REEL CRITIC:Make a point to ditch 'School'

Unless you are a huge fan of Billy Bob Thornton or John Heder, don't enroll in "School For Scoundrels." Trust me, your teacher won't miss you if you ditch this so-called comedy.

Thornton stars as a Dr. P, a guru that teaches dorky guys how to have confidence in life so they can obtain what they're after. John Heder's character, Roger, signs up for Dr. P's class to gain the skills necessary to land the girl of his dreams. What happens when teacher and student both go for the same woman?

That's the plot and I'm not kidding. I wish I were.

I really looked forward to seeing this film because Todd Phillips, the director of the classic comedy, "Old School," wrote and directed it. My audience was ready for laughter but many people left early. I later learned you could receive a refund from the theater if you hate a film and scoot out before the ending. Being the pro that I am, I stayed through the entire 100 minutes because the paper generously pays for my ticket. The popcorn, Diet Coke and parking are on my dime.

My intellectual friend, Cole, thought "School For Scoundrels" was one of the worst movies he's ever seen. It's bad, but not that bad. Cole needs to get out more often.

The story is a mess but there are some funny moments when Thornton and Heder share screen time in the middle of the movie. My suggestion, rent the DVD and fast-forward to the 20-minute mark. You can skip the sappy ending, which is unintentionally funny.

I'm really baffled by how misguided this film is.

MGM must have green-lighted this project without having a finalized script.

Somebody should do a documentary about what went wrong with this production. There is too much talent on both sides of the camera to have this big of a failure hit the screen.

I would never suggest skipping school. I did it once while growing up and got caught, but you'll be doing yourself a favor by skipping "School For Scoundrels."

Since I'm grading this picture, I give it a "D" for "Do Not Watch." School is out!