Stealing Harvard
Columbia Pictures | Release Date: September 13, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
25
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 25 Critic Reviews
Positive:
0
Mixed:
7
Negative:
18
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
50
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
While Stealing Harvard may be a chucklehead comedy, Lee is oddly touching and funny. Mostly because, unlike Green, he's not aggressively trying to make us laugh. Read full review
50
The New York TimesDana Stevens
Together, Mr. Lee and Mr. Green have a daft comic energy, and they are assisted by game performances from the rest of the cast. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyJohn Patterson
Whenever Green shows up to do his semi-improvised, non-acting shtick (detaching pit bulls from testicles, kamikaze wheelchair rides, etc.), this otherwise sprightly and intermittently amusing movie suddenly feels like a ship dragging its anchor. Read full review
50
New Times (L.A.)Luke Y. Thompson
No one in a McCulloch movie is ever normal -- most of the humor comes from characters saying or doing the weirdest thing you could possibly come up with in any given circumstance, and if that kind of humor's your bag, there's frequently a lot to enjoy in the bizarre antics of Green and Jason Lee,
50
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
Had Stealing Harvard merely been a stupid movie about people stuck in a string of silly moments, it could have gotten by on charm. As written by Peter Tolan and directed by Bruce McCulloch (''Kids in the Hall'') it's a stupid movie about stupid people. Read full review
40
Film ThreatDavid Grove
After watching this movie, you get the feeling that there’s a lot of people at Harvard who’ve done worse things than rob a bank to get in. Read full review
40
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Lee's understated performance is a small treat. Read full review
38
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Like Adam Sandler's "Mr. Deeds," this is a hybrid, hipster-cornball movie that wants to celebrate common folk but unapologetically uses words like "trailer trash" to describe them. Read full review
38
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
A few early laughs scattered around a plot as thin as it is repetitious. There's talent in this picture, both before and behind the camera, but virtually none of it gets on the screen. Read full review
38
USA TodayMike Clark
When the most notable thing a film offers is the sight of Dennis Farina in drag, you can't expect much. Read full review
38
Chicago TribuneMark Caro
Some actors steal scenes. Tom Green just gives them a bad odor. This self-infatuated goofball is far from the only thing wrong with the clumsy comedy. Read full review
33
Portland OregonianKim Morgan
Working with a weak script and too lightweight for its freakier moments with Green, the picture never gels. Green's the star, but he really should be in a movie much weirder than this one, a film that can accommodate his humor.
30
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Two idiots embark on a life of crime to help a deserving teenager attend Harvard in this lowbrow but generally sweet-natured comedy. Read full review
25
New York PostJonathan Foreman
Stinks even by the standards of late summer movie garbage. Read full review
25
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
The question is, how did the producers get the amiable, talented Jason Lee to Boogie Board down the toilet with (Green)? Read full review
25
Entertainment WeeklyBruce Fretts
It doesn't help that most of the jokes (like a rip-off of ''There's Something About Mary'''s dog-in-the-crotch bit) are themselves stolen. Read full review
25
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Rarely has paper-casting worked as dismally as it does for Jason Lee and Tom Green. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
What we have is the case of a movie with a straight man (Jason Lee) who really is funny, but with a comic (Tom Green) who sadly isn't. Read full review
25
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
It has no edge, no hunger to be better than it is. It ambles pleasantly through its inanity, like a guest happy to be at a boring party. Read full review
20
VarietyScott Foundas
Depressingly thin and exhaustingly contrived. Only masochistic moviegoers need apply. Read full review
20
Chicago ReaderBill Stamets
Director Bruce McCulloch, an alumnus of the Canadian TV show "The Kids in the Hall," lacks the sense of scale and timing needed for a feature film, and Lee's voice-over about fate that brackets the narrative only highlights its shapelessness. Read full review
20
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
An uncomfortable-looking Lee soldiers doggedly through a thankless role, while Green, though never particularly funny, at least brings off-kilter energy to a role that provides Stealing Harvard's only spark of spontaneity. Read full review
20
Washington PostStephen Hunter
Here's the best thing about Stealing Harvard: A dog bites Green in the crotch for a really long time. Priceless. Read full review
10
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
It's so bad that you have to wonder whether Tom Green was looking for a project to match last year's "Freddy Got Fingered" -- Green didn't direct this turkey, but it surely is a contender for the bottom of the barrel award for 2002. Read full review
0
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
With all the wrong Stealing Harvard has done, it at least bestows one gift upon its audience: the gift of forgettableness. Read full review
More From This Movie

25 Critic Reviews

1.6 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL