L'école fantastique

I saw "Sky High" at a preview screening tonight, and I must say I was pleasantly surprised! A lot of laughs for kids and grownups, a couple of good plot twists, and a nice message for the youngsters. Kurt Russell steals the show as an over-the-top super hero, who wants nothing more than for his son to follow in the family business. Kelly Preston looks amazing as his flying super hero wife. A great group of kids play the Sky High students, with cool effects to help them into their roles... and some nice parables about life in high school. I expected lots of eye rolling and lame super hero humor... but there was no lameness, no eye rolls, but plenty of good laughs and sweet moments. Parents, feel free to go with your kids to this one!

This movie is fun. It doesn't take itself too seriously, and it's funny. I really don't know why there's such a low score for this one.

Well, I must say that this movie was surprisingly good for it being a Disney Kid Movie. Now it won't win any Oscars, but it really kept up the Disney Tradition for being a clean and fun film. It was wonderful to see Kurt Russell on the screen again with Disney. The acting, again, not an Oscar performance out of anyone, was clean and sincere, very believable. The sets and special effects were, well, good. The diversity and conflict between students of the school, once again... good. There were some very witty and dry remarks about high school life as well. Good writing. I say the most surprising thing about this film was that it was just plain old fun! It had the patrons laughing as well as I. My 7 year old and my 3 year old loved it and it was still adult enough with a strong enough plot to keep the parents interested as well. All in all, it made for a fun afternoon.

Sky High is the perfect blend of high school drama, superhero shenanigans, and early-2000s Disney charm. Watching this as a kid felt like a sneak peek into the coolest school ever-where your classmates can throw fireballs, lift cars, or... turn into a guinea pig.

The story follows Will Stronghold, the son of the world's greatest superheroes, who's dealing with the crushing pressure of living up to his parents' legacy. (Relatable much?) It's your classic coming-of-age tale but with flying buses and epic sidekick banter. And speaking of sidekicks, how can we forget Ethan, who melts into a puddle when stressed? Absolute legend.

The cast is a chef's kiss of nostalgia, with Kurt Russell hamming it up as the macho dad, and Danielle Panabaker as Layla, the plant-wielding queen of unspoken crushes. The plot might not be groundbreaking, but who cares when you've got a soundtrack full of fun rock covers and a third act with villains monologuing like it's their full-time job?

Watching Sky High on Disney Channel back in the day was a rite of passage. It's silly, heartwarming, and packed with enough superpowers to fuel endless childhood daydreams.

Rating 6 out of 10. A school where lunchroom fights involve laser vision? Sign me up. This movie made us believe that even sidekicks can save the day.

Will Stronghold (Michael Angarano) is a regular teen except his parents are two of the greatest superheroes around; Steve Stronghold / The Commander (Kurt Russell) and Josie Stronghold / Jetstream (Kelly Preston). Along with kids of other superheroes, he starts Sky High except he doesn't seem to have a superpower. He's relegated to study being the sidekick with his lifelong friend Layla (Danielle Panabaker). He is embarrassed at his lack of power and sheepishly lies to his parents who have great expectations. Gwen Grayson (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) is the popular girl on campus. Student Warren Peace (Steven Strait) is angry with Will for The Commander putting Warren's father in prison.

This is a harmless little family movie. It could have been edgier. There are a lot of high school drama being played out but the movie never really pushes it. It's strictly a Disney teen movie or a simplified John Hughes movie. With the cartoon color style, this is more silly than compelling. Although it's not silly enough to be actually funny. Angarano is fine but he doesn't really stand out. For the lead, he needs to be much more charismatic. The character can be nerdy but he needs to be a charismatic nerd. Panabaker is adorable enough for the puppy love story. Generally this is like a well-made movie on one of the those kids TV channels.