"An Extremely Goofy Movie"s less favorable reviews categorized the film as a weaker version of Rodney Dangerfield's "Back to School". and the "Los Angeles Times" Susan King who wrote that despite "some funny lines and scenes," it had too little emotionally due to a lack of character development for Goofy. Michael Scheinfeld of "Common Sense Media" praised the film's morals of "the importance of education, of not cheating, and staying focused on one's goals," but disliked its attempts to be hip and the "less-than-exemplary character traits" that paint an inaccurate picture of college students. Barbara Bova of "Naples Daily News" also dismissed the film for the immature behavior of the college students as well as the dysfunctional relationship between Max and Goofy and a "depressing," humorless plot where "the adults are no smarter than the kids" and "Goofy is the essential innocent who is stupid with a capital S." Scheinfeld also called the animation "less sophisticated than Disney's theatrical films, but features some amusing and stylish touches, such as a psychedelic dream sequence in the style of Yellow Submarine, and a school dance that Goofy turns into a disco inferno."