Chalk

Chalk is loaded with life, energy, truth and respect. It may just make you yearn for your high schooling days. Okay, maybe not, but Chalk will have you laughing long after the movie has ended. How's that for homework?

The movie has "heart" in a way that doesn't feel cloying or dishonest. And the cast -- especially Janelle Schremmer -- just nails it.

The movie opens with the dismal statistic that most teachers quit after three years. Akel and Mass see the humor in the situation, but the laughs are small and sad.

Unlike high school movies made for the teen market, Chalk gets many of its laughs from the backstage wrangling among the teachers as they unload their stress on one another.

More a series of loose-limbed vignettes than a sculpted narrative, Chalk lacks a compelling dramatic drive. But the cast creates a fine, improvisatory interplay, captured with verite-style camerawork, and the unforced humor and insights go a long way.

This loose-jointed ensemble comedy is funny in a squirm-inducing way.

The problem with the movie is that all this improvisational verisimilitude never finds its way into fully developed stories.