Prom Pact

Prom Pact is supposed to be a little cliché, by design. It's a movie that is doing a tribute to (and a send up of) all those classic movies of the 1980s (with a few hints of films from the 1990s in the mix as well).

Peyton Elizabeth Lee is Mandy, the focused high school brainiac who never really had a social life because she's too busy saving the planet and fighting the patriarchy to bother. Oh, and she's absolutely intent on getting into Harvard so she can continue her crusades.

Margaret Cho, as Ms. Chen, Mandy's guidance counselor, tries to loosen Mandy up, to little success, but is her typical hilarious self every time she appears.

Mandy's bestie, Ben, played by Milo Manheim, is also just as socially awkward as she is (okay, he's much more awkward), except when they're together. They spend their off time in school clowning the popular people, which include captain of the basketball team, Graham (Blake Draper) and head cheerleader LaToya (Monique A. Green).

When Mandy gets waitlisted for Harvard, she tries to discover a way to get an edge. That's when she learns that Graham's dad, a prominent politician, was a Crimson grad and maybe could write her a letter of recommendation?

Then it becomes a scramble for Mandy to get in good with the guy she mocked so his father could make her dream come true, and for Ben to try to be near LaToya, who he had been crushing on since junior high.

The most fun here is in all of the references to classic 80s pop culture, as most every "promposal" features a moment taken from one of those films as a part. The parents will get a kick out of that. And the soundtrack of featured music is a playlist of hits of the era from start to finish!

But the "pact" part of Prom Pact was Mandy and Ben's agreement to go to prom together, as sort of a joke, but as kind of protection for each other since neither one of them fit into the whole "High School Popularity" concept. However, what happens when other things happen and maybe they each discover things they never knew about themselves and about the people around them?

This is a knowing film that references the 1980s in a way to make it feel current and charming and it all is retrofitted brilliantly into the 2020s. Director Anya Adams deserves full credit for balancing these two disparate decades so deftly, it doesn't feel contrived.

Definitely cute, relatable and with a high LOL factor, Prom Pact is totally tubular and pure guava. (That means it's very worth watching!)

Mandy Yang (Peyton Elizabeth Lee) is the school misanthrope. She is desperate to get into Harvard. Both her and her best friend Ben Plunkett (Milo Manheim) are class outsiders. Graham Lansing (Blake Draper) is the popular senior. Ms. Chen (Margaret Cho) is the school councilor. After getting waitlisted by Harvard, Mandy needs to befriend Graham and get help from his Senator father.

Peyton Elizabeth Lee and Milo Manheim are naturally endearing performers. It's too bad that Mandy is so snarky. I get the idea of character growth, but it's an off-putting start. The more interesting premise is that Graham is not an idiot. I would play with that even more although the plot device is that she's tutoring him. It needs to sort out his character, but there is potential there. It tries to reference a lot of 80's teen movies, but this movie doesn't have their essence. It seems to be trying to overturn a couple of those 80's tropes and I am interested in seeing what this movie is trying to do. This is a borderline case. I would like to like this more for the actors, but there are cringe issues.

This movie has definitely made it onto my list of the top 50 films I want to watch with my son during his teenage years. The way Mendy and Graham's friendship develops in the film, along with the challenges everyone faces, really resonated with me. I strongly believe that even if you're not the most popular person in class, you should still have your own circle of friends. Ben's character in the movie is truly heartwarming. He's there for Mendy when she's down and continues to support her even when he knows she has feelings for Graham. But what I really want to share with my son is that even with true friends, you can accidentally hurt your real best friend by getting distracted, just like Mendy unintentionally neglects Ben. However, if we can all take a moment to reflect on our actions, I hope my son can be as brave as Mendy. Brave enough to take practical steps to mend the trust and commitments between friends. Wow, this is really a must-watch for every student before graduation.

The closest thing I've seen to a John Hughes movie, without it being a John Hughes movie. I was hoping for more of a Pretty in Pink ending, so I can only do a 9/10. It just made me too nostalgic for an actual John Hughes film. Overall it's a cute movie about friendship and covers the stereotypes of classic high school cliche movies. It just was missing something or needed a bit more. I can't put my finger on it. It needed a big moment or elaborate gesture or something. I also am unsure of how well our main protagonist actually follows her own beliefs about single use plastics and being a vegan, etc. You can be a feminist without being all those things, but if you are going to have a character like that it should be consistent. While watching it I almost forgot it was a Disney movie, but maybe it could have been better if it wasn't so family friendly. Just some thoughts. Give it a chance for sure!

And by children I mean anyone younger than 12 simply based off of one scene where the young cashier talks about the mc's best friend hooking up with girls. "I mean have you ever put your P in a V" and I know I sound like THAT mom but it was unnecessary and the only added benefit was that I now won't let young ears watch the movie. Not everything has to be sexualized.

Other than that, it's a cute movie. Sure the mc is a bit of a pick-me girl with her "that's not feminist or environmentally friendly" attitude but she's a fairly good actress and the storyline is cute, even if a little predictable. But that's what I want in a Disney original movie.

Predictability and a lack of vulgarity.