Detachment

Detachment

It is a shame that Detachment is not going to be a popular film. But with the twin forces of genre and tone lined up against it, this thoughtful film is destined for the sidelines. Drama is not popular these days. It seems like ever since 9/11, the studios have decided that future entertainment is comedy and fantasy. Really, the word says it all: entertainment is not depressing; entertainment is not critical. Detachment is a scathing look at the progress we’ve haven’t made with No Child Left Behind. An old and tired Adrien Brody joins Lucy Liu on the edge of a breakdown, pill-popping James Caan and sobbing Marcia Gay Harden for three weeks at a fringe school that is catch all for teenage misfits and trouble makers. In a wonderfully soupy timeline, Brody tries to provide some semblance of hope to kids who’d rather be angry and the world and each other than risk failure by genuinely caring. Director Tony Kaye uses chalkboard imaginations, black and white documentary footage, an unspecified interview room and grainy, urban visuals to show how easy it is for teachers to break under the pressure when the world casts blame and assigns praise based on test scores. These teachers are the hulls of idealists with only so much fight left. Detachment is a critique not many will want to hear. There is no bright spot at the end of the tunnel, the film offers no solution. It is simply a window into the endless, thankless toil of the human beings struggling to mold the citizens of tomorrow. Human beings who have to maintain emotional distance because to care too much is to put their own mental health at risk. It’s a window we all need to look through, if we’re actually going to make any progress to provide a real education. Nypress