Charlie St. Cloud (Universal)
Rated PG-13 for language including some sexual references, an intense accident scene and some sensuality.
Starring Zac Efron, Kim Basinger, Ray Liotta, Amanda Crew, Chris Massoglia, Charlie Tahan.
Written by Craig Pearce and Lewis Colick, based on the novel by Ben Sherwood.
Directed by Burr Steers.
GRADE: C+
REVIEWMy daughter thinks Zac Efron is dreamy. So do a lot of other young women and girls, which is why I suppose he still gets plenty of work and why films like
Charlie St. Cloud get produced.
Efron plays the title character Charlie, who is involved in a fatal crash that claims the life of his younger brother Sam (Charlie Tahan). In the crash, Charlie also "dies" but is brought back to life by a paramedic (Ray Liotta). Prior to his brother's death, Charlie was destined to attend Stanford on a sailing scholarship, but the tragedy of his loss consumes him into a reclusive life as a graveyard caretaker in his Pacific northwest hometown.
Charlie's brush with death leaves him with the ability to "see dead people," including his little brother. Charlie makes a pact with Sam to meet him in the woods and throw a baseball with him at sunset everyday.
Five years after the fatal crash, a former high school classmate named Tess (Amanda Crew) sails into town, and the two begin a relationship based on their affinity for sailing. When Tess sails into a storm by herself, she suddenly appears at the graveyard the next morning and the relationship heats up. Soon, Charlie must decide whether to pursue Tess and a life with purpose, or continue visiting with his brother every evening, wallowing in despair.
Charlie St. Cloud is a movie that should appeal to some. There are a lot of elements we have seen so many times before, especially the premise of people having near-death experiences seeing lost souls and spirits. It's an overused cinematic vehicle, with predictable results, which nearly put me to sleep, since I figured out the ending about 45 minutes into the film.
Efron is serviceable as a leading man, if only for his looks, which appear as a model who stepped out of a sailing apparel catalog. Charlie Tahan turns in an adequate performance as the little brother trapped between spiritual dimensions. Kim Basinger's cameo role as the boys' mother seems wasted, even though she gets high billing.
I didn't love
Charlie St. Cloud the way some young women will. Still, some may find the existential narrative of
Charlie St. Cloud appealing, which is sweet in its premise, albeit a little too sappy for me.
