When the transformation occurs, Efron stays with his childhood friend, who is now an adult. The friend is played by Thomas Lennon, who is Lt. Jim Dangle on "Reno 911!". Lennon ads some great comic relief with his nerdy obsessions with such things as Star Wars and Lord of the Rings. Efron has to help his son overcome being shy, his daughter escape a horrible boyfriend and somehow earn back his wife's love.
The children in the movie are just interesting enough for you to care what happens to them. And Mann plays the neglected wife to the point where we care about her, but we don't think she's playing the victim. She knows her self-worth and is leaving her husband because that's what's best for her. When she decides to date other people, Efron is at her house before she leaves. It is pretty funny how he gets jealous of her date.
I guess what makes this movie so good, and so different, is that it doesn't follow your standard 'transformation' movie. There are movies where people switch bodies, i.e. Freaky Friday. But this movie is closest to Big, only in reverse. In Big, Tom Hanks' teenage mind is stuck in an adult body. In 17 Again, Perry's adult mind is stuck in Efron's teenage body.
Is it the best 'transformation' movie ever? No, I think that goes to Big. Is it the best Perry, Efron or Mann film to date? Probably not. But it was entertaining and it was a very pleasant surprise. I didn't expect anything and got a whole lot. I think you should all head down to your local video store and check it out. By the way, did we just create an entire new genre of film? 'Transformation' movies... Matt, we should trademark that!
