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"HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL" (2006) (Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens) (TV-G) Alcohol/ Drugs Blood/Gore Disrespectful/ Bad Attitude Frightening/ Tense Scenes Guns/ Weapons None None Moderate None None Imitative Behavior Jump Scenes Music (Scary/Tense) Music (Inappropriate) Profanity Moderate None None None None Sex/ Nudity Smoking Tense Family Scenes Topics To Talk About Violence None None Mild Moderate None QUICK TAKE: Musical: A high school's star athlete and class genius stun their friends, and break down clique barriers, when they become friends and decide to audition for a school musical. PLOT: By all accounts of "high school etiquette," brainy Gabriella Montez (VANESSA HUDGENS) and athletic Troy Bolton (ZAC EFRON) should run in separate circles. At least, that's the way East High School seems to be set up - different cliques, divided by different interests, rarely intermingling except to pass a bit of uninformed judgment on one another. All that changes when Troy and Gabriella meet by chance at a New Year's Eve party, where both are tapped to enter a karaoke contest. Sparks fly, in that chaste Disney way, and Troy is thrilled a few weeks later to learn that Gabriella has been transferred to East High. When auditions for the spring musical, composed by shy Kelsi Nielsen (OLESYA RULIN) are announced, the budding lovebirds are torn between resisting their temptation to sing together again and taking a plunge out of their assumed social circles. As they contemplate their decision, they consider a lot of variables, including how to preserve Troy's jock reputation with his best friend Chad (CORBIN BLEU) and his father (and coach), Jack (BART JOHNSON); dethroning the reigning drama club royalty, brother-sister duo Sharpay and Ryan Evans (ASHLEY TISDALE and LUCAS GRABEEL); fitting in time for Gabriella to join fellow brainiac Taylor (MONIQUE COLEMAN) in the scholastic decathlon; and outwitting batty drama teacher Ms. Darbus (ALYSON REED). As Gabriella and Troy begin to follow their true passions, a surprising number of other students follow, revealing a host of hidden talents and toppling East High's clique structure, maybe forever. WILL KIDS WANT TO SEE IT? Between the press surrounding this made-for-TV film and its sequel and the popularity of its stars in the "tween" circuit, kids will definitely want to see this movie. WHY THE MPAA RATED IT: TV-G Apparently for not containing material to warrant a higher rating. CAST AS ROLE MODELS: ZAC EFRON is Troy Bolton, basketball star, dreamboat, and overall squeaky-clean good guy. Together with his dad, the coach of his high school team, Troy has built a legacy and is on the verge of taking East High to the championships. At first, he seems a willing participant in his dad's rigorous practice sessions and single-minded discussions. Once he begins to discover he has passion and talent for things other than basketball, however, we see him undergo a transformation as he tries to gently challenge his dad without appearing resentful. When Troy messes things up with Gabriella, he's not afraid to apologize to her, nor does he approve of some of his friends' attempts to isolate themselves from other students who are "different," VANESSA HUDGENS is Gabriella Montez, a soft-spoken, intelligent teenager who has been in a lot of schools due to her single mom's job changes. Though she's proud of her brains, she's tired of being pigeonholed into being 'the smart kid' at every new school and wishes people would appreciate her for more than her intelligence. Gabriella is kindhearted and, though shy, is the type of kid who'd be happy to be your friend no matter what social circle you belonged to. ASHLEY TISDALE plays Sharpay Evans, the reigning drama queen of East High, both on and off the stage. Icy and blonde, Sharpay appears willing to steamroll anyone who gets in the way of her sole ambition - making herself look good. She perpetuates clique behavior and is quick to tell everyone else where they "belong." Like many of her genre, Sharpay has managed to convince her teachers that she is a model student. BART JOHNSON plays Jack Bolton, Troy's dad and East High's basketball coach. A former East High Wildcat himself, Jack is constantly urging Troy to practice both at home and in school, and for the most part, Troy goes along with it. When Troy discovers his passion for music, Jack initially has a hard time being supportive, going so far as to yell at his son and Gabriella. He later realizes that supporting his son is more important than producing the world's next basketball star - a decision that means the world to Troy. CORBIN BLEU plays Chad Danforth, Troy's best friend and basketball teammate. He has a hard time adjusting to Troy wanting to be in the school musical and repeatedly urges him against it, even concocting a plan with Taylor and the other "smart kids" to join forces and drive Troy and Gabriella apart. Later, he realizes his actions were wrong, apologizes to Troy, and ends up in the front row cheering his friend on. MONIQUE COLEMAN plays Taylor McKessie, a strong-willed, feminist girl who recruits Gabriella into East High's scholastic decathlon. Like some of her peers, she initially supports separation of the cliques but feels it is for everyone's own good given the intellectual inferiority of the jocks. She conspires with Chad and the basketball team to try and talk Gabriella out of her plans to audition for the musical with Troy, but feels remorseful and recants when the results make Gabriella miserable. Later, she masterminds a plan to give Sharpay a taste of her own medicine and help Gabriella and Troy get the lead roles. ALYSON REED plays Ms. Darbus, the school's eccentric drama teacher. A stickler for the rules, Ms. Darbus confiscates all errant cell phones that cross her path, eschews talking in class, and is not afraid to hand out heavy detentions. In addition, despite her claimed passion for the theater, she seems to have no discerning taste in it, aside from loving everything Sharpay comes up with. LUCAS GRABEEL plays Ryan Evans, Sharpay's brother and acting partner. He's even more obnoxious than his sister because he behaves so sycophantically toward her. As the movie progresses, we realize his constant presence in school plays has less to do with his own passion for acting and more to do with being forced to make Sharpay look good. Ryan is portrayed as having difficulty thinking for himself and does not have many redeeming qualities. OLESYA RULIN plays Kelsi Nielsen, a seemingly meek musician who composes the music for the East High spring musical. She spends a lot of time doing whatever Sharpay says and seems to fear her. In actuality, she's far less shy than she appears, and would do anything to help Troy and Gabriella end Sharpay's reign in the drama club. CAST, CREW, & TECHNICAL INFO HOW OTHERS RATED THIS MOVIE Curious if this title is entertaining, any good, and/or has any artistic merit? Then read OUR TAKE of this film. (Note: The "Our Take" review of this title examines the film's artistic merits and does not take into account any of the possibly objectionable material listed below). OUR WORD TO PARENTS: The following is a brief summary of the content found in this musical comedy that's been rated PG. There is no profanity, sex, smoking, or alcohol or drug use. Sharpay's character has a perpetually bad attitude throughout most of the movie. Teenagers plot to break up two friends from different circles but wind up relenting, and some of the behavior on display might be enticing for some kids to imitate. If you're still concerned about the film and its appropriateness for yourself or anyone else in your home who may be interested in seeing it, we suggest that you take a closer look at our detailed listings for more specific information regarding the film's content. ALCOHOL OR DRUG USE None. BLOOD/GORE None. DISRESPECTFUL/BAD ATTITUDE Sharpay is portrayed as an icy drama queen from her first scene and is rude to the others throughout the film. Jack yells at Troy when he gets detention and can't make it to practice. Chad asks Troy what time Ms. Darbus "is due back on the mother ship." Sharpay yells at Kelsi and tells her she doesn't matter because her music has only been selected once, while Sharpay has been the lead in dozens of productions. Chad tells someone to shut up. Sharpay resists the advances of a guy on the basketball team, telling him to "evaporate, tall person!" Jack yells at Troy and Gabriella when Troy misses practice. Troy's friends secretly film him saying Gabriella doesn't matter to him, and Gabriella's friends show her the film. The two groups work together to try and break Troy and Gabriella up so they will abandon their plan to audition for the musical. Sharpay convinces Ms. Darbus to change the audition time so that Troy and Gabriella won't be able to make it due to previous commitments (a basketball game and scholastic decathlon). FRIGHTENING SCENES None. GUNS/WEAPONS None. IMITATIVE BEHAVIOR Kids will likely imitate the singing and dancing shown in the movie. Girls may imitate Sharpay's bad attitude, especially her line, "evaporate, tall person!" Chad asks Troy what time Ms. Darbus "is due back on the mother ship." JUMP SCENES None. MUSIC (SCARY/TENSE) None. MUSIC (INAPPROPRIATE) None. PROFANITY None. SEX/NUDITY None. SMOKING None. TENSE FAMILY SCENES Gabriella and her mom discuss Gabriella's nervousness about starting at a new school. Jack yells at Troy and tells him it doesn't seem like basketball matters to him anymore. TOPICS TO TALK ABOUT Cliques/fitting in/feeling left out. Gossip. Parental or peer pressure. Trying new things. Not being afraid to be yourself. VIOLENCE None Reviewed off DVD / Posted April 10, 2008