17 again

I have no problem buying into the idea that Matthew Perry wants to be 17 again and then becomes Zac Efron. However, this movie wants me to believe that at 17 years old Matthew Perry looked like Zac Efron. Okay, right off the bat this movie and I have problems. This is not really a slight at Perry, but if Efron grows up to look like Perry, people will be disappointed. So, this movie started in the hole for me. I liked Perry and Efron, but my suspension of reality was really being pushed before I even started watching the movie.

In 1989, Mike O'Donnell(Efron)is the king of his high school. he is the best basketball player and he is dating a super hot girl, Scarlett(Allison Miller). He is the kind of guy who will dance with the cheerleaders, never miss a shot and befriend the biggest nerd in school, Ned(Tyler Steelman). The championship game is the setting for a life changing moment. Right before the game, Scarlett has bad news for Mike, but does not want to force Mike into changing his life for her. However, Mike walks off the court at the start of the game to be with Scarlett (I have to be honest, I did not hear her say she was pregnant, but I guess I just missed it, because everyone is telling me she did). Cut to the present day, Mike (Now Matthew Perry) has been kicked out of the house by Scarlett(Now Leslie Mann), his kids(Michelle Tratchenberg and Sterling Knight) hate him and he lives with Ned(Thomas Lennon). His life has not turned out how he imagined and while at his kids' high school he briefly talks to a janitor about wanting to do it all over again. Later that night, he sees the janitor jump off a bridge, goes to investigate, falls off the bridge and wakes up as Zac Efron again. Luckily Ned is a the king of nerds and they realize he in a traditional transformation story, meaning he has to fulfill a purpose. Mike thinks he gets to live his life again, but then he realizes he is getting the chance to help his kids or maybe, just maybe to realize what he has lost in being bitter.

The movie opens on a shirtless and sweaty Efron playing basketball. It is a moment that says "Hey, I am sort of transitioning away from Disney, but only slightly." It also shows me that Efron is no dummy; he knows what his tween fans want: shirtless and sweaty Efron. Then, the moms like Efron because he is playing a middle aged man, so he has these conservative views. For some reason abstinence could be cool when talked about by Efron. However, that scene is so awkward, it made me uncomfortable. 17 Again is not going to set the genre on fire, but it does offer some really nice things and it is pretty funny. Efron is a charming young actor, but it is up to him to not become the next Matthew MaConaghy. Efron could easily get by on charm alone, but in this movie he shows that he can do more. He is funny, quick and also nails the idea of being in love. The movie does not ask too much of him, but the entire movie rests on his shoulders and he is up to the task. The scene where he confronts the school bully is the high point in the movie and shows that Efron can carry a movie. The supporting cast does its job as well. Lennon is funny, if borderline annoying, as Ned and Leslie Mann is lovely, smart and as wicked funny as ever as Mike's bitter soon to be ex-wife. The two children do their jobs, even if they do not have that much to do. Tratchenberg has the awkward task of falling in love with the high school version of her dad, but that was to be expected because Efron is just so darn cute.

This film offers a Ghost of Christmas Present perspective of life and it offers up a few interesting ideas, but it also suffers from a lack of logic. Tratchenberg plays an emo like teen, but has cheerleader best friends and is dating the star basketball player. The movie jumps twenty years and if Scarlett was pregnant then, well Tratchenberg should be 20 or maybe 19, but she is only 17 and a high school senior. Efron and Lennon are best friends, which is cool, but during the scene where Efron is confronting the bully, we are made to believe that while in high school, maybe Efron(1989 version) was not such a nice guy. However, he was friends with the biggest dork. However, the biggest crime is that Jim Gaffigan is in it and he is totally underused. The guy is comic gold and he gets to do nothing remotely funny.

Because I missed the word pregnant during the movie, I spent most of the movie wondering why he left basketball just because his girl was breaking up with him, so maybe my view of the movie is slanted just a bit, but I did laugh in moments and I am kind of swooped up in Efron mania. I think he can be a big and respected star, but maybe he needs to avoid movies where he plays basketball and dances for a little while. There is never any question as to where 17 Again is headed from beginning to end and there is never any question as to what the moral of the story is. If you have seen the trailer or seen other body switching movies, you know what the purpose of these stories are. They are meant to show the miserable person one of two things: what life without them would be, or how others react to the person they are. It ultimately leads to a change in that person that makes them realize what they had all along. 17 Again offers a nice Efron monologue and then a really bad ending where it turns out the kids did not matter, but overall it is a movie that needed script refining.

Final Grade: C