Bad Education

And Prisoners That Vanish

Like most people, I stepped back when Hugh Jackman showed up as Wolverine in that very first “X-Men”. As a longtime X-Men fan, I remember thinking he was just too tall and too handsome for the role. Then I remember thinking, handsome? I’m heterosexual! And just like that, I had my first hetero man crush on a dude. It wasn’t enough that Jackman dutifully returned to the character so many times, whether or not the material was good – he also revealed himself to be one of Hollywood’s busiest leading men, showing up in a number of genres, in a variety of roles.

When I was in prison, I watched him reprise Wolverine two additional times. There was the nonsensical and gratuitous appearance in “X-Men: Apocalypse”, sure. But there was also his soulful appearance in “Logan”, a version of the character I always wanted to see, but doubted would ever happen. Even after the character’s many dubious moments in the history of that franchise, he was still able to imbue this silly comic book character with an overwhelming gravitas. And his final moments in that film with Patrick Stewart – you’ll recall it’s actually an intentionally-deceptive scene – were so upsetting, given the history both actors have with those characters that I had to step outside of the TV room and collect myself.

I didn’t have a chance to miss Jackman while I was incarcerated. In addition to the aforementioned superhero pictures, on cable all the time, I also caught him as the disheveled villain in the “Short Circuit” redux “Chappie”, a distinct departure. I also watched him dance and sing as P.T. Barnum in “The Greatest Showman”, a largely phony movie where Jackman, all charisma and vocal range, did absolutely no wrong. And then there was the highly-dubious futuristic noir “Reminiscence”, a bloodless dystopian thriller where Jackman had to constantly be several steps behind the audience. It’s rare that the leading man is always the best part of every movie, but such is the case with Jackman.

That being said, I was nowhere near prepared to watch him “Bad Education”, a piercing and suspenseful true life story. Jackman plays Frank Tassone, the superintendent of a popular public school in Long Island in the early 00’s. He’s handsome and well-liked, and acts as if he’s bulletproof. Which he is, given how little accountability there is for someone in his position. Who cares about the superintendent? They want to know what he’s accomplished, and he just so happens to be the current cock of the walk for an ambitious skywalk being built for the school campus. He freely toasts the success with the assistant superintendent, Pam Gluckin (Allison Janney). These two spend an awful lot of time together at school, but no one questions it. It’s clearly not an issue as mundane as an affair.

Student Rachel (Geraldine Viswanathan) is covering the proposed skywalk, and is collecting interviews and quotes when she reaches Mr. Tassone’s office. Like every classic bully, Frank tempts fate with Rachel, who has questions about the financial details regarding the ambitious project. She asks one question; he suggests two more. He gives her an answer; he prods her for more questions. He’s been unstoppable for so long that he doesn’t remember how stupid it is to say, “Here, this is my weakness, shoot me there.” He indulges her skills as a reporter. She says, “Bet” (not really: they weren’t using that slang yet)(Did I use it right?).

Rachel is, of course, right. The numbers don’t add up. What’s more, when confronted with this information, Frank isn’t bothered that the numbers don’t add up. Keep digging, he encourages her, unaware it’s his own grave. Frank is a classic sociopath – it seems like Pam is his closest associate, and yet Frank is more than willing to toss her to the wolves, as well as anyone else in the office who is providing information for the investigation and starting to give credence to the truth. When the unflappable Frank begins to flap, it’s all “how dare you”s and “I refuse to answer that”s.

There is no real suspense regarding Frank’s duplicity, which is straight-up ordinary embezzlement. We can tell Frank is guilty from the very first moments when he adjusts his impeccable grooming and flashes that billion dollar smile. And if he wasn’t going to get caught, then the movie wouldn’t exist. And yet, this is an A-List actor tackling a tricky role – a textbook villain with no redeeming qualities other than charisma, and you’re rooting against reality in the hopes he might outwit everyone. Which is a testament to the assumed momentum of a lead performance like this – Frank merely throws tantrums as the wall close in, continuing to lead his double life where he lives lavishly on school funds. You expect him to try to get away. Instead, it’s a sense of denial he embraces: it has always been alright, why wouldn’t it continue to be alright?

Viswanathan, as usual, is perceptive and likable in the lead, but she is playing an inquisitive kid. It’s not the most dynamic role, even if she keeps her head down and soldiers on with the biggest story of her young journalist career. Jackman is the most fascinating here, as a man who simply will not accept that he can lose. He could easily flee the country, go into hiding. But to a man like him, showing that you sweat is showing the world that you’ve lost. Jackman does this purely through silences and flop sweat, tenderly revealed behind his two-timing grin.

One of the many reasons I started this Substack is because what we learn about prison is information they allow you to hear. By they I mean the Bureau of Prisons, in conjunction with the media. Because the Bureau keeps a tight lid on what information escapes, it’s up to the media to determine whether or not information coming from convicts or the families of convicts is legitimate. And because we’re dealing with particularly inept officials now, it’s worth noting that some people who were arrested have simply faded away.

Apparently, in Florida there was a disclosure that American citizens were kidnapped, something that’s been happening nationwide, courtesy of ICE. In other words, the thing that the right wing claim isn’t happening? They admitted it was happening. One day it was over two dozen people. The next day, question mark? It would be nice to know these men and women were released of their own reconnaissance. But instead, this is a case of data going missing. This is not exclusive to Florida. Which is why we need to admit the truth – ICE is making people, some of them American citizens, disappear. This is an important reminder that this is what today’s law enforcement looks like.