... A surprisingly compelling high school caper conceived with youthful wit, aplomb and a genuinely out-of-left-field twist.

The ending chorus of conclusions wraps up a bit too neatly, though that doesn’t invalidate the enjoyably deranged ride before.

Reassuringly -- and very entertainingly -- Ms. Rice makes all of Honor’s plotting palatable, even charming, and her jaded worldview is not totally unreasonable.

Rice stole scenes from actors whose careers began before she was born in The Nice Guys. It won’t be long before Rice is a household name, and this fourth-wall-breaking performance as a teenage Machiavellian coup leader is a tour du force.