Such a frustrating disappointment

Overrated and overhyped

Boring

Absolutely brilliant

Take this movie for what it is. It's just plain cute. And as usual the sidekick (Ned) makes the movie. Watching him is enough to be amused and entertained.

Considering the fact that the premise of this film (old/young body/soul swapping) has pretty much been done to death in varying decades, "17 Again" is surprisingly effective at rendering the concept funny once again in 2009.For a basic plot summary, this film sees an adult Mike O'Donnell (Matthew Perry) dissatisfied with his life and pining for the promise of his high school career once again. Well, thanks to a magical school janitor (one should always watch out for those characters!), he is put back into the body of his former teen self (Zac Efron) for a "do-over". The "catch", however, is that he is still in the present day (2009), not 1989.The plot of this movie alone lends itself to all sorts of personal and social sight gags, and this movie mines them to their fullest. Seeing Mike trying to weave his way through current high school hallways and scenarios is made entertaining by director Burr Steers. It never gets boring, but also never goes "over the top", either.What really makes "17 Again" a fun watch, however, is the quality of the acting. Though Perry is okay in his relatively brief role, Efron is solid as "young Mike" trying to find his place in today's world. So many viewers can't stand Efron because they view him as a "pretty boy", but in this effort he shows he can act a bit, too. Youngsters Sterling Knight & Michelle Trachtenberg shine in their roles as well. Yet, Thomas Lennon (of Reno 911 fame) nearly steals the show as the goofy nerd sidekick, providing some of the funniest moments of the entire experience.Overall, "17 Again" is a charming little film that can be enjoyed by tweens on up. A few of the jokes and physical humor is a bit "risque", but for the most part it is relatively tame (at least compared to other comedies of the same nature).

I bought this at a charity sale where dvds were 50p each or 3 for £1. This was the 3rd, so it was essentially free and I thought it might be fun to take to a wine-and-takeaway night. This isn't a great film, and it's not a film that will stand the test of time, but it was notably hard to mock, and if 3 drunk 20- somethings can't find much to laugh at in a film like this then the good must outweigh the bad. I feel like this would be a standard film that I would never even have noticed if it wasn't for the inclusion of Efron in the post-HSM phase. I bet most HSM fans didn't even enjoy it, because it definitely seems like it wasn't aimed at them. If it wasn't for the creepy Disney movies (HSM, camp rock, they are all hilarious for all the wrong reasons) I would never have looked down on this film. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I shouldn't have. It's not a standard romcom because it managed to find a new twist on the genre, which should be lauded. And it's not just a vehicle for Efron, which is a bonus. Maybe 7/10 is too high, maybe it's just a reaction to the fact I expected it to be truly godawful. But most dvds get watched once and then returned to the exact same stall that I got them from, and this one didn't.

Don't expect for these types of movies to get 10/10 and have an ultimate story-line to it. However, it's great movie to watch when you have family parties or a hangout with friends. It will give you a good laugh and is entertaining.It's not a bad movie and will keep the audience interested. Go grab some food, come back, and watch it. It's interesting enough to know what's happening and to see it until the end.Also a great movie for almost all ages. I recommend those who are ages 13+ to watch it, not only because it's rated PG-13, but because I think that that age group will be able to understand it and get a good laugh out of it.