I’ve waited years for a movie to get prom right. Mean Girls came close with its ludicrous prom queen coronation sequence, but otherwise you rarely see prom depicted for what it is (at least to me): a disillusioning display of social status, pettiness and rented decorations. Teen cinema is so often invested in “popularity” as a legitimate high school force that proms are treated like magical and climactic events as opposed to well-chaperoned letdowns. But maybe Disney is on to something with its new movie Prom, a flick that looks a bit more Degrassi than de rigeur.
Prom, like Degrassi, at least understands that all upperclassmen aren’t created equal. “Prom, it’s like the Olympics of high school,” Lloyd (Nicolas Braun) says. “You wait four years, three people have a good time, and everybody else gets to live on with shattered dreams.” So that’s cute. But he’s still arguing that prom means everything to everyone, and that sounds like most regurgitated Hughesian cinema of the past 25 years. Disney, you’re being Disney right now.
The mirage grows as the trailer goes on. “Who we were for four years of high school… doesn’t matter,” a voiceover coos. Ugh. Honey, I swear prom is just an expensive occasion for nerds to learn what a boutonniere is. If you toilet-paper your drama club director’s house beforehand, I guarantee it’ll be more fun than prom.
Cliches aside, Prom’s cast seems unpretentious enough to tolerate for 90 minutes. We have a Christie Brinkley haircut, a rebel motorcyclist, and a fashion-obsessed junior in our midst. Fun. I just hope they’ve evolved slightly since we first met them in 1986.
Verdict: If escapist, wholly reiterative fun is what you’re after, Prom will court you.
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