Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
College comedy with lots of drinking, drugs, language, sex.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Roommates
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
Devon (Sadie Sandler) is about to leave for college and worries her bad luck with friends will follow here there in ROOMMATES. When she attends an outdoor orientation, she meets the cool and attractive Celeste (Chloe East) and the two agree to be roommates when the school year starts. Happy to finally have a bestie, particularly one as "popular" and outgoing as Celeste, Devon goes out of her way to be accommodating to her roommate. But slowly she realizes that Celeste is undermining her in subtle but damaging ways. How will Devon respond?
Is It Any Good?
Despite some unhealthy messages about college life and an unnecessary outside narration, this film has highs as well as lows. The best part of Roommates is the cast—Sandler and East make a believable odd couple, and both play perfectly to type. The movie also has a plethora of cameos and great supporting actors, including Natasha Lyonne and Nick Kroll as the star's parents, Carol Kane as her grandma, and Janeane Garofalo (co-star of the coming-of-age classic Reality Bites) as a professor, among others. The lows are in the script. The format of having a present-day school counselor tell the main story as a flashback seems imposed to give comedian Sarah Sherman a role. Meanwhile, the way the characters' dispute gets resolved feels unnecessarily vindictive.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about whether they think Roommates gives an accurate depiction of life on a college campus. Why or why not?
What did you think of the film's ending? Did you think Devon's actions in getting revenge were fair? Were they right?
Star Sadie Sandler's dad Adam Sandler co-produced this film. Do you see parallels to any of the movies he's starred in?
What actors did you recognize in the supporting cast?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : April 17, 2026
- Cast : Sadie Sandler , Chloe East , Aidan Langford
- Director : Chandler Levack
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Director(s) , Female Movie Actor(s) , Gay Movie Actor(s)
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Comedy
- Topics : Family Stories ( Dads , Moms , Siblings ) , Friendship , School ( College & Graduate School )
- Run time : 106 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : language, sexual content, drug use and underage drinking
- Last updated : April 18, 2026
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