You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah!
Netflix | Release Date (Streaming): August 25, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
17
Mixed:
2
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
VarietyCourtney HowardAug 18, 2023
Director Sammi Cohen and screenwriter Alison Peck bestow this hilarious, heartrending adaptation of Fiona Rosenbloom’s novel with an uplifting, effervescent vision and vitality, giving voice to a young Jewish girl’s struggle to figure out who she is before the most important night of her life so far. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubMatthew JacksonAug 24, 2023
It might not be destined to join the ranks of teen comedy masterpieces, but in the short term, its ability to nail the right balance of emotional and comedic unpredictability makes it a very pleasant journey, and a must-see for teen movie aficionados. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinAug 26, 2023
Open your heart and turn off your logic meter and you‘re going to enjoy “You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah.” Read full review
80
The Daily BeastNick SchagerAug 25, 2023
Proof that Sandler still has the capacity to spearhead (as opposed to just for-hire headline) a competent movie—including one featuring those closest to him. Read full review
80
The GuardianAdrian HortonAug 24, 2023
It’s both amiable and original enough to distinguish itself from the slush pile of youth-appealing Netflix content. Couple that with a moving finale on the supreme joys of best friendship, and that’s reason to celebrate. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckAug 18, 2023
Thanks to its well-observed, amusing depiction of teenage girl angst and a genuine sweetness at its core, it proves thoroughly winning. And if you don’t get all verklempt at the heartwarming ending, you’ve probably never had a best friend. Read full review
75
ABC NewsPeter TraversAug 25, 2023
It's basically a pricey home movie in which Adam Sandler spotlights his wife and two daughters. It's also an unexpectedly sweet and sassy surprise. Comic dynamo Sunny Sandler, his youngest, gives nepotism a good name as a Jewish girl on the cusp of womanhood. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperAug 24, 2023
Though specific in its humor and humanity, this is a film that also has a universal quality. Anyone who’s ever had a falling-out with a best friend can relate to the heartache felt by Stacy and Lydia when things go sideways — and will be rooting for these two wonderful young women to find their way back to one another. Theirs is a friendship worth saving. Read full review
75
IndieWireSamantha BergesonAug 23, 2023
The ’80s-esque sensibilities and sweet quips, rivaled only by fellow Netflix film “To All the Boys I’ve Loved,” make “YASNITMBM” an easily watchable treat for the entire family. Cohen, who previously directed the Hulu feature “Crush,” and once again proves her bonafides when it comes to translating the pains and pleasures of coming of age to the screen. Read full review
70
Rolling StoneChris VognarAug 25, 2023
It’s actually exciting to watch a star whose stock-in-trade has been arrested development flourish in a mature midlife period. Now he seems to be setting up future Sandler generations for success. Bat Mitzvah is about a girl growing up. But her dad seems to be doing some of that as well. Read full review
70
Screen RantPatrice WitherspoonAug 25, 2023
While Cohen’s latest doesn’t break any genre barriers, this coming-of-age story dissects and visualizes female friendships with grounded realism, welcoming us into its world while leaving room for us to picture ourselves in it. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Alison WillmoreAug 25, 2023
This winning coming-of-age comedy understands that, when you’re 13 years old, the world really does feel like it could end if you’re not able to wear the dress of your dreams to your bat mitzvah, or if, God forbid, your crush expresses interest in someone other than you. Read full review
70
CNNBrian LowryAug 25, 2023
A familiar but very nicely done coming-of-age story. Read full review
70
The New York TimesTeo BugbeeAug 25, 2023
The young cast proves deft with the film’s clever script, by Alison Peck (based on the 2005 novel by Fiona Rosenbloom), and the director Sammi Cohen indulges the virgin-mojito passions of preteens while avoiding nostalgia, thankfully. Read full review
68
Paste MagazineJesse HassengerAug 23, 2023
If You Are So Not Invited to My Bat Mitzvah does have the feel of an expensive, well-appointed, but not exactly lushly-made family project – maybe even a coming-of-age gift to the younger Sandler daughter – at least it mounts a charm offensive, rather than treating its audience like a pack of easily manipulated rubes. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreAug 25, 2023
The life lesson and messaging is upbeat and sentimental. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comNell MinowAug 25, 2023
There's a sweetness to this story that reflects Adam Sandler’s real-life love for his family. Read full review
60
EmpireJohn NugentAug 31, 2023
The rare teen movie that recognises crushes are never as important or powerful as BFFs — and one that marks an intriguing new direction for Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison productions. Read full review
58
ColliderChase HutchinsonAug 24, 2023
As a complete portrait of youth on the cusp of the rest of their lives, it never manages to be authentically sharp enough to transcend the more tiresome narrative trappings it falls into and a grating over reliance on musical cues as punchlines. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonAug 25, 2023
Director Sammi Cohen takes an attention-deficit disorder approach to storytelling, in which every feeling and plot twist is punctuated by a current pop song, and any hint of emotion or thoughtfulness is interrupted by a needle drop. Read full review
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