Review of Detachment (2011) by Karen W — 24 Mar 2012

Henry Barthes (Brody) is a substitute teacher for English. When he accepts a job for a poor high school, Barthes has no idea what is coming. Henry has to be able to overcome kids that threaten him with words and violence as well as students, who donâ(TM)t have any interest in education. Through this, Barthes is able to establish a connection with his co-workers and students.

Since Detachment has such a great cast, it comes as a surprise that this movie is really sloppy and not that good. While watching this film, the biggest problem comes from the flow and pace. This movie goes by very slowly and most of the film is incoherent making it difficult to watch. Even worse, the acting as a whole isnâ(TM)t that decent, destroying each character. In other words, I was never interested or felt sympathy for any of the people in the movie. This is extremely surprising when you consider the cast and director. Donâ(TM)t even get me started with the script. At some points, dialogue was interesting, however, most of the time conversation sucked and was irrelevant to what the movie was about. To tell you the truth, by the end I had no idea what the real plot was. There were so many scenes that didnâ(TM)t need to be there. Overall, contrived acting, a incoherent story, lame directing, and poor screenwriting make the core of Detachment. In other words, ruining every chance this film has to be good.

One of the saddest things about this movie is that I had high expectations. In all seriousness, with a cast like this, youâ(TM)d expect this film to be flawless. However, it did the exact opposite and I donâ(TM)t suggest seeing it. That also includes on DVD because it is a waste of time. I give Detachment a strong one and a half out of five stars.