5.5 | / 10 |
Users | 3.5 | |
Reviewer | 2.0 | |
Overall | 2.7 |
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 belong when they each decide to audition for the high school's musical. By proving themselves to be brilliant performers, can these two teens lead their peers towards more open-minded thinking and acceptance of one another? 'High School Musical' is a family-appropriate feature filled with hip music, popular dance moves, and tons of school spirit.
Starring: Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Corbin Bleu, Lucas GrabeelFamily | 100% |
Comedy | 81% |
Romance | 45% |
Musical | 41% |
Teen | 28% |
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080p
Aspect ratio: 1.77:1
English: LPCM 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
French: Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish: Dolby Digital 5.1
English SDH, French, Spanish
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Single disc (1 BD)
Region A (B, C untested)
Movie | 1.5 | |
Video | 3.0 | |
Audio | 3.5 | |
Extras | 1.5 | |
Overall | 2.0 |
January 20th remains a profound date for a good number of people around the world, for a
variety of different reasons. Some might choose to remember the date to mourn the deaths
of
Audrey Hepburn, Al Hirshfeld or King George V of the United Kingdom, while others highlight
this historic date to celebrate the birthdays of Buzz Aldrin, DeForest Kelley or Federico
Fellini. Still, I’m sure many hoist a glass to remember that January 20th, 1265 was the date
in which the English parliament first met; Americans choose the 20th to toast the
inauguration of their favorite presidents. There is, however, a seedier side to January 20th;
one that confounds and confuses, while making me feel like an old, out of touch codger.
That’s right, history buffs; High School Musical was first released on video on
January 20, 2006.
Unsure of how to weigh the historical implications of this extraordinarily coincidental date,
I’ve enlisted the help of my 9-year-old niece, Stephanie, to help decipher the impenetrable
appeal of High School Musical. Stephanie would hold the key to understanding this
cultural phenomenon that is being supported solely by the untold billions of babysitting
dollars changing hands in this country. Soaking up High School Musical by the ton,
Stephanie is an apex predator who devours every factoid and tidbit of HSM
goodness. Stephanie isn’t exactly a film buff; when pressed to complete a film proficiency
test, she incorrectly placed Orson Welles as the High School Principal from Mean
Girls, while writing in her answer of “Paris Hilton” as the Director of Photography for
Fitzcarraldo. While the Werner Herzog section of the test turned out to be a
complete disaster, she did, surprisingly, indicate an appreciation for Darren Aronofsky films.
Go
figure.
Think of this list as a ransom note for your sanity.
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?
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?"
Here's what's included:
-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 is a challenging flick that tested my patience, sanity and
willpower to continue to maintain a home theater. Stephanie, on the other hand, was
overjoyed with being given yet another opportunity to experience her favorite movie on a
big screen with surround sound. "This is just awesome," she kept exclaiming, while
blissfully unaware of my near coma and rapidly falling heart rate. Ultimately, I did recover
relatively quickly from the experience; the pain was short-lived and worthwhile, especially
considering Stephanie's joy at seeing her favorite movie. Very rarely can we put a price on
the happiness of a child. In this case, that price is $23.99 from the link listed above; you
know what you have to do, parents.
Adjusted ratings for High School Musical fans: All 5s, across the board.
For parents and others who happen to be in the room: Take a valium.
Extended Edition
2007
Extended Edition
2008
Extended Rock Star Edition
2008
2010
2009
2004
2003
Extended Dance Edition
2009
40th Anniversary Edition
1978
2-Disc Shake and Shimmy Edition
2007
2011
2007
2012-2013
2005
2004
2009
Available on Double Feature
2004
Available in Double Feature
2001
2003
2011