Remix Edition
Disney / Buena Vista | 2006 | 98 min | Rated G | Region A (B, C untested) | Feb 17, 2009
Zac Efron and Vanessa Anne Hudgens star in this Disney Channel Original Movie as
popular
basketball team captain Troy and smart, stunning academic Gabriella. Both shock
the
members of the social cliques to which they...
Extended Edition
Disney / Buena Vista | 2007 | 111 min | Rated TV-G | Region A (B, C untested) | Dec 11, 2007
In the sequel, school's out for summer and now, the competition moves from the fields of high school to the lawns of high society — also known as the Country Club. When the other East High students get summer jobs there, before...
High school seniors Troy and Gabriella are facing the prospect of being separated
from one another as they head off in different directions to college. Joined by the
rest of the Wildcats, they stage an elaborate spring...
The High School Musical movies are a complete mystery to me; I just don't get the
appeal. Falling somewhere between a Britney Spears concert and an episode of The
Wiggles, these popular films have captivated millions of tweens around the globe.
Countless discs and movie tickets have been sold, merchandise flies off of store shelves and
a new generation of teen idols has arisen from the massively successful franchise. Now, I'm
not exactly the right person to be handling a review of the High School Musical
flicks; I'm too old, too male and way too cynical for this kind of thing. So, I've asked my 9-
year-old niece, Stephanie, to help out with this series of reviews. Stephanie is quite the
High School Musical fan; she collects anything and everything related to the films,
has seen each of the flicks dozens of times and proudly knows the lyrics and dance routines
from the entire trilogy. Unsurprisingly, Stephanie is also something of a budding film
aficionado; she counts Pixar's films among her favorites, loves anything containing
Chihuahuas and was accidentally taken to see Waltz with Bashir by her mother last
month, under the mistaken impression that the film was a cartoon for kids. While
Stephanie's mom had a panic-stricken reaction to her mistake, Stephanie seem to be
unaffected by the experience, having fallen asleep at the tail end of a 3 day sugar bender
that managed to render her unconscious a mere 6 minutes into the movie. Let's move
forward, shall we?
High School Musical
Stephanie was very annoyed when I confessed to her that I didn't know the plot of High
School Musical. "What are you, dumb or something? It's like this; Troy (Zac Efron) and
Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) are singing together, doing karaoke and skiing. Then they
have to go home and they miss each other. Zac is so cute and he plays basketball. Then,
Gabriella shows up at his school and they fall in love and try to get in the musical at school.
Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) is mean to them and her brother Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) is mean
too. But then they all get along fine and everything is okay. They dance a lot and the songs
are the best."
Having seen the movie, I really couldn't have said it any better, actually.
While short on real plot and long on dance numbers and songs, High School Musical
plods along with little regard for adult viewers in the room. Kids, on the other hand, seem to
be transported into another dimension during the course of the movie. There's certainly
nothing wrong with that, it's all presented in a crisp and clean manner that is age
appropriate and well meaning. Stephanie has, by her own count, seen High School
Musical and its sequels, "Thousands of times, seriously." So, replay value is pretty high.
One warning to those who might interfere with the viewing of High School Musical:
don't even think about bothering a kid while they are in the throws of miming the film's
dance moves and singing along. When I haphazardly asked Stephanie if the movie was
almost over, I was met with a sharp "Please! Stop interrupting! This is the best part!"
You'd be well served to just disappear into a wall or something and let the kids do their
thing. This isn't for you, after all.
High School Musical 2
Stephanie counts High School Musical 2 as her favorite of the series, and I can see
why. Well, not really. "Zac and Gabriella are so in love now! They don't have to go to
school because it's summer and they get jobs and stuff. Sharpay is such a jerk; she's in love
with Zac too. I think I love Zac and I have all of his posters. Sharpay tries to steal Zac from
Gabriella and they put on a big show at her parents' work. I like the rap the best and it's so
much fun. Zac gets to play basketball with some big school (University of Albuquerque) and
he might have to leave and go play with them because he's the best basketball player in
the world. But he stays because he loves Gabriella. Sharpay makes me mad and I don't like
her at all. I think Zac should make fun of her more, but he's even nice to her. I don't
understand that."
Even more so than the other movies in the series, High School Musical 2 was
absolutely painstaking for me to view. The music was ludicrous; routines were set to some
sort of urban Polynesian theme that seems to have been intended to be all the rage, I have
no idea. I guess the logical second step for the High School Musical films was to
feature a summer vacation adventure, but I just wish that the filmmakers had taken the
time to set the movie in an exotic location or something; not just a golf club with a tiki torch
and some palm trees. Stephanie disagrees, "what are you talking about - - this is the best
one! Zac is so cute and I love everything about him. Don't you hate Sharpay? Come on,
don't you?" Yes Stephanie, I sure do. I really, really, really do.
Anyway, High School Musical 2 is, for the High School Musical fan, an
essential piece of entertainment that manages to move the characters into new situations
with new set decorations. While I suffered a mild seizure at the 45 minute mark of the film,
Stephanie was in heaven; she barely noticed when I fell to the floor and tried to swallow my
tongue.
High School Musical 3
Since Stephanie did such a bang-up job on the plot synopsis for High School Musical 1 &
2,
I'll let her describe the third film for everyone: "So, Zac (Note: Stephanie always refers to
Zac Efron's character, Troy, as Zac. It happens.) and Gabriella are going to go to college and
they are all scared and stuff. They are gonna miss each other! Zac plays a bunch of
basketball; he's the best one on the team, all the other guys are nothing compared to Zac!
They put on a play about school and Sharpay is being kind of mean again; I don't like her.
They are awesome dancers and Zac is the best of them all. He's awesome at basketball,
too."
I must admit that High School Musical 3 is a lot more enjoyable than the first two
movies.
Being that it was intended for theaters and not home video, the film looks better and
features better sets and costumes. I guess that's the kind of budget increase that a million
screaming tweens command these days. Anyway, Stephanie was thrilled with the movie and
reports on having seen it in the theater a mere 12 times. "My Mom said I couldn't go
anymore. She's so bossy, sometimes." After the pouting session had ended, Stephanie
resumed her choreographed dance routines, while demonstrating her command of the film's
musical material. I would venture to guess that Stephanie's mastery of the moves and
music from High School Musical 3 is not uncommon amongst fans of the series.
Even though High School Musical 3 is slightly more enjoyable than the first film, I still
feel that this is entertainment intended for Stephanie and her peers; parents need only sit
back and ignore what is happening on screen while the kids freak out. As a matter of fact,
perhaps a High School Musical 3 viewing session would be a great time to catch up
on overdue email responses, knitting or wound suturing. Just be sure to make plenty of
room in front of the TV, as the kids are bound to knock over valuables as they practice their
high-kicks and pirouettes.
High School Musical looks almost exactly like you'd expect it to; it's colorful,
overblown and somewhat plain, while showing definite signs of its limited budget. There's
not much to crow about here, but Disney has done the best that they could, considering the
source material. Purists will enjoy the AVC Mpeg-4 encode in the flick's original aspect ratio
of 1.78:1. Don't be surprised, however, if the film's target audience couldn't care less about
these specs. "What are you talking about?" was Stephanie's response to my reading the
specs aloud. "Can you just hit play, please?"
Stephanie did, however, seem to appreciate the improved colors and widescreen
presentation of High School Musical. "This looks great! Did you steal this from the
movie theater?" she asked, with a level of seriousness that frightened me. No matter, she
was pleased. Ultimately, the most discerning videophile tweens should be thrilled with
High School Musical on Blu-ray. Why wouldn't they?
High School Musical 2
High School Musical 2, like parts 1 and 3, sports a 1080p image, encoded using AVC
Mpeg-4, in its original aspect ratio of 1.78:1. It's a colorful movie with loads of detail and
ample contrast. Stephanie was impressed as well, "Zac looks amazing," she often declared
throughout the presentation, making note of the characters' "cute outfits" and "awesome
hair."
I was impressed with the deeply saturated colors on display in High School Musical
2. On many occasions, the film's color palette was so vibrant, that it often seemed
otherworldly; a far cry from High School Musical, which was almost monochromatic in
comparison. Detail was exceptional throughout and black levels remained deep and robust.
Stephanie agrees: "this totally rocks!"
High School Musical 3
Disney has continually impressed video enthusiasts with their high quality Blu-ray encodes
over the past few years. It's refreshing to see that a title like High School Musical 3
is given just as much care and attention as larger budget titles from the studio. Clearly,
High School Musical 3 had a larger budget and more intricate production design than
its predecessors; this AVC Mpeg-4 encode in the movie's original aspect ratio of 1.78:1
highlights these improvements in almost every shot. Stephanie was immediately impressed
with the colors in the film, stating "Zac looks awesome; I love him." Clearly, she has her
priorities in order.
As Stephanie mentioned, colors are nicely rendered in what amounts to a vibrant and
saturated palette. Detail is also impressive, with fabric and skin textures nicely realized.
Stephanie was particularly impressed with Sharpay's hair, "it's so weird looking, I mean, is
that a wig or something? It's all over the place. Gross." Black levels occasionally suffer from
a slight amount of crush during the presentation, but it's nothing worth getting into a twist
over. As the film progressed, I found myself more entranced by the pretty colors and depth
of field. Stephanie responded, "Hey, snap out of it! This is a really important part!"
Upon explaining the audio specifications of High School Musical to Stephanie, she
maintained an air of being unimpressed. "Aren't you excited that this is being presented in
Uncompressed PCM 5.1, Stephanie? Isn't it your favorite audio standard?" My questions
were intercepted with a stern look of indifference and obvious impatience. "Let me have
the remote," was her only comment, one that indicated her obvious displeasure at my
delaying the start of the movie. So, off we went, to a world of musical basketball teams and
dancing in the school cafeteria. Stephanie was clearly in heaven, "Turn it up! This is so
cool!" were her only vocal responses to the sound while she mimicked the dance moves
perfectly and sang along loudly.
Frankly, I've heard better surround tracks in my time. Music is front loaded and surround
usage is light. Perhaps the low budget origins of High School Musical limited the
fidelity of what my system was reproducing, but Stephanie didn't seem to notice. Dialogue
and vocals in the musical numbers were handled as well as could be expected. Stephanie
agrees, adding: "rewind that… I asked you for the remote once. Why do you insist on
keeping it?"
High School Musical 2
To Stephanie's ears, High School Musical 2 sounds "amazing" on Blu-ray, with its 5.1
Uncompressed PCM track. Admittedly, this is a nice sounding presentation that takes full
advantage of the surround channels; using them to create an intoxicating aural experience
that completely immerses the audience. "What the heck does that mean," Stephanie
asked, after being read that last sentence. "I don't know what you are talking about, but
we need to watch this again," Stephanie added. Not on your life, kid.
The most impressive thing about High School Musical 2 on Blu-ray is, undoubtedly,
the sound. An abundance of time and attention has been given to the mix, rendering it in a
manner consistent with the biggest budgeted films to grace the big screen; that's pretty
cool for a straight to video release. Fans of the film and, particularly, the music, will spend
countless hours with High School Musical 2 cranked to 11, dancing around the room.
Parents, take this is a warning or a positive; your choice.
High School Musical 3
I wasn't expecting much from High School Musical 3 in the sound department, so
imagine my surprise at discovering that Disney had given the movie an excellent 5.1 DTS-HD
Master Audio track. Stephanie was equally impressed and responded by running around
the room and jumping on the furniture. After calming her down a bit by threatening to make
her watch the movie with the Spanish language track turned on, Stephanie resumed trash-
talking the various "villains" in the film.
For a movie that is focused on music, this track does and excellent job of rendering the film's
silly songs with excellent fidelity that takes advantage of the full 5.1 range of speakers. It's
actually quite involving, despite the corn-ball subject matter. Bass was a little on the light
side, but it was more than made up for with exceptional dialogue clarity and dynamics.
Stephanie agrees, adding, "louder… stop shushing me!"
-Sing-Along with the Movie
-"Bringing It All Together"
-"A High School Musical Reunion"
-"Learning the Moves"
-"Disney Channel Dance-Alongs"
-"The Hollywood Premiere"
-Music Videos
Stephanie was thrilled at the "sing-along" feature and spent an unholy amount of time
replaying her favorite numbers from the film while belting out the numbers as though she
had been born to sing them. She wasn't as interested in the "Hollywood Premier," and
"Bringing it all Together" featurettes; they were a bit too talky and behind the scenes for
her tastes. "Learning the Movies" and "Dance-alongs," however, proved to be very
popular. As for me, I had entered what is known as the "alpha-state" by this point and was
relegated to shallow breathing and lowered body temperatures.
High School Musical 2
Here's what's included:
- High School Musical 2 Karaoke
- Rehearsal Cam
- Extended Scene
- Bloopers
- Music Videos
A little lighter on special features than the other two films, High School Musical 2
doesn't feature much compelling content. Stephanie loved the Karaoke feature; she sang
along and danced, as usual. One has to wonder if this feature is really necessary, as kids
seem to sing along regardless of this type of functionality. Stephanie also studied the
Rehearsal Cam intently. She was fascinated at this rehearsal footage; using the
information gleaned from this feature to further enhance her dance-along abilities. The rest
of the supplements are a little less than interesting; heck, Stephanie didn't even seem to
care that they were on the disc. Go figure!
High School Musical 3
Here's what's included:
- Profiles: New Cast Members
- 8 Deleted Scenes with Introductions from Director Kenny Ortega
- Blooper Reel
- "Night of Nights"
-"It's all in the Dress"
- "Senior Awards – Cast and Crew Fun Presentations"
- "Cast Goodbyes"
- High School Musical 3 Sing-along Mode
By the time the special features rolled around, Stephanie was giddy with anticipation. Much
like the extras from the first film, she enjoyed Sing-along mode and several of the short
featurettes, however, the deleted scenes seemed to annoy her. "Why wasn't that in the
movie? I want that in the movie; can you put that in the movie?" was repeated several
times with increasing frustration and anxiety. Stephanie was also less than interested in
the introduction to the new cast members, "I want more Zac - - not that one!" Parents, take
note.
As Stephanie has confirmed, Disney's High School Musical 1-3 represents essential
viewing for every tween on planet Earth. The movies might be a confounding experience for
any adults within earshot, but the kids just love this stuff. Disney has delivered each film in
a feature packed and high quality Blu-ray edition that should satisfy the hungriest High
School Musical appetites. It's a rare occasion to see a Blu-ray set hit the market with a
target audience under the age of 12. So, you parents out there who are hungry for more
high definition content for your kids, should be happy as clams. High School Musical
is highly recommended for fans and families.
Adjusted ratings for the High School Musical series:
For tweens and fans: 5 stars across the board.
Everyone else: 2 Stars and a trip to the neurologist.
Amazon's Gold Box deal-of-the-day is a special offer on 'High School Musical 1-3', which can currently be bought (until the day is out, while supplies last) for only $51.95, or just about $17 each title. Many Blu-ray enthusiasts will scoff at the offer, but this ...
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High School Musical 1-3 Blu-ray, Forum Discussions
