan realism and conviction. I know Spradlin doesn't take it seriously, but his trick is to make you feel he does. Interspersed amongst the venom, these absurd and hilarious flashbacks are moments of bizarre brilliance amidst the bizarre mediocrity.

The tone of Bad Kids is entirely inconsistent. The editing is often clumsy, with the flashbacks appearing without introduction. The acting is all over the place. The resolution as illogical and melodramatic as the rest of the movie. That really all adds to its charm. Bad Kids is far from a great movie, but it's good comedy. It cracks me up. I'm looking forward to Spradlin's next opus.