Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #4432 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-12-04
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Full Screen, PAL
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 98 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Disney Channel's High School Musical is a combination of backstage action and Grease without the unwholesome habits. Scoring record ratings at the time of its January 2006 broadcast, it's a smash hit with tween audiences (ages 6 to 10), but appealing for all ages. At a New Year's Eve party, Troy (Zac Efron) has a chance meeting with Gabriella (Vanessa Anne Hudgens) when they share a karaoke song. Lo and behold, when school resumes, they discover that Gabriella has just transferred to Troy's East High School, a campus divided into tight cliques of jocks, cheerleaders, brainiacs, and skater dudes. Eager to recapture the magic they'd discovered during karaoke, Troy and Gabriella consider auditioning for the school's upcoming musical, much to the dismay of the school's frost queen/theater goddess, Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale). Problem is, Troy is also the star of the basketball team and Gabrielle is being recruited to compete in the Scholastic Decathlon. Will they give up their cliques to start something new, or will they do as the show's first big anthem urges and "Stick to the Status Quo"? Well, this is a Disney movie, so maybe the sacrifices won't be that hard, and even the hints of romance are mild.

The bestselling soundtrack is catchy in that Disney-pop kind of way, mixing in a dash of hip-hop ("Getcha Head in the Game," punctuated by squeaky basketball shoes and other sound effects), salsa ("Bop to the Top"), and the endearingly hammy ("What I've Been Looking For" performed by Sharpay and her brother, Ryan, played by Lucas Gabreel). It's not hard to imagine High School Musical becoming a semi-staple for high school groups to perform themselves. DVD bonus features include sing-along subtitles; a 9-minute featurette discussing casting, recording sessions, and rehearsals; a multi-angle look at a rehearsal of "Bop to the Top"; and music videos for "We're All in This Together" and a song that didn't make it into the final film, "I Can't Take My Eyes Off of You," performed by Efron, Hudgens, Tisdale, and Gabreel. --David Horiuchi

Synopsis
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.

DVD Description
Gabriella Montez is a shy, studious new student at East High School; but that all changes when she is forced to sing at a karaoke contest with Troy Bolton, the captain of the school's basketball team. After spending time with each other, both realise they share a passionate love for music and singing. But will they retain this love when their school is telling them they cannot be together?

Customer Reviews

Brilliant - for what it is.
My 9 year old daughter finds this movie awesome, has already gone a long way to testing the theory that it takes 000's of plays to wear out a dvd, and I can (For a 39 year old guy) sorta see why. Yes, it's more cheesy than a camembert factory, the plot is about as predictable as can be - but it is one of the most fun movies I've seen in a while.
What we have to remember, is that this is a "wholesome" movie from the Disney stable. There's nothing in this you'd be worried about your kids seeing.
For entertainment value, it has plenty. It's very colourful, and it's got some great dance setpieces - a couple of them almost instant classics.

Another reviewer has put that this is full of "20-somethings pretending to be 14". Someone there who obviously failed to check the facts - as a search on IMDB shows the average age at filming to be about 18/19. A far cry from Grease and certain 80's movies where grizzly adults pushing 30 were pretending to be of schoolage. For obvious reasons, it's hard for a filmmaker to get young kids to do complicated acting, and filmmakers nowadays have sure improved on yesteryear. As by the subject, I'd guess these character are supposed to be 15/16, I guess they haven't done badly at all.

Mentioning Grease, it's easy to see the comparisons, where the kids are getting excited about watching this movie, but this is - as already said - no Grease. Grease was good for it's day, but it's now an old movie, still good - but old and it's lost it's relevance for kids. Here we have a movie for today.

It's a simple feelgood movie aimed at 9-14 year olds, but with subject that many over and under that age will also enjoy. I wouldn't buy it for myself, but it's something I don't mind in the background. It's no "The Godfather" or "American Beauty", but what it does, it does well.

Me - first time I watched it, I just fancied going to play basketball.

HIGH SCHOOL MUSCAL (2006)
This film is absolutely brilliant and is a must own on DVD. I first heard about it and saw it on the Disney Channel. It is a fantastic story with a hint of Grease, which I saw at the cinema in 1978 when I was 12 years old, I am now 41. The film has a great storyline dealing with love, music and school life in the USA. Outstanding songs which are on the now available soundtrack which I also own are Start of Something New, Get'cha Head In The Game, What I've Been Looking For, Breaking Free and We're All In This Together. If you have kids they will love it or if you are a kid at heart, like me then go and buy it. It Is Great.

A rainy day must have....
My two children had been going on about this for weeks, I finally succumbed to pester power and one rainy afternoon sat down with them to watch it. I have to admit I wasn't expecting to enjoy it. I like a good musical but this to me was more aimed at pre-teens far more than Grease had ever been. However I can say I was very pleasantly surprised. The general stroyline, lifted from the pages of Grease and put into a more modern context was well handled, yes you knew what the outcome was going to be but that didn't detract from the enjoyment of the journey to get there.
The songs are very catchy and I found myself humming them only after hearing them once. The young cast were excellent. All in all a rainy afternoon brightened and a very enjoyable way. I would recommend this to anyone with children as a good way to spend time together and maybe introduce them to the joy of musicals.