finally . we always knew robert rodriguez had talent as a filmmaker . we were just waiting for someone to put a good script in his hands , and kevin williamson has done that here . do not be fooled by the woefully bad trailers , or by the fact that critics have roundly panned this horror film . the faculty is easily the best of the genre to come along since williamson's breakout hit , scream . it is also the first watchable film rodriguez has put up since storming onto the scene with el mariachi . easily the biggest problem with this movie is in the marketing . i can only imagine how pissed off williamson , rodriguez , and everyone else involved in the movie must have been to see the film marketed as just another schlocky entry into the horror genre , which generally takes the words aliens ; teenagers ; battle ; suspicious ; killer ; small town ; etc . and jumble them up to come up with a concept ( to wit , this time : suspicious small town teenagers battle killer aliens ) . now if you are already a big 80's horror fan , just skip this review , because you already saw the movie , but this review is for people who are highly suspicious of shelling out eight bucks to see a horror flick . the only reason i actually saw the faculty was because my little sister begged me to . but now i'm trying to convince you to . actually , the faculty is just as witty as scream , slightly less original , but makes up with it by acknowledging its status as essentially an update of donald siegel's 1956 classic invasion of the body snatchers , one of the most frightening movies ever made , before hollywood began trying to make you jump in your seat rather than truly fear the end of the world . granted , with robert rodriguez and his frenetic camera involved , this update heightens the sense of urgency and makes you hop up a time or two . but , unlike his substance-lite stylizations in desperado and from dusk till dawn , rodriguez manages to hold onto the wit and character of williamson's script and fashion a film that not only gets your heart racing , but also manages enough intelligence to force you to suspend your disbelief . to top it all off , the faculty throws in some good breakfast club social commentary about high school social hierarchy , and examines the lasting effects of a surreal experience on such an ingrained social order . granted , the faculty's not schindler's list , but if you give it a chance it will make you think a little bit . which is a good thing . 
