High School Musical 3: Senior Year

High School Musical 3: Senior Year
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Kenny Ortega
Written by	Peter Barsocchini
Produced by	Bill Borden Barry Rosenbush Don Schain (co-producer)
Starring	Zac Efron Vanessa Hudgens Ashley Tisdale Lucas Grabeel Corbin Bleu Monique Coleman Olesya Rulin
Music by	David Lawrence Matthew Gerrard Robbie Nevil Shankar Mahadevan
Distributed by	Walt Disney Pictures
Release date	October 24, 2008
Running time	111 min.
Country	USA
Language	English
Budget	$13,300,000

Template:Infobox movie certificates High School Musical 3: Senior Year is the third installment in Disney's High School Musical franchise. Its theatrical release in the United States began on October 24, 2008. Kenny Ortega returns as director and choreographer, as do all six primary actors.

Plot

Now high school seniors, Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) and Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens) are facing the prospect of being separated from each other as they go off in different directions when graduating from East High. Joined by the rest of their Wildcat friends, including Sharpay Evans (Ashley Tisdale), Ryan Evans (Lucas Grabeel), Chad Danforth (Corbin Bleu), and Taylor McKessie (Monique Coleman), they stage an elaborate spring musical reflecting their experiences, hopes and fears about the future.

The movie starts off with the end of the first half of the championship basketball game, where team captain Troy rallies their spirits with Now or Never.

Later at Troy's after-match party (at his house), Troy and Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens) are seen thinking of their future and wishing that their last few months at East High wouldn't end, as expressed in Right Here, Right Now.

The class and Ms. Darbus (Alyson Reed) notice that since there were so few sign-ups for the spring musicale, Sharpay thought that she could do a one-woman show. This alarms the show's songwriter, Kelsi Nielsen (Olesya Rulin), so she signs up almost everyone in the class for it. During discussions, Ms. Darbus reveals that Sharpay, Ryan, Kelsi, and Troy have been considered for a scholarship at Julliard, and that only one can be chosen. Later, in the cafeteria, Sharpay persuades Ryan back to to find out the song that Kelsi is writing for Troy and Gabriella, performing I Want it All.

The next day, Gabriella meets Troy at the rooftop and teaches him how to waltz to Can I Have This Dance, and everyone rehearses for their prom number in the show, A Night to Remember.

Ryan walks in on Kelsi composing Just Wanna Be with You in the music room, and performs it with her, asking her to prom halfway through.

Troy and Chad reminisce, about their youth, singing The Boys are Back. At school, Sharpay tells Troy about Gabriella's chance to go to college early, and convinces him that he's the only thing keeping Gabriella from her dream. He talks about about this with Gabriella over dinner, and share an awkward "goodnight", leaving both of them unsure where their roads will take them. Gabriella performs Walk Away as she falls asleep and leaves the next day for her program.

Troy's dad, Jack (Bart Johnson) talks to him and urges Troy to rethink his hobby for performing. Troy becomes angry, runs away, and storms around East High, performing Scream, until he finally screams at the top of his lungs on the theater stage. He then gets a call from Gabriella who breaks up with him after telling him she loves him. Troy visits Gabriella at Stanford the night of the prom, and they waltz again to Can I Have This Dance (Reprise).

Back at East High, Troy tells Jimmie, his understudy, to go onstage as him because he and Gabriella won't be able to make it in time, but will return for the second act. The Julliard representatives are there, and watch as the show seems to go well, represented by Senior Year Spring Musical, but a conflict with the understudies results in Tiara and Sharpay having a catfight onstage.

During the final number, We're All in This Together (Graduation Mix), Ms. Darbus reveals that both Kelsi and Ryan got the Julliard scholarship.

Troy gives a speech, and the graduates respond by forming a giant wildcat before breaking out into song and dance with High School Musical. Near the end of the song the six lead actors walk down the field with a curtain closing behind them and the High School Musical logo drops down as they do their signature jump. The camera does a close up of each actor and they take their final bow with the curtain closing for the last time.

Cast

• Zac Efron as Troy Bolton
• Vanessa Anne Hudgens as Gabriella Montez
• Ashley Tisdale as Sharpay Evans
• Corbin Bleu as Chad Danforth
• Lucas Grabeel as Ryan Evans
• Monique Coleman as Taylor McKessie
• Olesya Rulin as Kelsi Nielsen
• Ryne Sanborn as Jason Cross
• Chris Warren, Jr. as Zeke Baylor
• Kaycee Stroh as Martha Cox
• Matt Prokop as Jimmie "The Rocket/Rocketman" Zara
• Jemma McKenzie-Brown as Tiara Gold
• Justin Martin as Donny Dion
• Alyson Reed as Ms. Darbus
• Bart Johnson as Coach Jack Bolton
• Leslie Wing Pomeroy as Lucille Bolton
• David Reivers as Mr. Danforth

Musical numbers

See also: High School Musical 3: Senior Year (soundtrack)

1. Now or Never - Cast
2. Right Here, Right Now - Troy and Gabriella
3. I Want It All - Sharpay and Ryan
4. Can I Have This Dance? - Troy and Gabriella
5. A Night to Remember - Cast
6. Just Wanna Be with You - Kelsi, Ryan, Troy, and Gabriella
7. The Boys Are Back - Troy and Chad
8. Walk Away - Gabriella
9. Scream - Troy
10. Can I Have This Dance? (Reprise) - Troy and Gabriella (not on soundtrack)
11. Last Chance (Ballad Version) - Kelsi and Ryan
12. Now or Never (Reprise) - Chad, Jason, Zeke, and Martha
13. I Want It All (Reprise) - Ryan
14. Just Wanna Be with You (Reprise) - Sharpay, Jimmie, Troy, and Gabriella
15. A Night to Remember (Reprise) - Tiara and Sharpay
16. We're All in This Together (Graduation Mix) - Cast
17. High School Musical - Cast
18. Just Getting Started - Stan Carrizosa (winner of Get in the Picture) (end credits)

Critical reception

As of October 24, 2008, High School Musical 3 has a fresh rating of 64% at Rotten Tomatoes and has received mixed reviews.

The Telegraph praises the changes brought about by the higher budget of a theatrical release: "High School Musical 3 uses its bigger budget to inject colour, scale, and visual depth. The opening basketball game alone is dizzying as the camera swoops high and wide, before a winning point makes the crowd erupt.".

Stephen Farber, for Reuters UK, says the movie "will please fan base but won't win converts", as the story "never really does kick in" and that "the picture quickly grows tedious", while MSNBC's Alonso Duralde describes it as "a stitched-together Frankenstein monster of an entertainment, featuring major components that were already trotted out the first two times." Peter Johnson describes the movie as so bland that it "makes cellophane taste like chicken jalfrezi", and says that "the sheer squeaky-cleanness of everything is creepy, and when the characters are called upon to dance, they do so with robotic efficiency, and sing in that decaffeinated high vibrato, like 21st-century Hollywood castrati."

Entertainment Weekly is positive towards the movie, praising the stars' energy: "the beauty of Efron's performance is that he's a vibrant athletic hoofer who leaps and clowns with the heartthrob vigor of a young Gene Kelly, yet he's also achingly sincere. His fast-break alertness makes him the most empathetic of teen idols; he's like a David Cassidy who knows how to act, and who can swoon without getting too moist about it. Apart from Efron, the breakout star is Ashley Tisdale, whose Sharpay makes narcissism a goofy, bedazzled pleasure."

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram stated that the latest installment was "critic-proof" and "everything fans could hope for and more." They go on to say that "the kids finally look like true performers rather than Disney Channel mainstays desperately trying to remain relevant, and they deserve the lucrative careers that lie ahead" and gave the film a rating of four out of five stars. Film critic Jonathan Ross, speaking on BBC Film 2008, gave the film a highly positive review, praising both the film's musical and theatrical production.

Production

According to the Salt Lake City Tribune, "...to help lure the production back to where it all began - at Salt Lake City's East High School - the GOED board Friday approved a maximum $2 million incentive for the production, the largest ever given to entice a filmmaker to Utah."

Filming began on May 3, 2008. The 41 days scheduled for shooting was a longer period than for the first two films.

Stan Carrizosa, the winner of ABC's summer reality show, High School Musical: Get in the Picture appears in a music video that is shown over the end credits of the theatrical release of the film.

Development

Zac Efron was quoted in People Magazine as saying, "I can tell you that if the script is good and if we all agree on a final script, then there's nothing that is going to hold us back from doing it. We have fun making these movies and that's very rare in this business." Rumors persisted of ongoing salary disputes between Disney and the lead performers, particularly Efron. According to Rachel Abramowitz, as reported online by the Chicago Tribune, "an eclectic cross-section of Hollywood insiders think Efron should get a cool $5 million for High School Musical 3, the theatrical version of the franchise, which Disney hoped to make before the Writers Guild strike and Screen Actors Guild strike shut down Hollywood for several months. Efron declined to comment for the article, and although contract negotiations still are ongoing, sources say Efron is being offered a salary closer to $3 million, not $5 million, for the follow-up, which focuses on senior year at East High. Whatever the price, he's still perceived as a steal."

Ortega stated that pre-production would most likely start in January 2008. Filming began May 3, 2008, at East High School in Salt Lake City, Utah. He stated that the script had been submitted before the Writers strike started and that they were developing music. He added that filming will happen in Salt Lake City, Utah (as the first two films), hinted that the plot will be something of the nature of the Wildcat's final year in High School and stated "it looks like we've rounded up the cast."

Before filming began, the HSM3 board and cast held a press conference at East High School announcing the start of filming. The movie will be released in theaters (in the United States) on October 24 of that year, though several countries like Great Britain will get to see the movie at least one week earlier. The film has a $13.3 million dollar budget and a 40-day shooting period. This film is said to be the final installment with the current cast.

Vanessa Hudgens photo controversy

Despite early speculation that Vanessa Hudgens would be dropped from High School Musical 3 due to her nude photo scandal, The Walt Disney Company denied the reports, saying, "Vanessa has apologized for what was obviously a lapse in judgment. We hope she's learned a valuable lesson."

Although it was reported by OK! Magazine that Vanessa would be replaced by Adrienne Bailon or Sabrina Bryan from the Cheetah Girls in High School Musical 3, Access Hollywood confirmed that the cast was still in negotiations and Vanessa would not be cut from High School Musical 3. Vanessa's representative quoted, "Totally untrue. It is an old rumor," the representative told Access, "OK! Magazine never bothered to check the fact with me, but they did call Disney who said it wasn't true, but yet OK! ran it anyway. Apparently, OK! Magazine was having a slow news day."

External links

• Official site
• High School Musical 3: Senior Year at IMDb
• Template:Amg title
• High School Musical 3: Senior Year at Box Office Mojo