Detention

Rated TV-14 • On Demand

Detention, which gives off distinct The Breakfast Club vibes, is set in a moneyed Washington state high school, where four teens are serving Saturday detention for various in-school, semi-violent offenses. But while The Breakfast Club offenders represented clashing cliques, Detention is more low-key: Three of the four characters differ little in temperament.

Low-key doesn’t mean less keen, however. Some bad language and sensual talk in early scenes start Detention off on the wrong foot, but the objectionable material eases up, and writer and co-director Emma Cameron surprises with sharp, witty dialogue that is relentlessly charming.

Looking at her Saturday charges when they first meet, the school psychiatrist (Cameron) snaps, “I was promised five delinquents. Why are there only four of you?”—a nod to The Breakfast Club’s quintet of knaves. The answer to her question sets in motion a pair of love stories.

The reasons Corey (Ricky Spaulding), Nash (Ian S. Peterson), and Eden (Bianca Mariani) are in detention are revealed in the first scenes. But why Mary Beth (Anna Mulia), the quiet Ally Sheedy–like character, is dressed as a dog is a mystery the film slowly unravels. Their teacher has her own issues. Three months postpartum, sleep-­deprived, and not very happy to be away from her baby all day, she’s on a short fuse.

Detention has no overtly spiritual themes (besides two random references to a Bible study), but the film takes self-absorbed Gen X parents to task: Flashbacks and residential scenes connect the kids’ misbehavior to moms and dads who are workaholics or divorced or philanderers.

Whether or not Cameron is writing off an entire generation of parents who have apparently forgotten their Breakfast Club–finale group-hug lessons, she (as the narrator) ends with a commendable message: “When we are at our darkest moment and someone reaches out a hand, life becomes worth living.”