The Teachers' Lounge (2023)

Carla Nowak is in her first year of teaching at a new school. After several thefts, one of her students is accused and quickly exonerated of being the culprit. When Ms. Nowak lays a trap for the thief and it yields a suspect, she finds herself on the outs with parents and students, as well as faculty and staff.

This felt almost like a thriller. It took me a long time to finish because I was so emotionally affected by the tension, unfairness, and mob mentality. Making Nowak a bit of an outsider worked quite well here as no one was inclined to be on her side out of loyalty. All of that said, I'm dinging it a bit for the unsatisfying (and, frankly, confusing) ending.

B