THE FACULTY
US, 1998, 104 minutes, Colour.
Jordana Brewster, Clea Du val, Laura Harris, Josh Hartnett, Shawn Hatosy, Selma Hayek, Famke Janssen, Piper Laurie, Chris Mc Donald, Bebe Neuwirth, Robert Patrick, Elijah Wood, Jon Stewart.
Directed by Robert Rodriguez.
The Faculty is Robert Rodriguez’s variation on the Invasion of the Body Snatchers theme. A number of students fear that the staff in their school are aliens – and deaths begin to occur immediately.
The film is strong insofar as it was directed by Robert Rodriguez (From Dawn Till Dusk, El Mariachi, Spy Kids, Sin City) and written by Kevin Williamson (The Scream films).
The film has a lot of young talent, at the beginning of their careers including Josh Hartnett, Sean Hatosy and Elijah Wood. There are quite a number of veterans including Piper Laurie, Famke Janssen, Salma Hayak, Christopher Mc Donald, Bebe Neuwirth.
1.The tradition of the high school dramas and comedies? High School USA? Introducing the conventions of the horror movie to the high school film? Setting up expectations?
2.The film references - especially the parallel with The Invasion of the Body Snatchers? The solution made with reference to Alien? Kevin Williamson, writer of screen, and his knowledge of horror movies and expectations that young audiences will recognise them?
3.The ordinary settings, the school, homes? The contrast with the special effects, especially the culmination with the confrontation of the monster in the swimming pool? The musical score?
4.The transition from high school comedy drama to horror film, to monster films? Again, audiences knowing the conventions and expecting them?
5.The establishing of the school and the characters, the opening with the football, the coach, the rah-rah and the bullying, the seedier aspects of the school, the drug dealing, sexual relationships, the school nerd, the science laboratory? The role of the staff - in the common room, in their classes?
6.The range of the staff: the coach and his bullying, the principal and her efficient running of the school, Mrs Olson, Miss Harper the nurse, Miss Burke and her being withdrawn? The boring classes? The science teacher and his experiments? Familiar characters - who will be transformed by the body snatchers?
7.Elijah Wood as the Nerd, the range of his persecution, mockery? His film knowledge, science knowledge? His discovery of the creature on the football field?
8.The takeover of the staff: the sports coach, his then attacking the principal and her going back into the school, Mrs Olson and her being possessed and killing the principal? The science teacher and his transformation, Miss Burke and her sexy manner? Her coming on to Zeke? The rest of the staff in the staff room and their being transformed? The police, the principal and her talking to the police, taking over the police? The gradual taking over of the parents and the students? The conformism in the school? Passing by the classroom with everybody's hand up? The visualising of a conformist paradise where everything is easy, no pain?
9.Mary Beth as the high school sweetheart? The new girl, sweetly trying to relate to everybody, talk to them? The least suspected? Her chatter, meals? Her joining the group? The irony about the caffeine test? The flashback to show what she did? The irony that the sweet new girl at the school is actually the queen of the invaders?
10.The finding of the strange creature, the analysis, the science class, the monster? The staff and the monster having a need of water? The strange planet from which it came?
11.The whole school taken over, the small group and their trying to survive? Zeke as the drug dealer and the tough type around the school, the tests with the drugs, his caffeine alternative? Delilah and her being the editor of the paper, glamour, arrogant? Stan and his being on the team, wanting to move off the team and be himself? Stokely and her isolation, dressing in black, strange manner, the issues of lesbianism?
12.Each of them taking the drug and the discovery of who actually had been overtaken? The work together, getting to the car, getting to the laboratory, the scares? Casey and his using his wits? The irony of the nerd being the shrewdest?
13.The build-up to the confrontation, Casey vs the Queen, the transformation into the extraordinary monster? The possibility of a cure?
14.Everybody back to normal? The theory about determinism and people being taken over and losing their freedom being worse than being able to make mistakes? The Clockwork Orange kind of theme mixed with '90s high school comedy drama, horror techniques and the traditions of science fiction?
