He plays school superintendent Frank Tassone who, over a decade, embezzled millions from Long Island's Roslyn school district. But he wasn't alone. Embezzling even more was administrator Pam Gluckin (Allison Janney), who is also terrific. If you only know her as the 50 something libertine grandma in "Mom" this is a real departure from that.

What makes this film great is the slow reveal. The film first looks like a set up for some kind of 21st century Room 222 - if anybody else here is old enough to know what I'm talking about. Tassone looks too good to be true as far as his energy and involvement with the kids. And he got real results. Roslyn became a top rated public school district. Real estate values in the district shot up because, unfortunately, top rated school districts are hard to come by anywhere, along with the coveted Ivy League college admissions that come with it.

But slowly, it becomes obvious - to the viewer that is - that Tassone is living a double life in many ways. Jackman as Tassone plays his hand very close to his vest, and I did not look up the details of what went on precisely because I wanted the plot to be somewhat of a surprise, and it was. How he and everybody else gets caught is a bit different in the film from the real story, but basically the plot is true.

I really liked how the parents were portrayed. They wanted to believe an illusion because to believe the truth might mean their kids don't go to Harvard, and their real estate values decline in a place where life is a race not a journey. Also the art design was done very well. Yes there were personal computers and cell phones in the early 2000s, but this really did look like 2002-2003. The sets, clothes, technology, and music were near perfect. The little things like the bulky computer monitors with those early Windows screensavers were spot on.

Youtube film reviewer Chris Stuckmann had this in his top ten list for 2020 - in fact he rated it 3rd - even though it was made in 2019, and I'd never even heard of it. I guess it was a victim of bad timing with the pandemic occurring and it being bought up by HBO rather than having a general release. I'd highly recommend it.

A school board discovers that one of its administrative staff has defrauded the school out of about $250,000. They have the staff member pay back the money, resign and leave it at that. Without knowing this, a journalist on the school newspaper starts investigating the school's finances and discovers that the issue may be bigger than what they school realises.

Highly interesting and entertaining film based on a true story. Very well told story. The extent of the issue is not revealed at the outset, so you get to discover it as the investigators do. The writer and director play their cards close to their chests, bleeding in the information, making for quite compelling viewing.

Great work by Hugh Jackman in the lead role. The character required an actor of great charm, charisma and presence, making Jackman perfect for the role. Good support from Alison Janney, Geraldine Viswanathan and Ray Romano.

Great film.

Hugh Jackman and Allison Janney give award-worthy performances in this based-on-a-true-story account of a school superintendent who runs a money laundering scheme for years under everyone's nose.

Jackman is the beloved superintendent, and Janney is the administrator who helps him by cooking the books and benefits financially herself. A writer for the school paper accidentally stumbles into a major story when she comes to interview them about a new fancy addition planned for the school and instead uncovers some suspicious financial transactions. It's her article in the paper that reveals the scheme and ends up landing both of them in jail.

"Bad Education" is modest in its ambitions, and it's as a result nothing fancy, but it is fiendishly entertaining and superbly acted, not just by Jackman and Janney but by the entire cast. It's about people willing to live their entire lives as a lie in the pursuit of material stuff.

I'm not sure whether the film is eligible for Oscars; I believe it was originally intended for theatrical release but was instead released as a movie on HBO -- not sure if that counts as a T.V. movie or a streaming movie that had to find a COVID workaround. If it is eligible, I would love to see Jackman and Janney in the running for nominations.

Grade: A