Phoebe Cates (siiiigh....!) followed up her epic turn in "Fast Times at Ridgemont High" with this plotless, generic sex comedy centered around the horny student bodies at an exclusive girls' academy, and the guys from the boys' school next door who love them. There's no story to speak of but there's plenty of half naked girls, a great early '80s new wave soundtrack and plenty of cheap laughs. Fun in a "retro" kind of way if you grew up sneaking peeks at these movies on late night HBO like I did.
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Movie Reviews
Betsy Russell - Unbelievable
helms8 | CA | 07/20/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"If you're looking for gratuitous T&A, this is one of the best of all time. Betsy Russell in this movie might quite possibly be the most stunning performance by any actress ever. Her bareback horseriding scene, the seduction scene, and the stained clothes so I better take them off and let them soak scene are all nothing short of awe inspiring. Add that to a bunch or other bombshell schoolgirls walking around naked (the shower scene is just... wow), plus the fact you've got Phoebe Cates staring and I don't know what more you could ask for in this type of movie. Plotwise it's also pretty amusing with many laugh out load moments (although it's hard to stay focused on that with what you're looking at)."
Mmmmm Betsy Russel
Monty Moonlight | TX | 03/01/2001
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I'm giving this movie 3 stars, purely for Betsy Russel, not that Phoebe Cates doesn't deserve some hottie points too. But man, I remember watching this as a kid on USA, and even late at night on CBS, falling in love with Betsy Russel and dying to see this movie unedited. I finally rented it recently and the shower scene is to die for! Not enough Betsy Russel skin but everything else was sweet! Did she come out in anything else? Anyway, watch this movie if you just want to see a stupid, hot 80's movie! This is as legendary as Cheryl Smith's Cinderella, which I have yet to see again since I was a kid watching it on scrambled Cinemax."
Truly awful film...so why the 3 stars?
Carlos | NJ | 03/12/2007
(3 out of 5 stars)
"I have fond memories of being a horny 13 year old and catching Private School on cable back in the mid-80's and it had always been a movie I longed to see have a DVD release. Well...that day has finally arrived and I'm here to tell you that I must have been dumb as a rock at 13 cuz Private School might be one of the worst pieces of drek to crawl out of the 80's teen sex comedy toilet you'll ever see...and it's wonderful. See, movies can sometimes be an entirely subjective thing if you have memories attatched to them. Viewing this film nearly 25 years later I was instantly transported back to my teenage years and I spent more time reminiscing about the 80's, my first crush, the kids I hung out with, etc. than paying attention to the flick. That's not a bad thing really. The script is atrocious, the actors are painfully unfunny (especially the guy who plays Bubba who I recall stinking up a lot of these teen movies) and the cheese-ometer gets cranked up a few notches when a song sung by Phoebe Cates plays over a montage that makes Baywatch look classy.
Which brings me to Phoebe Cates...the sole reason this film even exists. Has there ever been another actress whose good looks radiate charisma when she herself is'nt really doing much of anything? Don't get me wrong she turned out to be a fine actress and her previous film "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" is about a zillion times better than Private School but truth is Phoebe Cates might have the most beautiful face ever committed to film (which may explain why the Phoebe-Cult continued to this day).
And yet....it's Betsy Russelll who delivers the goods, who actually provides Private School with it's truly sexy moments. Just watch the scene where she tries to seduce Matthew Modine by flaunting her perfectly toned legs in his face and tell me that she might not be the queen seductress of all time.
So if you've never seen this movie (and you're under 30) you'll probably wonder what all the fuss was about but if you remember 1983 and you remember waiting on line to play Pac-Man at the arcade, chances are you love this film for reasons good taste can't explain."
If you love Phoebe Cates...
Clarence M. Cruz | San Francisco, CA | 04/06/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"...then you will love this movie. I saw this movie when I was a young boy of like 12 or 13 and I've loved it ever sine. I fell in love with Phoebe Cates from this movie and have followed her career from this to Fast Times to the TV Movie, Baby Sister, to Gremlins and to Lace I and Lace II. It's a shame she retired from the business. Thoug she did act in The Anniversary Party with her best friend, Jennifer Jason Leigh and her husband, Kevin Kline and her 2 children Owen and Greta.
So, Private School wasn't a great movie, but it was fun and funny and will always hold a special place in my heart. This along with Zapped and Screwballs (a bad Porky's rip-off) will always hold dear and true to my heart.
Plus, Phoebe Cates sings 2 songs in this movie that are on the Soundtrack, which is hard to find.
All in all, this is a fun movie with lots of gratuitous nudity of young women and Betsy Russell as Jordan almost steals the show, with her bare backing horse scene. Also, for a young Matthew Modine, looking really fine."
Red Hot Betsy!
Clarence M. Cruz | 04/25/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This movie is no great contribution to the medium of acting, but Betsy Russell makes it worth seeing, mind you, in its uncut format. Especially provocative is the scene in which her character, Jordan, tries in her bedroom to seduce Jim, Matthew Modine's character. It's an eye-popping, tongue-swallowing display, and perhaps the sexiest thing I've ever seen."