Hot in 2007: High School Musical (#25)
 Hot because: Who ever would have thought a little made-for-tv musical would strike such a chord among the coveted tween set? Disney may not have expected the first High School Musical to become the Next Big Thing, but they sure knew how to capitalize on the appeal of hottie Zac Efron (he sings! he dances! and in the second film, he sings all on his own!) and the too-cute-for-words Vanessa Anne Hudgens, who plays the brainy-science-geek-turned-singer in the films. Parents of young daughters lacking Barbie-esque figures appreciated Disney giving the plus-size hip-hop dancer a more prominent role in the second film as well, and showing girls everywhere that you don't have to be size 0 to sing, dance, and act. Our favorite characters, though, are brother-and-sister Broadway wannabes Sharpay and Ryan -- Ashley Tisdale's spoiled-rotten bad girl almost steals the show.
How to keep it hot: We know you want to keep churning out the sequels (and aiming for the big screen), but keep it simple and stick to the formula the tween set loves. You're aiming at kids, not snooty cinephiles, so give them what they want and they'll keep coming back for more. What do they want? Zac and Vanessa together, Sharpay doing her thing (but learning her lesson by the end, of course) and lots of rocking, sing-along song-and-dance numbers. Oh, and get Vanessa Hudgens to keep her clothes on -- or at least not to take any more pics of herself undressed. Parents want their kids role models to maintain the illusion of wholesome, even if we know ourselves that these kids have, uh, personal lives. As for Efron, he rocked in Hairspray, and now we're ready to see what he does with Footloose and that Big remake. Will he continue to impress? No pressure, Zac ... we just don't want to see you on the "Lame" list next year. |
Next up: Ferrell, McKay and Apatow get busy!  |
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
12-19-2007 @ 8:59PM
brandi said...
I know I'm a cinephile, and therefore I have no right to comment on a tween movie because that would make me seem ridiculous, but I will. Actually, I love high school musical. I'm pretend I'm cynical but I really enjoy cheese and fluff. The only thing I'm going to say, is let's not give these kids roles that are cinematically too big for their britches. I mean zach is a cutie and theres no doubt he can croone a 12 year old right out of her her BRATZ jammies, but can he step into the shoes of Kevin Bacon and Tom Hanks? NO! They're only remaking those movies to bank off of efrons hotness, not because they think it will make a good movie. Its like making an alvin and the chipmunks movie to bank off the current hotness of nostalgia movies and computer animation. I hate when they do that! I haven't seen hairspray, but if you say it's good i believe you. I'm still going to give efron a chance and see those movies, but don't blame me when he turns out to be just like hilardy duff: where his presence in a film makes that film just that much worse because he is there.
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