After being suspended from several private schools, wealthy teenager Charlie Bartlett (Yelchin) is having a hard time fitting in at his new public school run by weary Principal Gardner (Downey Jr). While learning the social hierarchy, Charlie's charm and likeability place him in the position of resident "student psychiatrist," dishing out advice and the occasional prescription drug to his peers. Along the way he learns more about who he is and falls into a romance, creating a witty dark comedy within the anxious years before college.
