Posted: 08/09/2009

Hannah Montana: The Movie

(2009)

by Laura Tucker

Knowing a brief overview of Hannah Montana: The Movie, I was hoping the character of Miley Stewart would come away with some lessons on what is really important in life. I knew that after leading a double life for so long as both Miley and Hannah, and traveling back to her home in Tennessee, she was supposed to be questioning the life she’s been leading back in California. As a parent, I was left a little empty after watching Hannha’s concert movie, as well as that of the Jonas Bros., so I was hoping this wouldn’t leave me the same.

Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus) is finding that her alter ego Hannah Montana is beginning to take over. She spends less time as Miley, and Hannah’s stardom is even beginning to take over her personality, making her feel a little privileged. It’s the final straw as she goes to best friend Lily’s (Emily Osment) 16th birthday party, but is followed by a reporter who’s trying to find out what Hannah’s secret is, leaving her no choice but to attend the party as Hannah, stealing the birthday girl’s thunder.

Robby (Billy Ray Cyrus), Miley’s dad, sees what’s happening with his daughter and wants her to spend a little time back home in Crowley Corners, Tennessee, attending her grandmother’s birthday celebration, to remind her where she’s from. She insists on attending the World Music Awards In New Yor, but Robby redirects the private flight to Tennessee where . She meets up with a childhood friend, Travis (Lucas Till), and they begin falling for each other.

Despite the fact that Miley is back home to get away from Hannah and the pop star life, she can’t leave the music, singing at a amateur’s night of sort as Miley. In addition, the reporter has somehow followed her to Tenneesse and is hot on the trail of what Hannah’s secret might be. The cliched movie plot of the small town getting trouble with developers happens, and she gets trapped into bringing her “friend” Hannah Montana there for a fundraiser, and it’s then that the trouble starts, once her double life has now followed her to Tennessee as well. In the end, I found what I was looking for, a little more substance, and not just fluff, although we have to acknowledge that it is Disney after all.

Along with the usual stars of the Hannah Montana show, we have Vanessa Williams who works for Hannah, and there are also some interesting cameos including Tyra Banks, Taylor Swift, and Rascal Flatts, all of them performing to their stereotyped roles. They don’t add a whole lot, but they make it interesting nonetheless. And along with the usual deleted scenes and outtakes, there is also a music video, a tour of Nashville, a tour of L.A., backstage with Jason Earle as he explainst the process of making a movie.

Hannah Montana: The Movie is out on DVD on August 18.

Laura Tucker Laura Tucker is the webmaster of Reality Shack, and its accompanying Reality Shack Blog, and is a freelance writer providing reviews of movies and television, among other things, at Viewpoints. She is also an Associate Instructor and 2nd dan black belt in tae kwon do with South Elgin Martial Arts. Laura can be reached at LauraBelle@realityshack.com

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