The 6.7/10 on IMDb is disappointing to me. This film is not exactly the genre I am typically drawn too, but it proceeded to instantly peek my interest by performing well fundamentally. The score was eerie when it needed to be, and it was chipper and enticing the rest of the time. There was nothing crazy in this film and it had no huge plot twists, but that didn't stop it from building and building until I just couldn't wait to see what happened next. The characterization was what really made The Kindergarten Teacher shine. Only two characters really needed development, and they got ALL of it. I was enthralled in their relationship. Give this film a chance even if you are not a fan of dramas.

Kindergarten helper Lisa Spinelli (Maggie Gyllenhaal) takes an adult continuing poetry class taught by Simon (Gael García Bernal). Her family life is unsatisfying and her writing is not good enough. She takes poems from her young student Jimmy and passes them off as her own. She becomes obsessed with Jimmy and promotes him as the new poetry voice.

The first half is slow. Quite frankly, I didn't see where this was going. She needs to be a bit more obsessive and more interesting from the start. Instead of a family, she should be a lonely spinster. It gets more interesting as she gets more obsessive. I don't care that much about her family or that class. It's a little weird to have everybody fall for the poetry head over heels. It's not like his poetry is emphatically superior. There is nothing inherent undoable for any untrained regular folk. Even for Jimmy, the poetry has no real life meaning. It's marginally better than word salads. My first notion is the same as the first woman at the poetry reading who asks if she wrote the poem and he's like a performance medium. In fact, I don't understand Simon's outrage. He should assume this to be an artistic performance where the boy is more or less a ventriloquist's dummy. The whole concept feels oddly unreal. I would really eliminate her family and the class while concentrating on Lisa growing obsessive behaviors. It's the best part of the movie. The last fifteen minutes are great and could be even longer. There could be an Amber alert to heighten the tension. There could be an encounter with a cop. There could be lots of situations. That should be the meat of this story.

What plays out as a drama for the first hour, turns into an uncomfortable thriller, as a down on her luck teacher takes a special interest in a young bright student who has a knack for creating poems far beyond his age. Not seeing a trailer and knowing next to nothing before tuning in, there's never really a key as to where the film is going, both in structure and intention. It keeps you on your toes but it also creates more and more tension and a cringey feeling in your stomach when Maggie Gyllenhaal's 'Lisa' makes each move to get closer to her student. It's icky and both depressing how far she goes to make herself feel accomplished and worth something. So in that sense, this is a fascinating character study of psycho teacher, who just happens to also be incredibly kind and giving.

7.5/10