Sky High (www.the-usher.com)

"SIDEKICK!!!!!!"

Coach Boomer

Will Stronghold (Angarano) is the son of the most famous superheroes on the planet, The Commander (Russell) and Jetstream (Preston), and great things are expected from him. On his first day at the superhero high school Sky High, every student is expected to reveal their powers so Coach Boomer (Campbell) can assign them either hero or sidekick status but the problem is that Will has actually developed any powers yet.

With all the seriousness of the current comic book adaptations, can a superhero movie with its tongue planted firmly in its cheek save the day?

A school for superheroes might not be the most original of ideas as it has already been covered, albeit in a serious manner, in the X-Men movies but 'Sky High' injects some lightness and comedy into the now serious genre. Much like Pixar did with the brilliant 'Incredibles', the movie takes the superhero mythos and combines it with the 60s clichés that made the genre fun.Here we have Superhero offspring going to school together but with all the same pressures as any normal high school.

Instead of the popular and unpopular kids we now have Heroes and Sidekicks (or hero support as they like to be known). This is an enforced divide by the assessment of Coach Boomer, played by the brilliant Bruce Campbell, who has the freshmen students show him their powers and he assigns their status. So the kids with extraordinary powers like flight, speed and strength become heroes and those with powers like turning themselves into small rodents, puddles of goo or glowing in the dark become sidekicks. The divide transforms the movie into your usual high school angst flick but the inclusion of superpowers makes this all the more fun.

While the adult cast such as Kurt Russell as the Commander, Kelly Preston as Jetstream, Kevin McDonald as egghead science teacher Mr. Medulla, Dave Foley as sidekick teacher Mr. Boy and the legendary Lynda Carter as Sky High's Principal Powers bring some class to the proceedings, they are only there to support the young ensemble cast. Leading the group is a good performance from Michael Angarano as Will Stronghold. He plays the teenager with the weight of expectation on his shoulders extremely well. He makes Will very likeable even when he gets dragged into the hero set. Her received good support from fellow sidekicks Danielle Panabaker as his best friend Layla, Nicholas Braun as the overly confident Zach and Kelly Vitz as the rebellious Magenta.

'Sky High' is very good family fun that captures everything that makes superheroes so appealing. The story might be simple and slightly clichéd but that is the point. With good special effects that bring the superpowers to life and characters that you can really get behind, this is a super family film that everyone can enjoy.

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Anamorphic Widescreen 2.35:1 with Dolby Digital 5.1, the movie is presented well.

BONUS FEATURES

Alternative Opening (3.14 mins)
Watch Royal Pain's original plan unfold as he takes on the Commander and Jetstream for the first time.

Super Bloopers (4.20 mins)
Watch as Michael Angarano struggles with kissing and the cast going through take after take until they get it right.

Music & More (4.07 mins)
Watch the music video by Bowling for Soup for the song 'I melt with you' Backstage Disney

Welcome to Sky High (15.21 mins)
Director Mike Mitchell, producer Andrew Gunn and stars Michael Angarano, Danielle Panabaker, Dee Jay Daniels, Malika, Khadijah, Nicholas Braun, Kevin McDonald, Kelly Vitz, Jake Sandvig, Will Harris and Steven Strait take you behind the scenes of the making of 'Sky High'. We see the differences between Heroes and Sidekicks and all the stunts involved in the production of the movie.

Breaking Down Walls: The Stunts of Sky High (7.02 mins)
Director Mike Mitchell, producer Andrew Gunn, stunts coordinator Scott Rogers, executive producer Ann Marie Sander and stars Michael Angarano, Danielle Panabaker, Dee Jay Daniels, Nicholas Braun, Bruce Campbell and Kelly Preston show you how the stunts of 'Sky High' were produced. We see how the cast did their own stunts including all the smashing through walls.

Trailers
Previews for 'Herbie Fully Loaded', 'Ice Princess', 'Aliens of the Deep', 'Kronk's New Groove' and 'Lady and the Tramp'

OVERALL

The DVD treatment for 'Sky High' is OK but it could have been so much better. The featurette are goo but the lack of deleted scenes or a commentary track lets it release down slightly, especially for a Disney release. There is still much to enjoy however but fans might have wanted more.

DVD

The Incredibles

The Usher Home | Hush, Hush... | The Big Story | The Usher Speaks

Stuck @ Home | Coming Soon | Links | Contact the Usher

2005