TEACHING MRS. TINGLE (1999)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
I hated some teachers in high school but not enough to kidnap them so that I could get a higher grade enabling me to become valedictorian (my grade-point average was a mere 85%). By all accounts, "Teaching Mrs. Tingle" should be a disastrous offering yet I was quite thrilled by it. It is bouncy, consistently edgy and humorous. Class, listen and take notes.
The titled character, Mrs. Tingle (maliciously and authoritatively played by Helen Mirren), is one tough, no-holds-barred teacher. When she is grading the students' final projects, she is perfectly blunt and concise. Even one of the top students in Tingle's class, Leigh Ann Watson (Katie Holmes), who has created an ambitious project on the Salem witch trials (complete with a leather-bound diary), fails to attract the slightest interest in the teacher. Watson gets a C for her efforts, which may prevent her from getting valedictorian status. She wants to appeal the grade but thanks to her friends,
Jo Lynn (Marisa Coughlan) and her supposed boyfriend, Luke (Barry Watson), they inadvertently stick a copy of the upcoming final exam in her knapsack! Guess who notices this grossly unethical practice! Now Watson and company have to convince the teacher in her own home that she is not guilty. Before you know it, the nasty, confrontational, far too honest Mrs. Tingle is bound to her bed
by her own students! How on earth will they ever convince anyone of their own innocence, especially Watson?
Okay, so this screenplay by Kevin Williamson ("Scream") is as farfetched as they come. Excepting scenes of Tingle's gentleman caller and Jo Lynn's reenactments from "The Exorcist," most of "Teaching Mrs. Tingle" moves along with the expected jolts and the swift camera moves of any thriller post-"Scream." What differentiates it from the norm are the truisms regarding the characters (there is actually more dialogue here than in the average "Scream" knockoff). Mrs. Tingle consistently plays mind tricks on her captors, even turning them against themselves. She believes that Watson is trying to steal Jo Lynn's boyfriend, Luke, and gets Jo Lynn to even despise Watson. After
all, why should Jo Lynn do all the hard work of bringing Tingle tea and food? How come Luke and Watson always leave together to keep authorities and the school at bay? There is also the sneaky theory that Tingle hates Watson and had planned for Watson to fail getting the coveted Valedictorian award. So should we trust these kids or should we be on Tingle's side? The fact that writer
Williamson keeps us on our toes, trying to guess what will happen next, is what makes the film work as a real thriller full of unpredictable surprises.
The best surprise is watching Helen Mirren convey every ounce of Mrs. Tingle's regret, humanity, hurtfulness and pain. In the beginning, we see her as a monster. By the end, you'll feel some sympathy for her. Mirren never aims for any exaggerated mannerisms or incredulous emotions. She manages to be both sincere and menacing and plays both ever so delicately.
Couglan's Jo Lynn has some worthy moments, though she is a dolt next to Holmes' Watson. And Watson's Luke is a Skeet Ulrich wanna-be, minus the goatee. Katie Holmes really takes the cake for standing on her own next to the titanic presence of Helen Mirren. And it is always an indisputable pleasure to see Molly Ringwald in any movie!
"Teaching Mrs. Tingle" was criticized for its violence in the wake of the tragedy at Colombine (Original title was "Killing Mrs. Tingle"). It is a shame because the movie and the events are about as similar as shock-rocker Marilyn Manson is to Senator Joe Lieberman. The critics should take a lesson from Mrs. Tingle and learn the meaning of irony.
