''F'' (also known as ''The Expelled'') is a 2010 British
slasher film
A slasher film is a genre of horror films involving a killer stalking and murdering a group of people, usually by use of bladed or sharp tools like knife, chainsaw, scalpel, etc. Although the term "slasher" may occasionally be used informally as ...
written and directed by
Johannes Roberts
Johannes Roberts (born 24 May 1976) is a British film director, screenwriter and producer. He directed the film '' 47 Meters Down'' and its sequel, as well as ''The Other Side of the Door'', '' The Strangers: Prey at Night'' and '' Resident Evi ...
and starring
David Schofield and
Eliza Bennett
Eliza Bennett (born 17 March 1992) is an English actress and singer. Her most notable roles have been those of Meggie Folchart in the film '' Inkheart'', Tora in the film ''Nanny McPhee'', Susan in '' From Time to Time'' and Holly Manson in the ...
.
Plot
A teacher at Wittering College in north
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, Robert Anderson (
Schofield), is hit in the face by a pupil and forced to take three months' leave to avoid being sued by the parents of the child for giving the pupil an F grade, which is against school policy. Anderson is deeply affected by the incident and upon his return to teaching, he is an
alcoholic
Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomina ...
, emotionally disturbed and separated from his wife, Helen (
Aubrey). Their daughter, Kate (
Bennett), lives with her mother Helen and has classes with her father, but does not respect him. The headmistress, Sarah Balham (
Gemmell), loathes Anderson and clearly wants to get rid of him, but the
National Union of Teachers
The National Union of Teachers (NUT; ) was a trade union for school teachers in England, Wales, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man. It was a member of the Trades Union Congress. In March 2017, NUT members endorsed a proposed merger with ...
does not allow her to fire him. She indirectly accuses him of bad teaching and bringing alcohol into school.
When Anderson reads about violence in another school, he sends a memo advising all employees at the school about the high number of attacks on teachers and auxiliary staff annually. As a result, he is considered paranoid and delusional by everybody at the school. One day, after hours, Anderson is overseeing detention, in which he has placed his daughter. They argue over her use of a mobile telephone during the detention session β he slaps her in the face and immediately regrets it. Soon after, the
protagonist notes some strange movements outside the school and discovers that the telephone lines are down. As he stands by a closed window, a milkshake is thrown at him from outside and the message 'U R Dead' appears written in the milkshake. He advises security guard James (
Finlay Robertson
Finlay Robertson (born 2 May 1975) is a British actor.
Life and career
Robertson was born in the Netherlands to Scottish parents, and grew up in England. He studied History at Cambridge University.
Robertson has more than 40 screen credits, ...
), who seems uninterested.
Meanwhile, another security guard Brian, (
Jamie Kenna
Jamie Kenna is a British actor and former semi-professional footballer, formerly of Rusthall FC.
He appeared in Stormbreaker as Fox, Green Street as Big Marc and EastEnders as Vince Franks. He also appeared in ''The Bill''.
In August 2014, K ...
) has been murdered by hoodies who locked him in a wheelie bin and set fire to it. Looking for his daughter, Anderson visits the school library but, after he leaves, the librarian is confronted by two hooded characters, who murder her. Anderson finds his daughter smoking in the toilets with her boyfriend, Jake Eaves (Max Fowler) and headmistress Balham instructs them all to go home. Kate tells Balham that her father slapped her and Balham asks her to make a statement. Meanwhile, PE teacher Nicky (
McKee) passes through the gymnasium and into the changing rooms, where she is attacked by four teenagers wearing hoodies and carrying crowbars.
Having left the building, Anderson goes to his car, but finds the dead security guard's torch on the ground in the car park. Meanwhile, Kate is writing her statement in the staff room. Balham realises she can finally sack Anderson and, unable to use the telephone, calls security guard James to ensure that the teacher does not re-enter the school, and Helen, to inform her of the assault. Balham subsequently finds a body and escapes from two attackers herself, only for them to kill her before she can call the police. Anderson then discovers her corpse, her face badly disfigured. He tries to call the police, but when an attacker enters the room he hides, abandoning the phone, which the attacker crushes. Leaving the building, Kate is immediately chased back in by one of the attackers. Her boyfriend Eaves, who was waiting outside, enters the building to look for her. She comes across a member of auxiliary staff Gary, (
Tom Mannion
Tom Mannion is a Scottish actor.
His television credits include ''Brookside'', ''Up the Garden Path'', ''The Bill'', ''Boon'', '' Cadfael'', '' Doctor Finlay'', '' Doctors'', ''Eleventh Hour'', ''Holby City'', ''Roman Mysteries'', '' Hustle'', ...
), who is unaware of the situation in the school and goes after the attackers, but is electrocuted immediately after discovering Eaves, who is wrapped in barbed wire. Anderson and James team up to find Kate, who has left a 'Help' note in view of a CCTV camera. They discover Nicky struggling along a corridor, but she has been badly mutilated. Finding the room in which Kate is hiding, they are confronted by a hoodie and in a moment of cowardice, James locks the door with Anderson inside.
Meanwhile, the police arrive and enter the school. A female police officer is pushed down a flight of concrete stairs by one of the hoodies and the other policeman is hit with a crowbar in the face. The attackers then find James, who tries to escape but is cornered by the youths. Anderson finds Kate, but one of the hooded attackers catches the pair off guard, but his attack on Anderson is deflected and he stabs and wounds Kate. Anderson manages to overpower the attacker, grabs the knife and stabs him multiple times, then picks up his daughter and rushes out of the building. However, when they reach his car, they spot Helen's car in the car park and realise that she has arrived at the school. Anderson has to decide in an instant whether to save his daughter's life by driving her to hospital, or to save Helen by re-entering the school. He puts Kate in the back seat of the car and drives her to the hospital, leaving Helen to walk around the school, unaware of her potential fate.
Cast
*
David Schofield as Robert Anderson, English teacher
*
Eliza Bennett
Eliza Bennett (born 17 March 1992) is an English actress and singer. Her most notable roles have been those of Meggie Folchart in the film '' Inkheart'', Tora in the film ''Nanny McPhee'', Susan in '' From Time to Time'' and Holly Manson in the ...
as Kate Anderson, his daughter
*
Ruth Gemmell
Ruth Katrin Gemmell (born October 1967) is an English actress. She starred in the film ''Fever Pitch'' in 1997 which was followed by supporting roles in television series ''EastEnders'', '' Casualty'', '' Home Fires'' and '' Penny Dreadful.'' ...
as Sarah Balham, head teacher
*
Juliet Aubrey
Juliet Emma Aubrey (born 17 December 1966) is a British actress of theatre, film, and television. She won the 1995 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress for playing Dorothea in the BBC serial ''Middlemarch'' (1994). She is also known for her role a ...
as Helen Anderson, Robert's estranged wife
*Emma Cleasby as Lucy, school librarian
*
Finlay Robertson
Finlay Robertson (born 2 May 1975) is a British actor.
Life and career
Robertson was born in the Netherlands to Scottish parents, and grew up in England. He studied History at Cambridge University.
Robertson has more than 40 screen credits, ...
as James, school security officer
*
Roxanne McKee
Roxanne McKee (born 10 August 1980) is a British actress and model. She is best known for playing Louise Summers in the British soap opera ''Hollyoaks'' (2005β2008), Lou Foster in the British drama series ''Lip Service'' (2010), Doreah in the A ...
as Nicky Wright, PE teacher
*
Tom Mannion
Tom Mannion is a Scottish actor.
His television credits include ''Brookside'', ''Up the Garden Path'', ''The Bill'', ''Boon'', '' Cadfael'', '' Doctor Finlay'', '' Doctors'', ''Eleventh Hour'', ''Holby City'', ''Roman Mysteries'', '' Hustle'', ...
as Gary, school caretaker
*Max Fowler as Jake Eaves, Kate's boyfriend
*
Jamie Kenna
Jamie Kenna is a British actor and former semi-professional footballer, formerly of Rusthall FC.
He appeared in Stormbreaker as Fox, Green Street as Big Marc and EastEnders as Vince Franks. He also appeared in ''The Bill''.
In August 2014, K ...
as Brian Stanton, school security officer
*
Ian Cullen
George Ian Cullen (20 October 1939 β 12 November 2019) was a British actor.
Cullen first became interested in acting when appearing in a pantomime aged four (late 1943). He trained at RADA with a scholarship when he was 16.
An early televis ...
as Maths Teacher
Critical reception
''
Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
'' wrote "Green-tinged
lensing provides a unifying, if oppressive, aesthetic, while the sparse, haunting score, incorporating sinister choral elements, makes the grade."
[ '']The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' wrote "F doesn't quite work, but it aims at something interesting."[ While '' Bloody Disgusting'' said "It's not perfect, but it's a solid, well shot slasher/thriller hybrid that fans of Ils (Them) or ]Eden Lake
''Eden Lake'' is a 2008 British horror thriller film written and directed by James Watkins and starring Kelly Reilly, Michael Fassbender and Jack O'Connell.
The film was nominated for the Empire Award for Best British Film. It is among a gr ...
should probably appreciate."[
Peter Bradshaw of the Guardian wrote that "There's a classy cast, including Ruth Gemmell as the headteacher and Juliet Aubrey as Robert's wife, but those faceless demon-hoodies seem to belong to a more supernatural kind of thriller to me, and slightly undermine the realist impact".
Kim Newman wrote that "Itβs a fun suspense-slasher horror, but Schofield roots it in a credible, cutting modern British horror of Daily Mail headlines and teachers driven to nervous breakdowns".]
References
External links
*
{{Johannes Roberts
2010 films
2010 horror films
2010 horror thriller films
British high school films
British horror thriller films
Films about dysfunctional families
Films about educators
Films about school violence
Films set in London
2010s high school films
Films directed by Johannes Roberts
Films with screenplays by Johannes Roberts
2010s English-language films
2010s British films