High School Musical 3: Senior Year (G, 2008)

The kids are back in a big way in HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 3. It's senior year, and the Wildcats have played their last game. Up next: Prom, the big musical, and, yes, graduation. Troy (Zac Efron) seems headed for the University of Albuquerque -- until Juilliard suddenly becomes an option. Will it be basketball or theater? And will his choice alienate his best friend, Chad (Corbin Bleu)? Meanwhile, Troy's beloved Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) is bound for Stanford, but will that mean saying goodbye to Troy for good? Sharpay (Ashley Tisdale) has her eye on Juilliard, too, but there's only one scholarship up for grabs, and her twin brother, Ryan (Lucas Grabeel), and their friend Kelsey, share the same dream. And then there's the gang's final stage production, a musical that's meant to be about them -- but it's hard to express who you are and what you want out of life when you don't quite know yet yourself.

Earnest, schmaltzy, and wildly entertaining, High School Musical 3: Senior Year -- the first film in Disney's enormously popular HSM franchise to debut on the big screen -- proudly wears its heart on its sleeve. Yet it doesn't suffer from doing so, largely due to the obvious rapport of its talented cast, particularly Hudgens and Efron, who share an unmistakable chemistry (they're a couple in real life, too). And the music? It's as catchy as ever (standout tunes include the anthem-like "Now or Never," the sweet "Can I Have This Dance?" and a slowed-down, nostalgic "We're All in This Together"). The musical numbers are ambitious productions marked by exemplary choreography--the hallmark of a hit Disney feature. (We dare you not to tap your feet.)

Make no mistake: HSM 3 is cheesy. And the plot does have holes -- for starters, director Kenny Ortega's decision not to show prom at all, even though the ritual of asking dates is pumped up in the movie's first half. But it's a good kind of cheesy, the kind that gamely tugs at your heart and grows more adorable by the minute. HSM 3 proves that the franchise has the heft to make the leap from television to the big screen, and it does so with honors.

Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Director: Kenny Ortega
Cast: Ashley Tisdale, Vanessa Hudgens, Zac Efron
Genre: Musical
Run time: 109 minutes
Theatrical release: October 23, 2008
DVD release: February 17, 2009
MPAA Rating: G