Common Sense Media Review
John Belushi's raucous toga party has sex, cursing, drinking
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 17+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
National Lampoon's Animal House
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 7 parent reviews
Based on 13 kid reviews
Kids say the film is an outrageously hilarious comedy that resonates more with older teens, though some feel that its content is appropriate for younger viewers. With classic performances, particularly by John Belushi, it sets the standard for raunchy comedies, celebrating college antics despite the presence of adult themes like drugs and casual sex.
- humor
- age-appropriateness
- raunchy comedy
- classic performance
- college life
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
Fight for your right to party! In NATIONAL LAMPOON'S ANIMAL HOUSE, that's what the boys of the Delta House fraternity plan to do, despite the nefarious plans of the dean (John Vernon) and the guys of Omega house (notably, the chief meanie played by Mark Metcalf). Bluto (John Belushi), Otter (Tim Matheson), and the other guys of Delta house are seven-year seniors who use their time at school to score with girls, have toga parties, and generally enjoy themselves. But Dean Wormer and the bullies of Omega house are out to harsh their mellow. The dean puts the fraternity on "double secret probation" and plans to throw them out at their next infraction. So when the guys steal Doug Neidermeyer's horse and put it in the dean's office for fun, and their grades come out far below the required level to stay at the school, the dean pulls their charter and expels the guys. But will they go out without a fight? Not a chance.
Is It Any Good?
For any guy who's ever had the figurative sand kicked in his face by a jock or been placed in the "dweeb corner" at the cool-guy party, John Landis' film is wish fulfillment. Don't bother trying to find the plot, though. It's more fun to go along for the prank-playing, wild ride while singing along with the amazingly energetic soundtrack. If you think too hard about it, Animal House isn't a whole lot better than today's teen sexploitation films like American Pie. Note that there's a lot of dated humor; you may need to explain to teens why jokes about things like having sex with a minor were considered funny back in the day.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about college-based comedies. What are some other examples of movies in which collegiate hedonism reigns supreme that came out after Animal House?
This movie was written by editors and writers for National Lampoon -- a popular satirical magazine before becoming a vehicle for comedies such as Animal House and the Vacation series of movies. What aspects of society do you think the writers were satirizing in this movie? How do they drive this point home at the end?
In light of more recent stories of campus rape and college students dying of alcohol poisoning as a result of binge drinking, what aspects of this movie haven't aged well?
Movie Details
- In theaters : July 28, 1978
- On DVD or streaming : December 21, 1999
- Cast : John Belushi , John Vernon , Tim Matheson
- Director : John Landis
- Studio : Universal Pictures
- Genre : Comedy
- Run time : 109 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by
Suggest an Update
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate