‘Bad Apples’ Review: Saoirse Ronan Gets Zero for Conduct in a Very Dark Classroom Comedy

Children learn some things at school, sure, but others they just collectively know from the moment they set foot in class — and one of them is how to immediately size up a teacher as friend or foe, authority or pushover. Sweetly earnest young Maria Spencer (Saoirse Ronan) is one of those unfortunate educators who, through no real fault of her own, has been placed in the latter column by her perceptive pre-teen students: She’s kind, dedicated and full of ideas, but can barely speak over the room, much less command it. A daringly discomfiting black comedy from Swedish director Jonatan Etzler, “Bad Apples” initially appears to be that rare classroom movie that courts more sympathy for adult than child — at least until Maria discovers her unlikely inner disciplinarian, and our allegiances ricochet all over the shop.

A Toronto premiere that has since opened San Sebastian’s New Directors competition…