Senior Year

Movie review by Jennifer Green, Common Sense Media
Senior Year Movie Poster

Common Sense says

age 15+

High school comedy has language, innuendo, drinking.

R 2022 113 minutes
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Parents say

age 16+

Based on 3 reviews

Kids say

age 13+

Based on 9 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Senior Year is a sometimes-raunchy comedy about a woman named Stephanie (Rebel Wilson) who falls during a cheer stunt as a teen and wakes up 20 years later, only to be surprised by how much more apparently egalitarian high school is now. Expect to see teens drinking, smoking pot, swearing, talking about sexual acts, and being obsessed with their smartphones and number of Instagram followers. The movie also portrays modern teens as "woke" and very sensitive to political, social, and climate concerns. Stephanie learns that popularity doesn't bring happiness and that the quality of your friends is more important than how many you have. The film's cast is diverse, and society is depicted as having evolved in its treatment of differences -- for example in how (or whether) people use words like "gay" and "retarded." Sexual content is more talk than action (other than kissing and suggestive gestures/dancing), but there's a lot of raunchy talk. Language also includes frequent use of "f--k," "s--t," "suck," "a--hole," "bitch," "crap," "d--k," "slut," and a slew of insults, many sexual or anatomical.

Community Reviews

Courtney1514
Courtney1514 Adult
May 17, 2022
age 15+

A very enjoyable movie.

Message is that you shouldn’t wish for the big things because having real friends matter. And if you do remake a year all over again, you should do it right. The difference between 2022 and 2002 how it was in high school is accurate. It had a good message. Rebel Wilson was funny and suited the main character and popular girl for once. I loved that there was a boy who liked to be feminine. 🥰

This title has:

Great messages
1 person found this helpful.
Boyandgirlmom
Boyandgirlmom Adult
May 26, 2022
age 16+

Tacky and not so funny

I Haven’t even bothered to go on this site in a long time because my daughter is almost 17. So generally we watch a lot of movies together and I don’t worry about it too much anymore. So when she asked me if I wanted to watch this with her it sounded like a fun plot and I usually think Rebel Wilson is pretty funny. I also want to say that sometimes I think the reviews on here are a little strong on the prudish side so I take that with a grain of salt. The girl that plays young Rebel Wilson is adorable and does a good job and Rebel tries with the role. But overall it’s more trashy than it is funny. The innuendo and references to sex are over the top and frankly sometimes gross. Of course there is more than one gay character (cuz can there ever be a show without one?) I don’t really care about that, and the effeminate boy is good in his role but if you care about that it’s in there. I can’t think of a true laugh out loud line in it. At one point I turned to my daughter and asked her what it was rated?! I don’t think it has one cuz it’s Netflix but it would never make it below R for the language and references alone. There is a bit of a positive message in it about being yourself and true friends but it’s weak and been done. The wokeness is kinda funny cuz it highlights how far it’s gone in 20 years So overall, be warned, it’s trash trying to be funny. I’d skip it. I liked “ I feel Pretty” much better for funny and great message.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much swearing
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In SENIOR YEAR, Australian teen Stephanie (Angourie Rice) finds it hard to fit in when she moves to the United States as a high schooler in the 1990s, so she decides to change her look and friend group to become as popular as she can. She succeeds, landing the hottest boyfriend and becoming captain of the cheerleading squad. When a stunt gone wrong lands her in a coma, she wakes up 20 years later (now Rebel Wilson) -- physically 37 but mentally still 17. So, she decides to go back to high school to finish out her senior year and fulfill her dream of becoming prom queen. There, she reunites with her boyfriend (Justin Hartley), now married to her arch-rival from cheer squad, Tiffany (Zoe Chao), and her two best friends from school days -- Martha (Mary Holland), now the principal, and Seth (Sam Richardson), who has long harbored a crush on Stephanie

Is It Any Good?

This is an example of a film with a great premise and a hilarious lead actress that just doesn't get off the ground. That isn't to say that Senior Year doesn't have some very funny moments and lines -- it does, but the package as a whole feels flimsy and potentially rushed. When Stephanie wakes up after 20 years in a coma, she should require more than a day to get accustomed to her new reality and jump back into high school. Obviously, the script needs to get her there quickly, but overstepping any actual adjustments is disconcerting and, as with the rest of the movie, prioritizes scenarios over actual character development and story. Perhaps appropriately for the setting, Wilson and her schoolmates all seem to fit stereotypes rather than having actual personalities of their own.

Still, Wilson is the perfect actress for a woman in a 37-year-old's body but who is "mentally still 17." She plays clueless perfectly (and Rice is excellent as her younger self). Speaking of Clueless, Alicia Silverstone has a meta cameo here as a character who lived Stephanie's dream and learned from it that popularity in high school doesn't necessarily bring happiness. The film comments on the "intense but delicate ecosystem" of high school and pokes fun at both contemporary and 90s-era teens. The contrast between the two that Wilson's character allows for is where Senior Year lands its best jokes -- like when she pulls out a chunky calculator to try to fit in with all the kids on their smartphones, or her confusion over the political correctness of today's students (particularly Ari's "authentic, socially-conscious, body-positive, environmentally-aware and economically-compassionate brand").

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about some of the differences suggested in Senior Year between high school in 2002 versus high school in 2022. How do different generations view these portrayals?

  • If you could go back in time and relive part of your own life, which period would you return to and why?

  • How is Rebel Wilson made to appear 17 in her gestures and physical movements? What about her wardrobe and hair? Do you think it's a challenge for an actor to play someone 20 years younger (or older) than themselves?

Movie Details

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