Hannah Montana The Movie

There wasn't much chance of avoiding Hannah Montana: The Movie, not with two (well, three) girls under age eight.

If you don't know the premise of the show, kindly go back in your time machine and return to 1997. Miley Cyrus stars as Miley Stewart, an everyday teen who just happens to don a wig and perform, unbeknownst to anyone but her best friend and family, as the world's biggest pop star, Hannah Montana.

In the movie version Miley has gotten a big head, preferring her Hannah persona to her 'real' self. She's certainly not looking forward to a visit to her family in Tennessee, but when she gets there things start to change. Her father (played by real life Dad Billy Ray Cyrus) falls in love, she develops a crush on a farmhand, and she begins to see the value in a 'normal' life.

Will she continue as Hannah, or are the days of "the best of both worlds" coming to a close?

I like the movie. Oh, I wouldn't have taken a date to see it, thank you very much. But for what it is, it's pretty decent. There's adequate emotional turmoil, beautiful scenery, some zany action, and a few good songs.

[The song that she sings in the finale, The Climb, is occasionally played on the radio, and my girls sing along at full volume]

The ending is absolute HOKUM, but whadaya want? I also missed the subplots and running gags involving Hannah's brother and Rico, the stingy child entrepreneur. Both appeared in the film, but only briefly.

I'm going to grade this for what it is, a pleasant family film aimed at girls ages 5-10.

3.0 out of 4