Viewers Loving New Netflix Movie Despite Critics Slamming It

A new film on Netflix is dividing audiences, receiving high praise from viewers at home but largely negative reviews from the critics.  

The movie in question is Senior Year, a romcom starring Rebel Wilson as a 37-year-old woman who wakes up from a 20-year coma and decides to go back to high school to earn her diploma and fulfill her dream of becoming prom queen. 

Think Legally Blonde, Mean Girls, Never Been Kissed and Bring It On and you’ll get a good idea of what kind of viewing experience you’re going to have. 

Despite having all the beats you’d expect from a romantic comedy of this ilk, critics lambasted the film when it dropped last week, and it’s since earned a measly 27 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes’s critics consensus. 

“It's hard to imagine a more unpleasant movie than Senior Year,” wrote Newsday’s Verne Gay, while New York Times writer Amy Nicholson said: “By the final act, its dialogue is so burdened by inspirational maxims about personal authenticity that it feels as though the script has been hijacked by yearbook quotes.”

However, these harsh reviews are a stark contrast to the film’s viewing figures. As outlined in Netflix’s rundown of its best-performing content from last week, Senior Year took the top spot on the English Films list with 55.94 million hours viewed, appearing in the Top 10 in 93 countries. 

Over on Twitter, fans are raving about the flick and taking it for what it is – a bit of light-hearted, entertaining chewing gum for the mind. What’s more, viewers appreciate the nostalgia factor, with the trailer alone referencing tons of pop culture moments from the 00s. 

“Senior Year on Netflix is so good I miss when movies like this were made in the early 00s,” said one fan, with another writing, “Highly recommend y’all check out Senior Year on Netflix. Perfect level of campy and stupid humor with a completely ridiculous plot.”

A third chimed in: “I just watched Senior Year on Netflix and I’m just gonna say I actually loved it. I was worried it would be just like a teen drama show. But it tackled so many things and made me cry more than I want to admit.”

So if you’re into cheesy romcoms and you need a bit of easy watching, perhaps swerve the critics consensus and give Senior Year a watch. 

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