Usually, when I write about a movie that’s pretty old, I go back and rewatch it before I share my thoughts with you all. There was no need to do that with this movie. Not to be confused with the Zac Efron movie “17 Again,” the Black “Seventeen Again” (as I will call it) is a story about the Donovan family and their move from big time California to a sleepy little town (as Sydney calls it) in Connecticut. Sydney and Willie’s mom died a while ago and Sydney, specifically, is getting used to her new stepmom who really is trying to step into that mom role without overstepping. Sydney does not approve. To make matters worse, their grandparents, Grandma Cat and Grandpa Gene, are coming for a visit and they hate each other, and have for so long. As the grandparents descend on them, Monique’s sister goes into labor, so guess who has to babysit Sydney and Willie (mainly Willie)? You guessed it! The grandparents who hate each other.
Now, if you’ve never seen this movie, it would seem like this would be a snooze, but I forgot to mention a crucial point in this tale. Did I mention that Willie is a scientist and a brilliant one at that? Although he’s only like 12, he has video conferences with esteemed scientists from around the world. His seemingly failed experiment in the garage at the top of the film sets off everything else that happens for the duration of this movie….well, most of it. You see, Willie was working on an anti-aging formula in the garage at the start of this film that, like I said, seemingly goes awry. Little does he know, it works….but just on the wrong test subjects.
I believe this is the first time since “Sister, Sister” that 3 of the 4 Mowry family members (they have another brother named Tavior who is mainly a sports guy if I’m not mistaken) have been on-screen together. What we all remember from this film is Grandpa Gene played by Mark Taylor. Taylor is fine. For reference:
I adore this film for a couple reasons including the one above. Another reason I love this film is the chemistry between Tia, Tamera, and Tahj. Of course, they are siblings and professional actors so you’d expect that, but as you watch the film, you really believe that Tamera is their grandma, Tia is angsty, and Tahj is a really smart but typical 12-year-old. Seeing them play off of each other on-screen is magical and you cannot pay for that.
I don’t know how to say this in a way that doesn’t sound weird so here goes. Tamera and Mark play great old people. Sound odd, I know, but they stayed in that old person persona very well. Their performances added to my belief that the Gene and Cat I saw in the beginning of the film, as the elders, were the exact same people even though they were young. I think it was the way they spoke that nailed it for me. It wasn’t like someone was impersonating their grandparents and that was key. As I get older, I find myself sounding like my grandma more and more often and it’s because of how much time I spent around her. It’s just part of me now. That’s how it felt to watch Mark and Tamera as Gene and Cat.
Now, this grudge about a job in Australia still irritates me because, Cat, you could have gone with that man. He wanted you to go but you were scared of adventure, is what I gathered. And yes, y’all, the hatred for each other is because Gene got an offer in Australia years ago and Cat didn’t want him to go. Because he went without her, she figured that new things, including that job in Australia, were more important than the love he had for her. Spoiler alert, that was not true.
I want to veer off and talk about the one thing that ground my gears. I get all the time that I look like my grandma, and I always respond that it depends on who I’m standing next to at the time. I can look like my dad or mom or grandma at any time. In this case, people tell Sydney that she looks like her grandma when she was younger…..fast forward in the film and they have her twin playing her younger grandma. This bothered me. Would I change it? No, no I would not because I love the movie as it is, but c’mon now. She wouldn’t be her identical twin. Now, does this allow her them to switch places in a situation that didn’t really need it, but I understood why it happened? Yes. Was the confusion that them being identical twins cause necessary? No, no it was not.
Going back to gushing about this film. You know my favorite scene in this movie? When they enter that club and start that dance sequence with Boys II Men as the house band!
This scene always makes me smile and remember that there are people still alive today who danced like this in the 20’s or 40’s. What’s even more important is when Gene and Cat have that intense conversation about Australia.
There are a lot of other things that happen in this movie that I skipped. Gene meets Leo and Terrance and tries to be young and hip again until Cat tells him that he’s still an old man. His youthful appearance is only temporary. Sydney befriends the weird girl in school named Julie, is bullied by the MPGIS (Most Popular Girl in School. Julie’s words, not mine, and develops a crush on the MPGIS’ brother. None of this is more compelling than the aforementioned relations between the family.
I can’t count how many times I’ve seen this movie, but I can tell you that when it comes on, I sit down and watch it until it ends. Have you seen this classic? When was the first time you save Tia, Tamera, and Tahj?
