CD Giveaway - Sam Shrieve, "Bittersweet Lullabies"
Ends Nov 29, 2009
The current student at Berklee College of Music has a rock 'n' roll pedigree, but delivers a pleasing and diverse collection of soft pop on his debut record. Enter our contest for your chance to win!
The Twilight Saga: New Moon Prize Pack
Ends Nov 29, 2009
The second installment of the Twilight saga is hitting theaters, and we've got the stylish goodies you'll howl over!
Rating: Country: USA Release Date: August 11, 2009 Distributor: New Line Cinema Director: · Burr Steers Cast: · Zac Efron · Matthew Perry · Leslie Mann · Thomas Lennon · Michelle Trachtenberg · Alex O'Donnell · Hunter Parrish Related Sites: ·IMDb: 17 Again
Grade: B-
The whole "adult transformed to child" has been literally done to death, and there aren't all that many twists on the concept. At least "17 Again" didn't bother to come up with some contrived, rational explanation for the conversion of pudgy former-FriendMatthew Perry into the youthful and toned Zac Efron. The intervention of a spirit guide (Brian Doyle-Murry, The Bill Engvall Show) posing as a school janitor serves as the catalyst, in a scene taken right out of "It's a Wonderful Life."
Mike O'Donnell (Perry/Efron) began his new life the night of a high school basketball game, when he walked out on his chances for a college scholarship because his girlfriend, Scarlett (Allison Miller, then later Leslie Mann), was pregnant. And in the school of perfect and appropriate timing, she tells him just before he's supposed to go out on the court and show what he can do for the college scouts. Twenty years later, O'Donnell finds himself living with his nerdy best bud, Ned (Reno 911!'s Thomas Lennon), in a house filled from floor to ceiling with geek toys, statues, and swords. (Ned made a small fortune writing software to prevent music from being copied, and a larger one writing software to break the copy protection, but he doesn't talk much about the latter.) Mike's been kicked out of the house by Scarlett, and stands to lose his two kids, Maggie (Michelle Trachtenberg) and Alex (Sterling Knight, Sonny with a Chance).
His moping about the glory days of his youth leads him to an encounter with a mysterious school janitor, ultimately resulting in his rejuvenation to his seventeen-year-old self. Believing that the path he's being set on is to reboot his life, he enrolls in high school, with Ned posing as his father. But when he finds out the lives his kids are leading -- Maggie is dating a sexually pushy school bully (Weeds' Hunter Parrish) and Alex is the punching bag for the basketball team -- he decides he's here instead to make things better for his kids.
The situations lead to some seriously inappropriate situtations, as Maggie starts to fall for her dad, who still has feelings for his wife (whom he later plants a kiss on). Jim Gaffigan plays Coach Murphy old-and-new, in a role that shows more than just history repeating itself but that high school staff seem to be on a perpetual year-long looping re-run. Rita Rocks' Nicole Sullivan also has a supporting role as Scarlett's best friend who's all too eager to help her re-enter the world of dating.
Probably more unbelievable than the magic transformation are the handful of speeches young O'Donnell delivers in school, beginning with a full rundown of why Stan is a bully (all while completely owning a basketball) and culminating in a health class speech on abstinence that has several students tossing away their school-provided condoms.
"17 Again" is a fun popcorn flick, and it has some nice moments in it. As a DVD, however, this is probably the first major theatrical release I've seen in a long time to be so completely bereft of bonus features. Basically, after making the choice of widescreen or full screen versions and setting your language to either English or Spanish, you've exercised all your options. No commentary, no "making of" featurettes. I've come to expect a tiny bit more out of my DVDs these days.
Previews on this disc include "Me and Orson Welles," "Scooby-Doo: The Mystery Begins," "Shorts!," "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past," and "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince."
