Pumpkin is a low-brow attempt at dark satire but falls short of the mark in many places. The movie succeeds in creating a stuffy, snobby atmosphere and filling the storyline with some of the shallowest characters imaginable, but only does so by exhausting old college film tropes that have been done to death. The critics of its time seemed to admire the premise of the production but felt that the tongue-in-cheek plot devices were too zany and worked to totally offset the satirical message the film was trying to convey.
Ricci does well in her role as Carolyn, playing the naive and one-dimensional college girl whose eyes are opened by her new relationship. Pumpkin‘s one saving grace is the Addams Family actress’s performance, and the movie remains one of her most underrated roles.
You can stream Pumpkin for free with Tubi.