Charlie BartlettMovie Reviews

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So-so
Avg. Critic Score: 54 out of 100 Mixed or average reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
15 Iffy for 15+
Read Common Sense Media review

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

  • 80
    The Hollywood Reporter | Kirk Honeycutt

    Yelchin delivers one of those performances that pop eyes... It's a breakthrough role. Read full review

  • 80
    Variety | Ronnie Scheib

    Rollicking story of a rich kid whose wildly successful bid for popularity has him playing drug-distributing shrink to an entire high school boasts pitch-perfect faceoffs between upstart Anton Yelchin and alcoholic principal Robert Downey Jr. that could fuel a chemistry lab. Read full review

  • 75
    USA Today | Claudia Puig

    A refreshingly entertaining character study that refuses to dumb down its youthful cast or bury their concerns in service of a catchy soundtrack. Read full review

  • 75
    Boston Globe | Wesley Morris

    What the movie lacks in technical polish (it's not very handsome-looking) and dramatic perfection, it makes up for in unusual social sophistication. Read full review

  • 70
    Wall Street Journal | Joe Morgenstern

    The film functions as a high-wire act that can leave you giddy with laughter. Read full review

  • 60
    The New York Times | Stephen Holden

    If the attention span of Charlie Bartlett didn't wander here and there, the movie might have been a high school satire worthy of comparison with Alexander Payne's "Election." But as it dashes around and eventually turns soft, it loses its train of thought. Read full review

  • 58
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    Robert Downey Jr. is an uncomfortable sight as the school's hard-drinking, overstressed principal. Read full review

  • 50
    San Francisco Chronicle |

    A relentlessly earnest teen film. Read full review

  • 50
    Los Angeles Times | Carina Chocano

    For the most part, it's an uneven if amiable and occasionally inspired comedy about getting through adolescence that hits some false notes along the way. Read full review

  • 30
    Washington Post | Desson Thomson

    The movie feels forced, cliched and derivative. Read full review

View more reviews for Charlie Bartlett on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 15+ Edgy high school comedy better for mature viewers.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this mature comedy about high school students is full of images of and references to pills, other drugs, beer, and liquor (all of which are used by the students, who also smoke). Characters discuss suicide, depression, and troubled parent-child relationships. There are images of brutal "fight videos" made by the students, a gun wielded by a potential suicide, and a raucous student demonstration. The hero loses his virginity (off screen, after some kissing scenes), and there's some strong language, including "f--k."
  • Families can talk about the movie's messages about our "fast-fix" culture, in which drugs are prescribed to smooth over emotional or social problems. Do you agree with the statements the film is making? Which parts do you think are exaggerated for humor? Families can also discuss the tensions between Charlie and his parents. How does the principal become a surrogate father? How could the characters -- both kid and adult -- be more supportive and smart in dealing with each other?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: High school students suffer from depression, egotism, and fear; adults are less than helpful.
What to watch for
  • violence false3 Violence: Bully menaces Charlie repeatedly. Kids make fight DVDs that show a bully beating Charlie and other students; includes images of bloody faces, kicks, and hits. A girl describes her father's threat to kill himself with a .38. Students' demonstration against surveillance cameras on campus leads to punching and scuffling. Principal holds a gun; Charlie assaults him to stop a seeming suicide, then they talk.
  • sex false3 Sex: Kisses between the primary couple, some in close-up, lead to Charlie's "first time" (the movie cuts from kissing to a post-sex shot showing his naked chest; he announces his loss of virginity at a party, and kids cheer). Mention of porn on the Internet. Some sexual language ("get your nana pierced," "p---y," "hooch," "vagina").
  • language false3 Language: Several uses of "f--k," as well as "s--t" (some with "bull"), "bitch," "hell," "goddamn," and "ass." Other colorful phrases include "this school blows," "total tool," "I will take a massive steaming dump on your life," "bite me," and "you're a dick."
  • consumerism false0 Consumerism: The Clash poster in teenager's room.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false5 Drinking, drugs and smoking: The movie has a thematic focus on drugs and alcohol: Mother drinks (wine) repeatedly and is sometimes visibly drunk. High school students smoke marijuana (and use slang like "roach"). Charlie is prescribed medication by his psychiatrist (Ritalin, Xanax, Zoloft, Prozac), then starts selling his pills to classmates. Reference to dropping acid; the principal drinks. News that a student overdosed on sedatives casts a pall on the school. Mother refers to college drug use; principal discusses his alcoholism. Frequent cigarette smoking by adults and high school students (Murphey in particular).
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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Dave White

3.5

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… cute first, satirical second. Read full review See Dave White's on MOVIENAME on Movies.com

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