Film

High School Musical 3’s well-worn mise en abyme is that, like its predecessors, it’s a musical about putting on a musical. If that weren’t self-referential (or lazy) enough, the show within the show is called Senior Year. Teen lovebirds Troy (Efron) and Gabriella (Hudgens) dance-off against their familiar rivals, sibling duo Sharpay (Tisdale) and Ryan (Grabeel). But, despite the passage of time (and a sequel), Troy is still pondering his future: Should he choose his dad’s alma mater and a basketball scholarship, or the stage? Get thee behind me, Juilliard.

You hardly watch a Disney musical expecting Lars von Trier, but still, this is conservative stuff. Troy and Gabriella continue their G-rated romance, and Ryan’s modus operandi seems to be “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Songs about the pressures of conformity ring hollow; the very universe is in cahoots with these privileged teens as, at the drop of a show tune, daylight turns to night and suspiciously twinkly stars appear in the CGI firmament. On the plus side, if you haven’t seen the first or second movie (HSM3 is the only one to play in theaters; the others aired on the Disney Channel), no need to catch up: There’s nothing in this flick that requires further exposition.