Disney Channel Original Movies are well known for their solid takes on classic stories and for breaking the mold for teenage-specific tales. While movies like the High School Musical and Descendants are prime examples of popular DCOMs, some movies don’t receive enough credit.
StarStruck follows superstar Christopher Wilde (Sterling Knight) and Midwesterner Jessica Olson (Danielle Campbell) as they fall in love in Los Angeles while avoiding the paparazzi. It is a heartwarming movie with a grand soundtrack and some of the best jokes put to film that has been overlooked in favor of franchise-able DCOMs, though it does have some faults of its own.
Great: Hollywood
As a film that takes place almost exclusively in Los Angeles, it weirdly makes a point to show the city as much as possible with as little editing as possible. This makes the movie feel like a part of the culture it is portraying.
With wide angles and several scenes shot during rush hour on the walk of fame and the boardwalk, there is a lot of realism in the shots. Even all of the people are perfectly aligned with what you’ll see on an average day, so much so that they likely weren’t traditional extras, just accidental participants.
Fix: Time
While the movie does a great job of exploring Los Angeles, it does horribly when it comes to the length of time everything takes. During the montage sequence, Christopher and Jessica go from Malibu to Venice to the Walk of Fame to the Griffith Observatory, and then to the Hollywood sign.
After being chased by the paparazzi, they end up deep in a mountain off the beaten path and lose their car in a mud pit. Finally, after a pond swim break, they walk all the way back to the beach. All of this happens while the sun stays up. All of this would not be possible to do in one day.
Great: Addressing Teen Star Issues
It is weird to champion the Disney Channel for addressing the issue with child stars, but StarStruck does it well. Not only is Christopher a 17-year-old superstar, but he is shown several times to be struggling with what that means. His parents—aka managers—treat him like a product, and he is rightfully fearful of being hounded by paparazzi.
By the end of the movie, he comes into his own, canceling a movie deal and firing his parents because he just wants to be himself. It is a nice moment, and one that we wish would have happened in real life for a lot of celebrities.
Fix: Cars
Maybe this is a petty issue to take with the movie, but, since it makes a point about car laws during one scene, it is necessary to discuss. Throughout the movie, Christopher literally trades cars with people four times. He literally just swaps keys and takes the car.
The issue here is that, while he is a rich superstar, that isn’t something that can be done. Sara (Maggie Castle) at one point has the keys to one of his cars and drives it as if nothing happened. So many laws are broken in these few scenes that Christopher could have faced misdemeanor charges if caught.
Great: Relationships
Christopher and Jessica’s relationship is the basis of what makes up the movie, but it has several other relationships questioned and beloved. Throughout the movie, both Stubby (Brandon Mychal Smith) and Jessica call out Christopher for dating Alexis (Chelsea Kane) for clout.
On the other side of that spectrum, Jessica’s Grandmother is shown to be in a relationship that could have been used as a joke. Rather, it is a sweet look at two people who found each other later in life. It is just heartwarming.
Fix: Paparazzi
For a movie that seems to have a general understanding of life in Los Angeles and as a famous person, it seems to completely misunderstand how paparazzi work. Several times, the paparazzi are found in places that they just wouldn’t possibly be, like the final beach scene, for example.
Additionally, they seem to know information they shouldn’t without explanation. They know that there is a girl with Christopher, though that is never explained. They also know that he is driving Petunia, Jessica’s Grandmother’s car, but, again, there is no way they would have known that information aside from the advent of plot convenience.
Great: Chemistry
The on-screen chemistry between Sterling Knight and pretty much every other cast member is exceptional. Every scene he is in, he plays off the other people and ends up leading them. It is apparent when he is not leading that he is a driving force in the movie.
Danielle Campbell holds the same power over her scenes and does it at a younger age. Any scene the two share comes off as a witty and fun time while making audiences forget they're watching a movie.
Fix: Sara and Stubby
One of the most glaring issues of StarStruck, at least plotwise, is the side story of Stubby and Sara. There are several times that Sara and Stubby are thrown together, yet, outside of a brief mention, viewers are not privy to the events.
It seems that these scenes were not included to avoid the shipping of the characters, but the movie has time to spare on them and it doesn’t. Perhaps the only way to fix this problem would be a sequel focusing on the pair’s time during the first movie.
Great: The Soundtrack
The soundtrack to StarStruck is hands down in the top five Disney Channel Original Movie soundtracks. It has bubble pop, acoustic pop, techno-pop, rap, and even some ska and punk tracks. Every song has a purpose and fulfills it easily.
The acoustic “Hero,” “Something About The Sunshine,” “What You Mean To Me,” and “Got To Be Free” work both in the movie with their respective scenes, but also for various parts of daily life. This soundtrack is an absolute listen for anyone, even without seeing the movie.
Fix: The Beach Scene
If there is one whole section of the movie that needs to be reworked, it is the beach scene where Christopher and Jessica break things off to go about their lives. Not only does the scene fall flat, coming immediately after a heartfelt connecting moment, but it is also way too long.
The scene, which is supposed to be an emotional crux, has a moment where they break up and begin to part as the score dies down, then they get back into a conversation, two separate times, and then the music picks back up. It is entirely misdirected and breaks all the momentum leading up to the climax.