Story

Talented basketballer and high school musical star, Troy (Zac Efron), gets summer jobs at the local country club for himself, his girlfriend Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) and their East High School friends. The plan is to save up for college and enjoy the summer together.

But there’s a major problem. Sharpay’s (Ashley Tisdale) parents own the country club, and Sharpay herself has only one thing in mind: she wants handsome and talented Troy for herself. And Sharpay isn’t afraid to use tricks and bribery to get what she wants.

Will Troy lose track of his values and betray his friends and his true self?

Themes

Musical; comedy; teenage romance; coming of age; friendship; jealousy; teamwork; competition; staying true to oneself

Violence

There’s no violence in High School Musical 2.

Sexual references

There are no sexual references in High School Musical 2.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

There’s no use of substances in High School Musical 2.

Nudity and sexual activity

High School Musical 2 has some mild partial nudity and romantic activity. For example:

  • Some female characters wear low-cut clothes that show cleavage.
  • Troy is shown topless on several occasions.
  • Characters hold hands and hug.

Product placement

There’s no product placement in High School Musical 2.

Coarse language

There’s some mild coarse language in High School Musical 2, including ‘jerk’.

Also, Sharpay often rudely shouts and yells at people.

Ideas to discuss with your children

High School Musical 2 is the sequel to the popular High School Musical and features many members of the original cast. Like the first movie, this musical movie is aimed at a preteen audience with a love for music, dance and teenage romance.

Although High School Musical 2 has positive messages about friendship, some characters are very stereotypical. This includes Sharpay, who’s the cliché of the superficial, manipulative, spoilt, blonde rich girl. She wears pink outfits and has glittery accessories, a lap dog and an entourage of giggling, airheaded girlfriends.

These are the main messages from High School Musical 2:

  • Stay true to yourself.
  • Mean and manipulative behaviour doesn’t pay off in the long run.

Values in High School Musical 2 that you could reinforce with your children include:

  • being a loyal friend
  • standing up for yourself
  • keeping promises.

High School Musical 2 could also give you the chance to talk with your children about the real-life consequences of things like selfish and manipulative behaviour.

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Raising Children Network is supported by the Australian Government. Member organisations are the Parenting Research Centre and the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute with The Royal Children’s Hospital Centre for Community Child Health.

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