Dead Man on Campus
Paramount Pictures | Release Date: August 21, 1998 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
27
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews
Positive:
1
Mixed:
5
Negative:
8
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
70
VarietyJoe Leydon
Although it falls far short of fulfilling its full potential as a dark comedy of desperation, Dead Man on Campus is a modestly amusing trifle that merits a passing grade as lightweight entertainment. Read full review
60
The New York TimesAnita Gates
A predictably dumb movie made for very young audiences, playing to youth's love of excess and loaded with masturbation jokes. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineSandra Contreras
The story's not much, but this dark comedy contains moments of unexpected wit. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
This limp 1998 comedy tries hard to be both irreverent and ethical by suggesting that deceit motivated by self-interest is OK as long as no one gets hurt. Read full review
50
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
The bad news is that the opening credits, which make sick and darkly comic allusions to suicide, are the best thing about the film. Read full review
42
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
As a satire of new-style collegiate types, this MTV production actually evinces a few germs of rancid wit. Read full review
38
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Unfortunately for the poor viewer trapped into sitting through this 95 minute mess, the humor is both conventional and unfunny, the script never takes any chances, and the ending is a cop-out. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
The overall premise, involving mental illness and suicide, isn't all that funny, at least not in practice, and the picture begins to seem labored and long. Read full review
25
San Francisco ExaminerG. Allen Johnson
Dead Man on Campus, a supposed black comedy produced by MTV, is simply awful. Read full review
20
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
A dark comedy caught in a white-light washout, it's neither mean enough to be funny, nor funny enough to mean much. Read full review
20
L.A. WeeklyRon Stringer
The fault lies mostly with the writers, who consistently come up short on wit and imagination enough to finish, let alone flesh out or polish, a joke. Read full review
10
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
It's all handled so poorly that it comes off as more ghoulish than anything else, although those who find the word "bong" instantly entertaining and are easily distracted by the presence of flickering images may be amused. Read full review
10
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Under Alan Cohn's straight-on direction, the film, written by various hands, huffs and puffs mightily just to keep a strenuously labored plot going. Read full review
0
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
The product of a first-time director and writers who have no sense of scene structure or shape, or even a discernible sense of humour. Read full review
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