Night School
Universal Pictures | Release Date: September 28, 2018 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
43
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
8
Mixed:
16
Negative:
6
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleSep 26, 2018
The promise is double the fun, double the laughs, and the movie can’t quite deliver on that. But there are still big laughs to be had, and there’s the pleasure of watching these two gifted comedians sharing the same frame. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Emily YoshidaSep 28, 2018
Like Teddy, there’s a lot of sophomoric silliness Night School feels obligated to perform. But there’s a heap of good intentions behind it, and enough big laughs to make us want to forgive it in the end. Read full review
65
Film Journal InternationalDoris ToumarkineOct 4, 2018
Night School pushes no buttons nor breaks new boundaries, but it pleases and entertains enough to get a diploma for good effort. Read full review
65
TheWrapCarlos AguilarSep 26, 2018
Positively amusing, Night School assures Tiffany Haddish’s lift-off into comedic stardom, continues to sell Kevin Hart’s trademark persona and makes an outspoken case for supporting and encouraging individuals to accept their challenges and to work on moving forward. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comMatt Zoller SeitzSep 28, 2018
Nothing about it makes a lot of sense, but then, nothing about classic old comedies starring people like W.C. Fields or Laurel and Hardy made much sense, because they about oddballs getting into trouble and then trying to get out of it. Read full review
63
Washington PostPat PaduaSep 27, 2018
The movie gives some depth to its misfits, and ultimately sends the valuable message that nobody should be ashamed of who they are. Read full review
63
USA TodayBrian TruittSep 27, 2018
Night School surprises by being an unexpectedly empathetic look at learning disabilities. Read full review
62
IGNBrian GallagherSep 27, 2018
Night School is a familiar comedy with heart that (barely) makes the grade. Read full review
60
The Observer (UK)Simran HansOct 2, 2018
The film is a vehicle for Haddish, whose timing and delivery make the jokes jump off the page. Read full review
60
TimeStephanie ZacharekSep 27, 2018
A movie featuring Kevin Hart is going to be a Kevin Hart movie: at this point, his personality is too big to fold up; his jackrabbit energy dominates. That doesn’t leave much oxygen for Haddish, whose loopy, billowing spirit needs lots of airspace. And still, somehow, she’s the movie’s guiding presence. Read full review
50
The Associated PressJake CoyleOct 2, 2018
Like countless studio comedies of the past few years, Night School is a straightforward concept that relies too much on the charisma of its performers to carry a weak script. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Sarah-Tai BlackSep 28, 2018
So if you can get through this headache of a script and Lee’s unwavering commitment to choreographed dance numbers, there are some funny times in store. Read full review
50
Philadelphia Daily NewsGary ThompsonSep 27, 2018
All of this is in Hart's wheelhouse, and Night School might have fared better if it had surrendered completely to random comedy one-offs. It keeps coming back, though, to the desultory story of Teddy's strained romance, the least-compelling feature of the movie. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangSep 27, 2018
For all her improvisational skill and that of her top-billed costar, the much-vaunted Hart-and-Haddish pairing never pays dividends. It feels more like Half-and-Half. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTy BurrSep 27, 2018
Broad as the side of a city bus and about as lumbering, Night School is a better-than-average Kevin Hart comedy — meaning that it’s an average comedy overall. It’s silly and rather sweet, and it’s blessed with an ensemble that makes the most of the dopey cartoon script patched together by Hart and five other writers. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsSep 26, 2018
The actors aren’t the problem with Night School; the material is. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. ScottSep 26, 2018
The plot zigs and zags and sometimes accelerates in the direction of genuine hilarity...only to downshift into sloppy, easy jokes and gags. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeSep 26, 2018
Night School has a lot to learn about how to live up to its potential, but it squeaks out a passing grade in the end. Read full review
50
VarietyOwen GleibermanSep 26, 2018
Night School has a handful of laughs, but it’s a bloated trifle that, at 111 minutes, overstays its welcome. Read full review
42
ConsequenceBlake GobleSep 26, 2018
The movie’s merely the latest A-list comedy of this sort, is happy to live in the middle, and yet it frustratingly outwears its welcome because of a lack of creativity and sloppy structure. Read full review
42
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskySep 26, 2018
In the end, it comes up with just over half a dozen decent jokes — about one per writer. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawOct 2, 2018
Hart’s brilliant hyperactive comedy has been dampened and smothered in this disappointingly unfunny showcase, which he has produced and co-scripted with five other credited writers. Read full review
40
EmpireAmon WarmannOct 1, 2018
Unfocused and uninspired, Night School has its moments but is held back by a script that required more study. Read full review
40
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottSep 26, 2018
While the improvised interplay of the talented cast -- especially between Hart and Haddish -- help keep things moving along, watching Night School ends up largely being an exercise in waiting for something genuinely inspired to happen. It never does. Read full review
38
The Seattle TimesSoren AndersenSep 26, 2018
Director Malcolm D. Lee, whose previous movie, 2017’s raucous “Girls Trip,” gave Haddish her star-making breakout role, does her no favors here. In this mess of a movie, her performance is merely adequate. She, and the audience, deserve better. Read full review
38
Movie NationRoger MooreSep 26, 2018
Scenes go on past their payoff, gags are flogged to death after the punch line. Read full review
25
Original-CinKim HughesOct 1, 2018
You’ve probably heard punchier dialog at dinner parties. Read full review
25
IndieWireDavid EhrlichSep 26, 2018
Lee’s proven talent for mixing broad situational humor with sly character work is almost completely missing in action here. Read full review
20
Rolling StonePeter TraversSep 26, 2018
No matter how much money this clunker makes, this is a movie that never should have happened. Read full review
0
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovSep 26, 2018
Crafted within the broadest, not-quite-funny brushstrokes possible, director Lee’s movie about a class of troublemakers, hustlers, adult J.D.s, and Rob Riggle’s patented goofy man-child schtick struggling to earn their GEDs at the eponymous classroom fails, epically. Read full review
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