Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life (film)

Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Steve Carr
Produced by	Leopoldo Gout Bill Robinson
Screenplay by	Chris Bowman Hubbel Palmer Kara Holden
Based on	Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson Chris Tebbetts
Starring	Griffin Gluck Lauren Graham Rob Riggle Thomas Barbusca Andy Daly Adam Pally Retta
Music by	Jeff Cardoni
Cinematography	Julio Macat
Edited by	Wendy Greene Bricmont Craig Herring
Production company	James Patterson Entertainment Participant Media
Distributed by	Lionsgate CBS Films
Release dates	October 7, 2016 (2016-10-07) (United States)
Running time	92 minutes[1]
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$8.5 million[1]
Box office	$20.6 million[1]

Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life is a 2016 American family comedy film directed by Steve Carr and written by Chris Bowman, Hubbel Palmer and Kara Holden, based on the 2011 novel of the same name by James Patterson and Chris Tebbetts. The film stars Griffin Gluck, Lauren Graham, Rob Riggle, Retta, Thomas Barbusca, Andy Daly and Adam Pally, and follows a middle school student who sets out to break every one of the many rules made by his strict principal.

Principal photography began on November 21, 2015 in Atlanta, Georgia. Lionsgate released the film on October 7, 2016. It received mixed reviews and has grossed over $20 million.

Plot

Rafe Khatchadorian (Griffin Gluck), who enjoys a passion for art and not much else, transfers mid-year to Hills Village Middle School after being kicked out of his previous one. On his first day, he meets Principal Dwight (Andy Daly), who runs the school with an iron will and forces students to comply with an extensive list of senseless rules; and his vain assistant principal Ida Stricker (Retta) who agrees with his tactics. Later that same day, an assembly focused on the BaseLine Assessment of Academic Readiness (BLAAR) standardized test, led enthusiastically by Dwight, is interrupted when another student grabs Rafe’s sketchbook in which he had humorously drawn the principal as a zombie repeating “BLAAR” over and over. Dwight responds by destroying the sketchbook, much to the dismay of Rafe as it had been filled with his personal work.

Later that day, Rafe is back in his room with his friend Leo (Thomas Barbusca); the latter suggests that, to get even, Rafe should destroy Dwight’s book, i.e., his rule book. This leads to several pranks intended to show the ridiculousness of these rules. In concert with Leo, they paper the walls of the hallways as well as Dwight’s office with colored sticky notes, change the period bell to end with the sound of flatulence, fill the teachers’ lounge with plastic balls, and turn the trophy case into a fish tank complete with coral and several sea creatures, including an eel. These pranks gain the attention and admiration of Rafe’s fellow students, including Jeanne Galletta (Isabela Moner), the lone member of the AV Club who also sees the pointlessness of Dwight’s rules. Leo, however, suggests strongly to Rafe that he not reveal himself just yet.

In the midst of the chaos, Dwight, obsessed with his school’s performance on the BLAAR, realizes that if he can stop the remedial class, which includes Rafe, from taking the test, then the average scores will improve enough to earn a number one ranking and a generous bonus for him and Stricker. He frames several students from the class by secretly putting items in their lockers that make it appear like they were responsible for the pranks. He also uses the opportunity to unlawfully fire Mr. Teller (Adam Pally), the compassionate remedial class teacher who sees through Dwight’s plan. Rafe immediately goes to Dwight’s office and begs him not to suspend the other students since he was the one responsible for the pranks; when Dwight fails to relent, Rafe creates a crazy dance party by activating the sprinkler system and fire alarm, which soaks the school and the students in colored dye that was intended to be yet another one of his pranks.

Now expelled from Hills Village Middle School, Rafe is confronted by his mother, Jules (Lauren Graham), who tells him that her fiancé, Carl “Bear” (Rob Riggle), who seriously loathes Rafe and his sister, Georgia (Alexa Nisenson), has found a military school where Jules should consider sending him. While acknowledging that it isn’t ideal, it represents what may be the only option left. She also pauses to reflect the passing of Rafe’s younger brother two years earlier; it is then revealed that Leo was, in fact, his brother.

Later that evening, Jeanne shows up at Rafe’s house with a surprise; in pulling together a documentary about the school, she had recorded Dwight putting the items “found” in the student lockers himself. With this evidence, Rafe, Jeanne, and Georgia gather the students from the remedial class outside the middle school, along with the disgruntled janitor (Efren Ramirez), and pull together a plan to get back at Dwight. The next morning, Jules discovers that neither Rafe nor Georgia are home and becomes concerned about their disappearance, but when Bear shows more concern in the fact that his car is missing (having been stolen by the kids), she finally realizes that he is nothing more than a selfish jerk, later giving him back his engagement ring to pay for damages to the car intentionally inflicted by Georgia.

The next day, with BLAAR testing ready to begin, Rafe and his classmates interrupt procedures and expose Dwight’s deceitfulness. Fed up with Rafe’s inferred disobedience, he begins to chase him across school grounds. Just as Dwight catches up with Rafe in front of the school, Mr. Teller shows up with Superintendent Hwang (Angela Oh), to whom Rafe hands over the video proving Dwight’s guilt. He is subsequently fired by Hwang for unlawfully firing Mr. Teller and for illegally rigging the BLAAR, and Hwang later reveals that he will be condemned and damned for his crimes; and Stricker is simultaneously let go as Dwight's accomplice.

Rafe is later seen after dark outside the school conversing with Leo; the latter tells him that, since Rafe has now made friends with some of his classmates, he is no longer needed to fill that void. As Leo departs on a spaceship with alien beings Rafe has drawn in his earlier sketchbook, Rafe and Jeanne share a kiss, breaking rule number 86, the last rule Rafe needed to break for ends justify the means.

Cast

• Griffin Gluck as Rafe Khatchadorian^[2]
• Lauren Graham as Jules Khatchadorian, Rafe's mother.^[3]
• Rob Riggle as Carl "Bear", Jules' boyfriend, and later fiancé.^[3]
• Retta as Ida Stricker, the Vice Principal of Hills Village Middle Schools.
• Thomas Barbusca as Leo, Rafe's best friend and late younger brother.^[3]
• Andy Daly as Principal Dwight, the strict principal of Hills Village Middle School.^[3]
• Adam Pally as Mr. Teller, Rafe's favorite teacher.^[3]
• Jacob Hopkins as Miller, a student who bullies Rafe.^[4]
• Alexa Nisenson as Georgia Khatchadorian, Rafe's sister.^[3]
• Isabela Moner as Jeanne Galletta, Rafe's love interest.^[3]
• Efren Ramirez as Gus, the janitor.^[3]
• Isabella Amara as Heidi
• James Patterson as James
• Angela Oh as Superintendient Hwang

Production

On August 4, 2015, it was announced that Steve Carr would direct the film adaptation of James Patterson's 2011 novel Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life, with a script written by Chris Bowman and Hubbel Palmer.^[2] Griffin Gluck would play the lead role, Rafe Khatchadorian, a student at Hills Village Middle School. Leopoldo Gout and Bill Robinson were set to produce the film, along with CBS Films, which handles international sales, with Lionsgate handling distribution.^[2] On November 12, 2015, more cast were announced for the film, whose script was also written by Kara Holden; it was also announced that Patterson would co-finance the film through his James Patterson Entertainment, along with Participant Media and CBS Films.^[3]

Principal photography on the film began on November 21, 2015 in Atlanta, Georgia,^[4][5] and wrapped on January 19, 2016.^[6]

Release

CBS Films distributes the film through its partnership deal with Lionsgate. The film was released on October 7, 2016.^[3][4]

Box office

In the United States and Canada, Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life was projected to gross $8–10 million from 2,750 theaters during its opening weekend.^[7][8] It went on to open to $6.9 million, finishing 7th at the box office for its first weekend.^[9] It has gone on to gross $19.2 million against an $8.5 million budget, making it a moderate success.^[1]

Critical response

Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life received mixed reviews from critics. On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 55%, based on 29 reviews, with an average rating of 5.3/10.^[10] Metacritic reported an average rating of 51 out of 100, based on 13 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[11] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.^[12]

Accolades

References

External links

• Official website
• Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life at the Internet Movie Database
• Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life at Box Office Mojo
• Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life at Metacritic
• Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life at Rotten Tomatoes