MOVIE REVIEW - Charlie St. Cloud

Zac Efron is back on the big screen starring as Charlie St. Cloud, new this week.

I have always thought that many times you have to review movies for what they are and who they are for. This movie deserves that, because it knows that. If nothing else, this movie does one thing very well. It knows what it is.

CSC is name of a young man who is beset by the death of his 11 year old brother, Sam. They are very close, and Sam is killed by a drunk driver. Charlie was driving that night they were struck down, and although he is not at fault he carries a tremendous amount of guilt with him for the next five years. He cannot go on with his own life because he will not let go of Sam's memory. He forgoes college and becomes the caretaker for his bothers graveyard. He is a recluse.

Charlie then meets Tess, (Amanda Crew). And he starts to wake up, and starts to put all the pieces together of his broken life. But who is she? And is she the answer to Charlies troubles? That in a nutshell is Charlie St. Cloud.

First off, in a movie making sense, this movie makes almost no sense. The story is weak, and a told in some kind of supernatural realm, and in the end doesn't make any real sense. There are holes in the story, and at times this is draggy and repetitive. And in the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter one little bit.

This movie is shooting squarely at teens and very young adults. And you gotta like a movie that knows it audience and caters right to it. This is a story where Zac Efron is falling in love with a beautiful young woman under very emotional circumstances and how many teens and young adults are gonna eat that up? My guess is a lot. This movie is squeaky clean too, with virtually no objectionable material in it, and that's nice for young fans as well. This movie may shoot too low for 35 year olds, but not all movies are made for all people. Truth is, this is sort of like Twilight, without the vampires werewoves, violence and the obsessive teen behavior.

I'll be square, this is not my favorite movie by any means, and the first weekend out was disappointing at the box office. But I respect a movie that knows its base, and isn't concerned with pleasing all the people all the time. And that's what Charlie St. Cloud does best. It gives young fans a chance to feel a little more grown up at the movies without being animated. And I'm good with that.

Charlie St. Cloud. It's not perfect, but it's also not made for me. For it's fans? Right on the dot!