High School Musical 3: Senior Year

OK, I work at a movie theater and the main thing we've been waiting for is High School Musical 3: Senior Year, we knew it was going to be big, so a few co-workers and I got together for the matinée before all the kids rushed in, it was still packed surprisingly. But I've seen both previous films because my little cousin is just in love with all that pre-teen hoop-la, it's all good, every generation has something so lovey-dovey-cutesee-wootsee type of thing. But one of the things that made this film enjoyable was to see all the kids who were just participating with this film, I mean, I felt like I was in a concert, the kids were clapping with the songs, screaming for their idols, and just having fun, it was cool to see their reactions, to remember a more innocent time of being in love that much with something. But I felt like this was just a cute movie that is getting too much criticism just because it is High School Musical, give it a break and take it for what it is.

The gang is back for their senior year and everything is just perfect, they came up with a great idea for a musical to represent all that they're going through in this exciting year. But there is also a lot of pressure: Zack is facing a tough decision of which college to go to while Gabriella is planning on going to Yale University so far away from him, Sharpay and her brother, Ryan, are competing for a scholarship to Juliard, and Chad and Taylor are learning what to do with the rest of their lives while loosing their best friends to different schools.

Granted High School Musical is never Oscar material, in fact, it's downright like having a soda after school with the hot quarterback or sexy cheerleader, but like I said, it's for the kids. Seeing their reactions to this reminded me and my co-workers of a more innocent time, when I had the same excitement to see Spice World when I was 12 years old. We all had these silly things we loved at a young age and for some reason we become more cynical as we get older criticizing everything that the new generation has, so I'm cutting this movie some slack. It had fun songs, cute characters, silly situations, but great dance numbers and is just over all a nice film for the family. I do recommend it just for the fun of being with the fans and just having a good time, no matter how cheesy it is.

6/10

Because the rest of it is pretty forgetful, not to mention in High School Musical 1 and 2 it was an ensemble, but in the third time around, it is downsized to three of the main characters, Troy(Zak Effron), Gabriella(Vanessa Hudgens), and Sharpay(Ashley Tisdale). The rest, Chad(Corbin Bleau), and Ryan(Lucas Grabeel), I felt did not have much to work with, they where in and out for the most part.

But it did have amazing dance numbers and had great songs, like the first two did, but Effron, Hudgens, and Tisdale just keep repeating themselves. It's entertaining at times dragging. I'll bet the cast is ready to move on after this one, I could see it on most of there faces. It was alright, but not exciting and energetic has the first two.

Okay, I am 100% completely for the High School Musical franchise! Have you noticed that the majority of people who have something derogatory to say about the series are 15+. Well, duh! You were young once too and no one constantly dissed the Lion King or Cinderella or Rugrats or whatever your "show" was as a naive, innocent kid. Lions don't talk or dance or sing, there are no such things as "fairy god mothers" and talking mice, and babies don't have imaginary worlds where they can talk in front of adults, yet no one hears them. What do you want Disney to do: turn High School Musical into a movie about kids who are sexually active backstage and smoke weed after rehearsals? There's nothing wrong with a nice, innocent, family movie, people! If Disney turned High School Musical into that, you'd be complaining WAY more, trust me! And yes, High School Musical may be like a fantasy high school world that we all WISH could exist, but it's not destroying the kids' brain cells or anything. Once they get to that certain age level, they'll realize that the "perfect, happy, HSM life" was all an illusional element created because it's Disney. So chill.

If you went in with that perspective, you'd see that High School Musical 3 was pretty enjoyable and that HSM actually has underlying themes that good do the kids some good! The songs were actually cool and different and were fun to sing along to. It's also sad watching the Wildcats grow up if you're really a fan---they're hearts can't seem to tear away from East High. Oh, and Zac Efron isn't too hard to look at either! Take your kids and have a NICE, innocent, enjoyable, afternoon at the movies to see this!

Wow, this series has worn out its welcome. The first two installments were modest, harmless TV movies with fast-moving stories and some catchy songs. The third time was not the charm.

I must say, either my tastes have gotten much more discriminating or this cast is getting worse with each picture. I find Ashley Tisdale about as screechy and annoying as fingernails on a chalkboard, and she was worse than ever in HSM3. Ditto Corbin Bleu, so cheerful and peppy that it gets a little sickening. All of the "actors" come off like over-eager stage-children, but those two are probably the worst offenders. None of the case- and I mean none- are believable as real, human high school students.

Never let it be said at the Magic Kingdom that they miss an opportunity to make that extra buck. For the final version of High School Musical, the Disney crowd released it to the theater instead of television. The decision was a no-brainer, the various road company High School Musical performers have been doing great business wherever they appeared including my home city. And certainly the box office for High School Musical 3 has justified this decision.

But this is the end for this particular class, the six stars are already way too old for High School Musical 3, we've got to graduate them. In the cast are the new people getting ready to take over for Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Corbin Bleu, Monique Coleman, Ashley Tisdale, and Lucas Grabeel.

They are going out with style however and the plot such as it is has the cool kids from East High competing for a scholarship to the Julliard School of Music. Two representatives from Julliard will be at the senior show to award a scholarship and you already know that scheming Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) is going to do whatever it takes to get that scholarship.

In fact Tisdale's quest for the scholarship sets her up with an All About Eve twist in this plot. Jemma McKenzie-Brown plays a new girl from London who attachs herself to Tisdale. Now if any of the teen crowd that likes the High School Musical reads this review and decides to check out All About Eve, I will have done my job.

In fact the eventual decision of the judges is quite a good one and to appreciate it you would have had to see all three films.

High School Musical 3 is an appealing film as the others are, but it creates an incredible fantasy world which I can tell you didn't exist when I went to high school lo these many years ago. And supposedly we're far more sophisticated now and like realism in our cinema.

But those who've followed the series, see the original Wildcats one more time.