House Party

Play trailer

1:25

House Party

R

Released Mar 9, 1990

1h 40m

Comedy

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

31 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

25,000+ Ratings

Play's parents are out of town, and he's planning the house party to end all house parties. His best friend, Kid, wants to go more than anything, knowing Sydney (Tisha Campbell-Martin), the hottest girl in school, is sure to be there. But when Kid gets into a fight at school, his father grounds him. Still determined to go, Kid sneaks out of the house and faces one calamity after another as he makes his way to Play's house and the party of the school year.

Watch on Fandango at Home

Buy Now

Critics Consensus

House Party is a light, entertaining teen comedy with an infectious energy.

Read Critics Reviews

Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: B+

Sep 7, 2011

Full Review

Time Out

Clearly this is no masterpiece, but as its US reception indicated, it is a product overdue in the market, and it compares well with its anaemic counterparts.

Aug 16, 2007

Full Review

Vincent Canby

New York Times

All of the performances are good and the soundtrack pulses with humor as well as decibels.

Rated: 3.5/5

May 20, 2003

Full Review

Cory Woodroof

615 Film

It’s the affable hangout movie that I kind of expected it to be, with a delightful George Clinton cameo, a great Robin Harris performance and one of the most “oh…oh dear” dated comedy bits of the early 90s.

Jan 15, 2023

Full Review

Kevin Carr

Fat Guys at the Movies

Harmless and fun, this is a nice romp through 90s hip-hop culture.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 14, 2023

Full Review

Juan Carlos Coto

Miami Herald

It's a view often lost in Hollywood's Wonder Bread world. That's why the Hudlins are a welcome pair. They celebrate modern black culture with no needless apologies.

Rated: 2.5/4

Aug 18, 2021

Full Review

Read all reviews

Jasmine R

House Party is a classic! I enjoyed the chance to watch it in a theater. The facilities were nice. Not too crowded & the snacks were reasonably priced.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/15/22

Full Review

Audience Member

a rompin, roaring good time even 35 years later plenty of laughs, cool music and 90's teen exploration to spare this soundtrack kicks all kinds of ass and Robin Harris has the best lines in here it also depicts the real way parties should be held whether it involves DJing, girls, jail etc. definitely a real pleaser for the viewer

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/26/25

Full Review

thiago s

Filme legal, o roteiro é bacana, as cenas deveriamser melhores, mas parece que o filme tem muitas festas e quase nada aconteia, e também o filme não trouxe uma coisa tão boa de se ver.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/03/25

Full Review

chris h

I absolutely adore this movie. Underrated comedy with a lot of good actors pre Friday movie.Its held up over the rest of time.The sequels though,I would stay away from.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/19/24

Full Review

TJ L

instant Classic, a Beyond Authentic Portrayal of being a Fun Loving Teen Growing up in South Central Los Angeles California in the 1980's, the Movie Realistically Shows us what Hip Hop Music was Truly About back than, it was All about (FUN, in-House Parties, and Consensual Affair's) instead of the Violence and Drama in 2020's nowadays

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/22/23

Full Review

Khalan C

It's a good entertaining movie. I'll go as far to say it's an pop culture treasure with memorable soundtrack and references that people still use to this very day.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/25/23

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Reginald Hudlin

Director

Robin Harris

Pop

Christopher Reid

Christopher 'Kid' Harris

Christopher Martin

Peter 'Play' Martin

Martin Lawrence

Bilal

Tisha Campbell-Martin

Sidney

House Party 2

27%

64%

House Party 2

Watchlist

House Party 3

0%

66%

House Party 3

Watchlist

Friday

77%

91%

Friday

Watchlist

Detroit Rock City

51%

82%

Detroit Rock City

Watchlist

Money Talks

15%

71%

Money Talks

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Money Talks

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

House Party: Trailer 1

1:25

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Play's parents are out of town, and he's planning the house party to end all house parties. His best friend, Kid, wants to go more than anything, knowing Sydney (Tisha Campbell-Martin), the hottest girl in school, is sure to be there. But when Kid gets into a fight at school, his father grounds him. Still determined to go, Kid sneaks out of the house and faces one calamity after another as he makes his way to Play's house and the party of the school year.

Director: Reginald Hudlin
Producer: Warrington Hudlin
Screenwriter: Reginald Hudlin
Distributor: New Line Cinema
Production Co: New Line Cinema
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 9, 1990, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 19, 2013
Box Office (Gross USA): $26.4M
Runtime: 1h 40m
Sound Mix: Surround
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

Most Popular at Home Now