| Movie Review: 17 Again By: Tomi Afolayan “When you're young every little thing that happens feels like the end of the world but it's not, it's just the beginning.” This quote spoken by Mike O’Donnell (Zac Efron) stayed with me throughout 17 Again, the motion picture about a middle-aged man who gets the opportunity to relive his seventeen year old self, but in the twenty-first century. I think we can all relate to that quote in one way or another. Whether it is the end to a petty teen relationship or not getting into a college, we have all had moments when we felt like our world was coming to an end. Zac Efron’s character really connected with this quote throughout the movie. He had to adjust to modern day high school with all its pressures and expectations. This was one of the laughable parts of this comedy because his wardrobe and demeanor were stuck in the 80’s. So as expected, he looked ridiculous on his first day of school according to the standards of the modern day high school students. His completely style unconscious and quirky best friend since his high school days, Ned Gold (Thomas Lennon) was not of much help but added to the overall hilarity in the movie. Although he couldn’t go back to the exact period of time when he was in high school with the same people he went to high school with, he was still able to realistically experience and deal with the issues that teens face in and out of high school. This movie was very relevant because it shed light on many issues that teens face in school and everyday life. These issues included teen sexuality, basically the pressure a lot of teens feel to have sex from their boyfriends or girlfriends, society and other forces. Another issue that is a reality in high school is bullying. Each of us to some degree whether we are 13 or 30 know who the bullies are in our school or who they were. When the teenage Michael O’Donnell goes back to high school—2009 style—he is forced to face these issues and more. It is surprising the way he deals with all the problems around him. This is because he is known as the ultimate jock in High School Musical, but I guess we must not forget that he ends up falling for the nerdy somewhat artsy girl, Vanessa Hudgens in that musical. Zac Efron and Matthew Perry did a great job portraying Michael O’Donnell. Both characters were believable and Zac Efron demonstrated that he can deliver in not just musicals (Disney’s High School Musical series) but comedies like this one. Through this role he has opened a door of many possibilities for himself in Hollywood and Show business, many critics have even called him a “movie star.” It would be nice to go back in the past and change things for the better but Zac Efron and Matthew Perry’s character realized that they couldn’t really change the past and instead decided to focus on the present. Ultimately, the most important lesson I believe we can all take away from this movie is that disappointments, trials and tribulations that we face on a daily basis are part of everyday life and everyone has to deal with them. They usually make us better and stronger people. |
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