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17 Again

Review By: Dan Deevy
DanDeevy@TheCinemaSource.com

Movie Grade: B
DVD Features Grade: F
Overall Grade: C

I’m not sure what is more unbelievable, the plot of this movie (where a middle aged man is some how magically transformed back into himself at 17 to relive his glory days and perhaps fix the mistakes of his past) or the fact that I came out of it with a genuine appreciation for Zac Efron’s acting ability. No, I’m serious. Even without the singing and dancing Efron fills the screen with charm, charisma and genuine sex appeal.

More than that though, Efron is charged with the challenge of playing the ‘Matthew Perry’ older version of himself at 17 which means he had to take on some of his mannerisms and style of movement which he does very successfully. There are some moments where he’s clearly channeling Perry and you can see the older version trapped in this young body. He’s also quite adept at making all of the ‘fish out of water’ moments believable.

Now of course the term ‘chick flick’ will very easily and accurately be thrown around because girls do love them some Efron and that is a great audience for this movie. But more than that I think this is a great family film as well. The overall message of family responsibility and loyalty to your true friends are things that always bear repeating. The relationship between Mike O’Donnell (Zac Efron / Matthew Perry) and his family show a real guy who truly loves his family but got lost somewhere along the way and is fighting to get them back.

There’s also plenty in this movie for guys thanks to Mike’s best friend Ned (expertly played by Thomas Lennon). Ned was the high school geek who after graduating became a computer programmer who made millions and is now a wildly eccentric comic book / sci-fi enthusiast. There are a few light saber duals, references to Lord of the Rings and a few other fun surprises at chez-Ned.

The film definitely left me feeling nostalgic for my high school days thinking about how I’d do things if I had them to do over but ultimately the fear of being back there again wins out as it does in the film and we’re left being happy to be where we are.

This is as bare bones as a DVD release can get. The only special features that are found are some trailers for upcoming films and DVD’s and there’s also the fact that you can view the film in either widescreen or full screen format. But other than that there’s nothing.

So even though I think the film is fun and worth while I have to say it’s without a doubt a rental at best. In fact, I’d even venture to say just wait to catch it ...