Summary
Mika Suzuki, the central character of the fluffy comedy "Doki Doki School Hours", has a problem: as she stands only 4' 10" and looks like a little girl, no one takes her seriously as a teacher. Unmarried at 27, she lives at home with her indulgent father and acidulous mother. No one takes Mika's students seriously, and with good reason. Tominaga loves slasher movies, Kobayashi lives for designer labels, and Kitagawa gushes about how cute the teacher is. Nor will the boys win any prizes--Watabe draws manga panels all over his exams, the heterosexual Seki dresses in drag, and Kudo nurtures a crush on athletic Suetake. These misfits stumble through the regular events of a Japanese high school year: athletic competitions, exams, homework, summer festivals. To compensate for the limits of the cartoon-y animation, the filmmakers crowd the screen with names, explanatory words, and other graphics. Even though it's played for laughs, "Doki Doki School Hours" makes "Strawberry Eggs" feel like Macbeth. (Rated 13 and older: risqué humor, alcohol use) "--Charles Solomon"