The School for Good and Evil movie review

Story posted October 31, 2022 in CommRadio, Arts & Entertainment by Chloe Rey

Imagine getting plucked out of your town, flown away and dropped off at a magical school to train either to be the next princesses and princes or the next villains in fairy tales. This is the plot of the new Netflix movie, “The School for Good and Evil.”

The film is based on the book of the same title written by Soman Chainani. It has a star-studded cast, with names like Sophia Anne Caruso, Sofia Wylie, Kerry Washington, Charlize Theron and even Cate Blanchett voicing a talking quill. It is directed by Paul Feig, who has directing credits like “A Simple Favor” and “Bridesmaids.”

This is a movie about two best friends, Sophie and Agatha, who get swept away from their small village, Gavaldon, and whisked to - you guessed it - the School for Good and the School for Evil.

Sophie has wanted nothing more than to be a princess, but after being dropped off at the School for Evil, she tries to get back over to the School for Good. Meanwhile, Agatha was dropped at the School for Good and wants nothing more than to go back to Gavaldon with Sophie.

The two meet the headmaster, and he tells them that to get what they want, Sophie needs a true love's kiss, to prove that she's good at heart. Between juggling their new school work, coming up with a plan to get Sophie’s true love kiss and working on new relationships in the school, Sophie and Agatha’s friendship becomes strained.

Despite the credentials of the cast and director, as well as the interesting-sounding plot, this movie felt like it fell short of what was envisioned. In a lot of places, the relationships between different characters felt underdeveloped.

For example, a classmate of Sophie’s is obsessed with her, but they barely interact. The same goes for a main love interest, Tedros, and his interactions with Agatha. The scenes with them felt rushed, and it would’ve been nice to see them have more interactions.

The main relationship that felt the best was Agatha and Sophie, which makes sense as they are the two main characters.

Despite this flaw, a positive of this movie was the sets and costumes. The sets were intricate and detailed. The School for Evil had dark and dreary dorms, classrooms, and fancy emo fits, thanks to Sophie’s makeover scene where she basically makes everyone a new wardrobe.

Meanwhile, The School for Good is all love and light with gold accents, and every dorm is complete with lush bedding, warm sunlight coming through the windows, and vanities with perfect lighting to get makeup just right. The gowns worn are detailed and beautiful and would make anyone want to twirl around in them.

Overall, “The School for Good and Evil” is an average movie. The plot twists were moderately surprising, and the acting was pretty good. Some things would have been better if they were flushed out more, but this film is already 2.5 hours long, so there’s not much more room to add things. This isn’t going to win any awards, but it is still a good and fun watch.

Reviewer’s Rating: 3/5

Chloe Rey is a first-year majoring in telecommunications. To contact her, email ckr5449@psu.edu.