With my guy still away I'm increasingly resorting to books and films from romance. I almost didn't go and see 17 again because of Zac Efron.I just can't take "the guy from the high school musical films" very seriously and I didn't think I'd ever want to see a film with him in it! But I balanced his presence out with the fact Matthew Perry was in it and the fact I love those films where people change and learn something about themselves, you know the classic cuddly-feelyness; Big, 13 going on 30, Never been kissed, Bruce Almighty. I loved them all and this looked like it was going to be of the same model.
We all know the formula for a classic age transformation film geek finds out that they either aren't a geek in the future or have a chance to do it again and not be a geek. Right?
That's why the beginning of this film struck me as more than a little bit genius. He's actually popular in school, he's the captain of the baseball team, the cheerleaders love him, he has a gorgeous girlfriend. That doesn't normally happen in these films. I could have done without the bit where Efron dances with the cheerleaders but hey apparently the man must dance. So he's happy, his future is set and then he finds out his girlfriend is pregnant and, rather contraversially in my pragmatic opinion, he throws it all away to marry her and have children.
Flash forward and he's obviously in a miserable job and blames his wife and kids. Minus the sign over his head which says "I've lost sight of what's important in life" he's a textbook age transformation case.
I'm not going to tell you what happens in the film. I think you should watch it, and you can probably guess so I wont insult your intelligence. I actually did like it, I didn't love it, I wouldn't watch it again but it did warm my heart a little. I especially loved Efron in health class convincing the girls, including his daughter, not to have sex because when you do it should be throughlove, and he talks about the feelings a guy goes through when he holds his daughter for the first time. Particularly poignant as my cousin just had a baby and I've seen that father adoration at first glance thing first hand!
Its a new twist on an old classic, I'm glad they didn't try and make us believe ZacEfron was a geek in school, no one would have bought it. I'm suprised his coach failed to recognize how he looked exactly the same as a promising student who just walked out in an important game 20 years earlier, I wouldn't have thought you'd forget that sort of thing.
Mike (Efron/Perry)'s best friend Ned is also great and I laughed so hard at the turning point in his relationship with the headmistress at dinner.Actually I laughed pretty hard at everything he did just an all round great character.
Although I don't buy the generally premise of the story, that having children will always be more important than having a successful life, it worked for the cute-cuddlyness I mentioned earlier and thawed my ice cold (haha) heart just a little bit!
One final thought, when your watching the end of the film where they wrap everything up a dare you not to think "those he can do, those who can't do, teach.";-)