For over a year now, my nine year old has been espousing the words 'High School Musical' like a constant whisper in the echoes of our lives.
Today, thanks to a kind gift from a family member who had an unwanted prize, I was able to take Miss Nine and a couple of friends to see a sneak preview (in Australia anyway...I know it's already out in other countries) of High School Musical 3.
In the past, the raptures of the sound of the words and music from the over-used dvds were enough to send me running into another room for cover. Today, however as I sat through the screening I was actually kind of surprised.
What I realised, when looking over at the face of the friend's daughter next to me, who was constantly grinning throughout the movie, and when looking at my own daughter whose eyes were glued to the screen, is that this movie has something. In fact, it reminded me of a young girl (not that many years ago) who sat in a similar position watching John Travolta and Olivia Newton John rocking in black leather pants at a fair ground and then flying off into the clouds. It reminded me of that same young girl who then had to go out and buy the black vinyl record and play it over and over again much to my parent's horror! And that same little girl inside of me was dancing around and swaying to the music of the next generation's Grease!
The movie itself was everything you would expect of a sweet and innocent musical-slash-love-story for teens and preteens. It had the boppy songs and wonderfully choreographed dance scenes. It had the handsome, clean-faced lead and his gorgeous love interest. It had a not-so-nice nemesis type character and it had a few simple problems that needed to be resolved throughout the storyline. And it even had one not-so-long, but obviously longed for if you believe the hoots of the teenage girls in the cinema with us, kiss scene!
What High School Musical does prove however is exactly what I've been saying about the Twilight popularity. That movie makers do not need to put in gore, violence or too graphic scenes to gain popularity. A good love story with interesting characters who have some level of chemistry are a certain winner everytime! And as a mother, I'm happy to know that my daughter prefers this type of flick!
So, what began as an anticipated couple of torturous hours to keep the kids happy actually turned out to be pleasantly enjoyable! Even for an old (ish!!!) mother like me!!!
