Susan Granger’s review of “Sky High” (Walt Disney Pictures)
If you thought Hogwarts was the only secret school for extraordinary kids, welcome to Sky High, where superheroes’ offspring face bullies, cliques and the inevitable pressure to fit in. Will Stronghold (Michael Angarano) is the son of red, white and blue-suited Commander Stronghold (Kurt Russell) and high-flying Josie Jetstream (Kelly Preston), a crimefighting duo who pose as suburban realtors as they work to uncover the “supervillain infiltration of the IRS.” As a gawky adolescent, Will is expected to display some superpowers of his own but, so far, none have appeared. So on the first day of school, when Coach Boomer (Bruce Campbell) conducts his demeaning power placement, Will doesn’t qualify for the “Hero” track; instead, he is shunted into the humiliating “Sidekick” division. “Maybe you’re a late bloomer,” consoles Nurse Spex (Cloris Leachman), who has X-ray vision. But Will and his misfit mates persevere, proving that they, too, have admirable abilities. Lesson learned: there is a “hero” in everyone. Screenwriters Paul Hernandez, Bob Schooley & Mark McCorkle and director Mike Mitchell cheerfully pilfer J.K. Rowling’s ideas, among others, to create a hybrid superhero/John Hughes coming-of-age, teen culture where the kids arrive at school in a flying bus. Producer Andrew Gunn aptly describes it as “‘The Breakfast Club’ with capes,” as Danielle Panabaker, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Dee-Jay Daniels, Nicholas Braun, Kelly Vitz and Steven Strait, as rebellious Warren Peace, take center stage. In a self-consciously clever cameo, Lynda Carter appears as the school principal, quipping, “I’m not Wonder Woman, y’know.” On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “Sky High” is an amusing, yet cheesy 6, geared primarily to a pubescent audience.
