High School Musical

Or Musicale as it is oft pronounced in the film. Yes I have finally gotten around to watching this mega hit. I have to admit that there is nothing a teen movie needs more than a choreographed dance number, preferably during a prom scene. Well HSM has no prom but it has plenty of musical numbers and large group dance routines which are my personal favourites.

So the storyline is pretty basic. There is a kind of creepy brother/sister team who are the king and queen of the musicale theatre in the school. There is the star of the basketball team and the new girl. The basketball guy Troy, played quite well by Zac Ephron, meets the new girl Gabriella at some sort of resort during the Xmas break. They are forced to share a karaoke duet and sing crazy well. When Troy returns to school he is interested in the musical but is terrified that he will be teased to death. Admittedly in high school I hung out with the nerds who were happy to participate in our Shakespeare productions but I think even they would have shied away from musicals.  Troy is very happy to discover that Gabriella has just transfered to his school (what a coincidence). Together they try to take on the stereotyping and compartmentalizing which happens in all high schools.

So what did I think? I enjoyed this movie, although I have to admit that I did not give it my full attention. Like some musicals I found the parts where they weren’t singing mind of slow. As other reviews have discussed it is really nice to see people under the age of the 30 playing high school kids. This movie is definitely a fun time and you know that many 13 girls and others will wear out the DVD especially with the sing along version which provides you with the lyrics. It may not be the best plot but the message is good, do what ever the hell makes you happy. Something more high school kids need to here.

Quality – 3.5/5
Popularity – 6/5

Bride & Prejudice

As the musical is the genre of the moment (see High School Musical) and I have a love of the Brit and Bollywood I chose this film to review. Bride and Prejudice is a re-telling of Pride and Prejudice but it is fairly loose. There is a guy called Mr. Darcy and many miscommunications occur but you do not need to be familiar with the book to get the film.

Lalita is the main character, the head-strong second eldest of four daughters. Lalita’s mother wants nothing more to marry her daughters off to successful Indian boys who preferably live in America. During many discussions about marriage and love there are the necessary song and dance routines. Lalita meets Mr. Darcy and American friend of a wedding guest, he and Lalita are at odds almost instantly. Darcy sees Lalita’s family as gold diggers and she sees him as an arrogant Westerner. Cultural barrier and stereotypes replace the class discussions of the original.

I enjoyed this film for itself and not a “re-make” of Austen’s work. The song and dance numbers were fantastic, including the hilarious “no life without wife”. I’m sure that this movie would appeal to a certain group of teens but probably not all of them. You could also sell this film to some LOST fans as it stars Naveen Andrews who plays Sayid. I would definitely consider including this in a collection, especially in areas where it wouldn’t be held in the video store.

Audience: 13+ (girls primarily) Rated PG-13
Ranking: Quality 4/5 Popularity 3.5/5