High School Musical 3
Reviewed by Goeun, age 14, Virginia
SPOILER ALERT!! If you haven't seen this movie, be advised that many elements of the story line are revealed in this review.
The third movie in the High School Musical series brought back what we've all been waiting for: drama, romance, and Sharpay's old tricks. It came with 11 new songs, plus a spring musical, adding to the mix of other HSM tunes.
As usual, Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) is trying to take over the school. But every good movie needs a villain, right? With a new assistant, Tiara Gold (Jemma McKenzie-Brown), she's confident that she and Ryan (Lucas Grabeel) will land the leads in the school musical. But when Kelsi (Olesya Rulin) signs everyone in the class up, Sharpay develops another plan. She tells Ryan to convince Kelsi to give them the good songs, instead of Troy (Zac Efron) and Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens).
The gang is also stuck between choosing colleges. Mrs. Darbus informs them that Troy, Sharpay, Ryan, and Kelsi are in the running for a scholarship at Juilliard, and that scouts will be coming to the musical. Chad (Corbin Bleu) is pumped up to go to Albuquerque. Troy has been accepted as well, but isn't sure if it's the right path for him. Gabriella has been accepted to Stanford, but she doesn't know how to tell Troy she'll be gone for two weeks. Once Sharpay finds out, she takes the opportunity to fool Troy into thinking that he's the only one keeping her from Stanford. Once Troy confronts Gabriella and she leaves, Sharpay is sure that she'll get the Juilliard scholarship.
During the musical, nothing goes as planned. Sharpay is filling in for Gabriella, and she expects Troy to be with her in the scenes. Jimmy (Matt Prokop) then gets a text from Troy, telling him to fill in because he's at Stanford visiting Gabriella. Sharpay gets a surprise on stage once Jimmy jumps on, and thinks her chances at a scholarship are ruined.
Halfway through the scene, Troy and Gabriella return and get ready for the next scene. Sharpay is devastated in her dressing room when Tiara announces that she'll take over the drama department next year. She's shocked to find out that Tiara's been using her the whole time, but what goes around comes around, right? However, Sharpay is determined to not let Tiara steal her spotlight. While Tiara is on stage doing Sharpay's scene, Sharpay jumps in and captures the audience in a stunning performance.
In the graduation scene Troy announces he'll be going to the University of California, Berkeley, where he'll be about 30 miles away from Stanford (and Gabriella). Ryan and Kelsi are awarded the Juilliard scholarship, and Chad sticks to his decision of going to the University of Albuquerque.
I've always been a fan of High School Musical, but I have to say that this one was my least favorite. It was highly anticipated among many people, and ended up being a disappointment. There were parts I liked, but the choreography (or lack of it) and plot development could have been better.
My rating: 3 stars (of a possible 5)