Despite its title, it is not a slasher film but an unusual blend of political allegory, social commentary, and low-budget exploitation; with the exception of the final sequence, no "adult" characters (such as teachers and parents) are seen.

[2] David (Derrel Maury), a new student at Central High, meets Mark (Andrew Stevens), an old friend whom he once helped out of a jam at their previous school.

Over the next few days, David witnesses Bruce, Craig, and Paul torment the other students, including the scrawny Spoony; the overweight Oscar; Arthur, the school's hearing-impaired librarian; and Rodney, who drives a rundown car that is vandalized by the bullies.

In due course more deaths occur: Arthur is killed when his hearing-aid malfunctions, Oscar's locker explodes when he opens it, and Rodney's car blows up when he starts the engine.

While camping under a cliff, Spoony, Mary, and Jane find a box of dynamite but ignore it; when they return to their tent for a threesome, an explosion causes a rockslide, killing them also.

[10] Massacre at Central High attracted little attention when first released, but when reissued in 1980, New York Times critic Vincent Canby praised it as "an original, fascinating work",[11] and named it as one of his 20 favorite films of the year.

[13][Note 1] Dave Sindelar from Fantastic Movie Musings and Ramblings praised the film's characters, political subtext, and depth, while criticizing some of the dialogue, and soundtrack.

"[14] TV Guide gave the film three out of five stars, writing, "Massacre at Central High is a fascinating little movie that delivers its expected exploitation thrills while presenting a political allegory, albeit a somewhat confused one.

[5][19][20] By contrast, John Ross Bowie, in comparing the film with the more comedic Heathers, dismissed Massacre at Central High as "exploitative" and "devoid of technique", and criticized its technical flaws and "wooden acting".