Fantasy Crumbles at the Sight of Friendship in Netflix's New Movie
The popular book series, "The School for Good and Evil" fails the set expectations in the new movie adaptation.
By Andrew Mauga
The popular book series, "The School for Good and Evil" fails the set expectations in the new movie adaptation.
By Andrew Mauga
“The School for Good and Evil,” watched by those who love fantasy and ironic disdain, was never ever going to be as good as the novel. Released on Oct 19, the Netflix original did worse than anticipated, earning five stars out of 10, primarily because of magically-bad acting.
Best friends Sophie (Sophia Caruso) and Agatha (Sofia Wylie) have been inseparable since early childhood. From carving their names on a tree to growing up like sisters, these two have endured a lot together. Their life in Gavaldon was harder than most as the townsfolk saw the both of them as too different for their ideal village life. Agatha was deemed a witch and Sophie was too hopeful for a fantasy life seen in the pages of her fairytale books. Everything changed after visiting their local librarian.
Willing to do anything to escape her present life, Sophie writes to the school in hopes that they respond to her wishes. It’s one thing to believe in fairy tales, but it’s another for them to actually exist. Attempting to start a new life, she drags Agatha along with her. With the rustling of trees and the sudden change in the air, they are met with a skeleton bird that takes both of them to the school. When Sophie was dropped into the School for Evil and Agatha was dropped into the School for Good, their relationship takes a sudden turn. Both girls have to find a way to navigate the path they have been put on and unlock the power that will change both schools forever.
As someone who has watched plenty of movies in my lifetime, this “Cinderella” vibe that they were trying to accomplish did not do its job. The movie felt uninteresting with the lack of explanation of Sophie’s characteristics. It didn’t bother touching on important things like how old she is and why she is treated like garbage by her own family. She is supposed to be one of the main characters and viewers like me would love to know these small, yet subtle details. For whatever reason, we are expected to learn about her as we go. Something about that in itself is unethical.
In one part of the movie we see Sophie walking through rows of people with the song “You Should See Me in a Crown,” by Billie Eilish playing in the background. To call this scene cringe would be an understatement. Interesting enough, it had a purpose after all. It presents Sophie in a new light because at this point she has officially changed her appearance and attitude to better match the expectations that precede her.
Wylie, who also stars in the Disney+ show “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” was the main reason the film was so enjoyable. Her sarcastic yet caring nature made the movie funny and it was nice to see a familiar face.
At the School for Good and Evil, we meet other characters of the film that are nowhere near the depiction of the characters in the novel. Not only that, but its cheesy one-liners and bold, upfront dialogue show us that Netflix is not afraid of criticism.
But they should be.
The “charming” princes that get the girl is what made this so unwatchable to the point where I had to pause a few times. The glassy smiles and chivalrous demeanor was so unoriginal and bland. It’s something that makes the happily ever after trope one of the worst.
Whether you are happy and willing, or daring and adventurous, give this movie a go. It has some questionable scenes, but despite that it was a pretty decent movie. It was in no way as accurate as the novel, but most movies aren’t. The light comedy and satirical irony that is portrayed throughout the movie makes it better and the CGI is also better than Marvel. In anyone’s standards, that has to count for something.
“The School for Good and Evil” is currently streaming on Netflix.
Best friends Sophie (Sophia Caruso) and Agatha (Sofia Wylie) have been inseparable since early childhood. From carving their names on a tree to growing up like sisters, these two have endured a lot together. Their life in Gavaldon was harder than most as the townsfolk saw the both of them as too different for their ideal village life. Agatha was deemed a witch and Sophie was too hopeful for a fantasy life seen in the pages of her fairytale books. Everything changed after visiting their local librarian.
Willing to do anything to escape her present life, Sophie writes to the school in hopes that they respond to her wishes. It’s one thing to believe in fairy tales, but it’s another for them to actually exist. Attempting to start a new life, she drags Agatha along with her. With the rustling of trees and the sudden change in the air, they are met with a skeleton bird that takes both of them to the school. When Sophie was dropped into the School for Evil and Agatha was dropped into the School for Good, their relationship takes a sudden turn. Both girls have to find a way to navigate the path they have been put on and unlock the power that will change both schools forever.
As someone who has watched plenty of movies in my lifetime, this “Cinderella” vibe that they were trying to accomplish did not do its job. The movie felt uninteresting with the lack of explanation of Sophie’s characteristics. It didn’t bother touching on important things like how old she is and why she is treated like garbage by her own family. She is supposed to be one of the main characters and viewers like me would love to know these small, yet subtle details. For whatever reason, we are expected to learn about her as we go. Something about that in itself is unethical.
In one part of the movie we see Sophie walking through rows of people with the song “You Should See Me in a Crown,” by Billie Eilish playing in the background. To call this scene cringe would be an understatement. Interesting enough, it had a purpose after all. It presents Sophie in a new light because at this point she has officially changed her appearance and attitude to better match the expectations that precede her.
Wylie, who also stars in the Disney+ show “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series,” was the main reason the film was so enjoyable. Her sarcastic yet caring nature made the movie funny and it was nice to see a familiar face.
At the School for Good and Evil, we meet other characters of the film that are nowhere near the depiction of the characters in the novel. Not only that, but its cheesy one-liners and bold, upfront dialogue show us that Netflix is not afraid of criticism.
But they should be.
The “charming” princes that get the girl is what made this so unwatchable to the point where I had to pause a few times. The glassy smiles and chivalrous demeanor was so unoriginal and bland. It’s something that makes the happily ever after trope one of the worst.
Whether you are happy and willing, or daring and adventurous, give this movie a go. It has some questionable scenes, but despite that it was a pretty decent movie. It was in no way as accurate as the novel, but most movies aren’t. The light comedy and satirical irony that is portrayed throughout the movie makes it better and the CGI is also better than Marvel. In anyone’s standards, that has to count for something.
“The School for Good and Evil” is currently streaming on Netflix.