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HIGH School Review

Other Critics provided by Metacritic.com

Critics scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 2.0
    31

    out of 100

    Metascore®
    Generally unfavorable reviews
    based on a weighted average of all
    critic review scores.

  • 20

    out of 100

    Los Angeles Times

    Lacking real kick, High School winds up as irksome as a bag of ditch weed and as lame as the pun of the film's title.

    Read Full Review

  • 30

    out of 100

    Village Voice

    John Stalberg Jr.'s dismal stoner comedy does little to inject any sense of joy or laughter into its depiction of teenage pot antics.

    Read Full Review

  • 38

    out of 100

    USA Today Scott Bowles

    Filmmakers must have been tripping pretty badly when they made High School, a flub that's about as lucid as a stoner at a spelling bee.

    Read Full Review

  • 40

    out of 100

    The New York Times Stephen Holden

    Once the plot has sprung into action, High School is a bumpy ride that takes a few amusing dives but never coheres into anything special.

    Read Full Review

  • 50

    out of 100

    Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

    High School is a pun. Get it? This is one of those stoner comedies that may be funny if you're high - but if not, not.

    Read Full Review

  • 70

    out of 100

    Variety Justin Chang

    This madcap romp runs out of steam well before the finish, but its combo of sweetness and high spirits -- not unlike the chemical composition of the dope-infused brownies that serve as a key plot device -- proves sufficiently ingratiating to satisfy viewers.

    Read Full Review

  • See all HIGH School reviews at Metacritic.com

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For Families provided by Common Sense Media

Iffy for 17+

Laid-back comedy centers on heavy teen drug use.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that High School is a drug comedy about teen pot smokers who try to get their entire school stoned in order to thwart a mandatory drug test. There are no positive messages or role models here, and both language and sexual innuendo are extremely strong throughout. There's also some full-frontal female nudity. A scary drug dealer often threatens violence but never delivers. Several teens smoke pot regularly, and most of the characters in the movie are stoned at some point. The movie is aimed at teens, and it has an alluring subversive quality, but parents should be ready to put it in perspective and discuss real-life consequences.

  • Families can talk about the movie's messages about drugs and drug use. Do you think the movie is an accurate depiction of social attitudes about marijuana? Why or why not? Does it address any of the consequences of drug use? As a comedy, is it expected to?
  • Are there any stereotypes in this movie among the high schoolers? What about the adults?
  • Who do you think this movie is intended to appeal to? Does it succeed?

The good stuff
  • message true0

    Messages: High School's "lesson" is that teens can get away with anything if they learn to "loosen up" -- which apparently entails smoking pot and breaking all kinds of rules. In the movie's only positive vein, childhood friends who have drifted apart become close again.

  • rolemodels true0

    Role models: The "good guys" in this movie sell and smoke pot, and the "bad guys" are uptight teetotalers.

What to watch for
  • violence false1

    Violence: Many threats, but no actual violence. Even in a scary encounter with a drug dealer, no one is actually touched. Sexual harassment between a high school principal and his secretary is quickly thwarted.

  • sex false5

    Sex: Two high school girls are seen fully naked, both from the front and from behind. A character attempts to seduce an older woman and fails. Almost constant sexual language and innuendo, of all different types.

  • language false5

    Language: Nearly constant swearing includes countless uses of "f--k" and "s--t," as well as "p---y," "c--t," "c--k," "a--hole," "ass," "balls," "penis," "bitch," "hell," and "goddamn," as well as "Jesus f--ing Christ."

  • consumerism false0

    Consumerism: Not an issue

  • drugsalcoholtobacco false5

    Drinking, drugs and smoking: The behavior in High School isn't meant to be taken seriously, but teen characters regularly experiment with drugs. There's almost constant marijuana smoking, and an entire school's worth of teens unknowingly eats pot brownies.

An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology.

© Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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Fan Reviews provided by

Average Rating: 3.833
Read all reviews Write a review at Fandango
5

TOKE UP AND SEE THIS! by madmaxguitar
A great movie , don't listen to the moron who obviously never took a hit or did anything cool in his life. If you like movies to just get baked up and laugh - See HIGH SCHOOL. The best Frog scene ever. Sincerely, Max Random 420punk.com

5

HIGH School by nstalberg
I LOVED THIS MOVIE!!! So hilarious. Adrien Brody was AMAZING and Colin Hanks was so charming. Loved it so much. Reminded me of a John Hughes movie.

4

well... by PitaBread
It's kind of a predictable movie, and some of the material has been done, but I guarantee you - it's worth it to see this movie JUST for Adrian Brody's performance as "Psycho Ed", lol. He plays a crazy drug dealer, and his scenes steal the show!

1

Completely Unentertaining, Miserable, Tedious And Boring....TOXIC! by Alon Patterson
The producers couldn't have made a worse movie if they?d tried. This film's greatest scene is the MPAA logo at the end, just before the screen goes white and the house lights come back on. Perhaps one could find some reason to go to this, like escaping from Saw's house and using the theater as a hiding place, or just having been released from a mental institution, but otherwise they'd have to be suicidal self-abusive to buy a ticket to this thing. It's not that the movie is bad, it's that calling it bad would be a compliment. Excruciatingly, mind numbingly, nauseatingly, boring and that?s describing the nicest, most interesting parts of this movie. Simply put, this film is TOXIC. Enter if you have more money than sense, or if you?ve yet to see the worst movie of your lifetime. You've been warned.

Read all HIGH School reviews at Fandango
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