"Sky High"

I just went to see the new Disney movie "Sky High." I went by myself; the theater, though a little nasty, wasn't crowded. Before the movie they played the "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire" and "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" previews. Even though I've seen the latter preview before, this time I actually started to cry a little. I can't wait for the Narnia movie to be released! The made-for-television Narnia movies that were made about fifteen years ago were good, but they definitely aren't on the same level as this new movie.

Anyway, "Sky High" was pretty good. It was a cute story about kids with super powers that go to a special high school that floats in the sky. Ever since "Spiderman" and "The Incredibles," it seems a lot of movies have been made about superheroes. I guess "Sky High" stands out because it's funny and has the high-school/puberty angle (lots of "will you go to the big dance with me" stuff). My favorite character in the movie was Warren Peace (Steven Strait), a loner/bad boy who throws fire. He reminded me a little of the character Lex from the television show "The Tribe" (see www.tribeworld.com). Strangely enough, on the Internet Movie Database it said that Steven Strait was the leader of a band called Tribe. The only thing about that character that confused me was his name. Yes, it's a cute joke (War-and-peace) but when they showed an old year book photo of his father (a villain), it said his last name was "Battle." Maybe he changed his last name to "Peace" to distance himself from his father.

Also in "Sky High" were Dave Foley and Kevin McDonald (from "Kids in the Hall"). Dave played a teacher for sidekicks ("hero support"), who was formerly the sidekick of "The Commander" (Kurt Russell's character). Kevin was the "mad science" teacher and wore a huge prosthetic cranium. It's always great to watch these guys.