The evolution of Zac Efron from teen heartthrob to adult actor continues with Charlie St. Cloud, a sweet little film about loss and grieving.
The movie tackles big issues with a combination of courage and Cheez Whiz, and the end result is bound to please Efron's many fans.
Based on the Ben Sherwood bestseller, The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud, the movie opens with exuberant sailing scenes that are all about the joy of being alive. Charlie (Efron) and his brother Sam (Charlie Tahan) have just won an important sailing race together, and it's quickly established that Charlie is both a big brother and a father figure to his younger sibling. The boys are being raised by a single mother (Kim Basinger), and all the family hopes seem pinned on Charlie, who will be going to university on a scholarship.
Then there's a family tragedy, and all of Charlie's plans are changed. His little brother dies in an accident. Charlie's ability to commune with the dead leads him to become the caretaker at the local cemetery; it's a dead-end job, no pun intended, but Charlie can't move on. He is overcome with grief, and this is how he copes. Every day at dusk he meets with his dead brother for a get-together only he can see -- and for something with the potential to go so wrong for so many reasons, these scenes are surprisingly harmless.
Time passes. Into Charlie's life comes Tess Carroll (Amanda Crew), his old sailing rival from high school. There's an obvious attraction between them, but not much Charlie can act on, seeing as he's tied to his daily ghost rituals. Still, as things develop, Charlie finds himself torn between the living and the dead.
The accident that killed Charlie's brother almost killed Charlie too, and once he's reminded that he got a second chance at life, Charlie figures out how to use it. The third act of the film goes into the eye-rolling zone, with all manner of drama and miracles on the water, but so much good will has been established prior that a viewer can almost sit still for the rest.
Charlie St. Cloud lets Zac Efron show how capable an actor he is in his post-High School Musical years, even as it introduces both scene-stealer Charlie Tahan and the underrated Amanda Crew to a wider audience. All three are very good. The movie ventures into Ghost and Truly Madly Deeply territory, involving spirits and perception and all, but manages a fairly light touch throughout. It seems mostly to be a showcase for Efron, and in that regard, it works perfectly. He may surprise you.
At the screening we attended, Efron's fans were out in full force and buzzing with excitement -- literally -- at the love scenes between their boy Zac and Crew; we mention this only because the noise is unexpected and bit confusing to the uninitiated. What's all the giggling and whispering about? It's about Zac Efron's massive fan base.
