Synopsis
A 16-year-old international assassin yearning for a "normal" adolescence fakes her own death and enrolls as a senior in a suburban high school. She quickly learns that being popular can be more painful than getting water-boarded.
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Cast
- Hailee SteinfeldMegan Walsh
- Sophie TurnerHeather
- Jessica AlbaVictoria Knox
- Samuel L. JacksonHardman
- Dove CameronLiz Larson
- Thomas MannRoger Marcus
- Gabriel BassoGooch
- Emma HolzerDonna
- Rob HuebelMr. Marcus
- Jaime KingSpecial Analyst Knight
Recommendations
- 70
Village Voice
Barely Lethal's combination of bawdy humor and earnest affection for its high-school-aged protagonists is surprisingly well-balanced. - 60
The New York Times
This isn’t exactly “Fast Times at Ridgemont High”; it’s more like a film version of a TV series you could comfortably let your tweens watch. - 60
Empire
Hardly groundbreaking but this high-school actioner ghosts by on its charm and sense of fun. - 50
Slant Magazine
The film settles into a time-honored groove of so many forgettable juvenile comedies before it. - 50
Movie Nation
A fairly amusing rough draft for a high concept high school romantic comedy. - 50
Arizona Republic
Barely Lethal has some laughs, and will probably serve nicely as a movie you can land on for a few minutes when it shows up on cable. But it slides into the rote generic-teen-comedy mode too soon to be anything more. - 40
The Dissolve
While Barely Lethal is conscious of the clichés of the genre, it’s also the type of film that won’t let that get in the way of regurgitating them. - 40
Los Angeles Times
The premise, that high school is more perilous than a life of espionage, is witty and full of potential. But Newman makes that case by staging his car chases and fight scenes with as much sense of drama as eighth-period trig.
