A fresh-faced zombie movie with an uplifting moral, Charlie St. Cloud purports to grapple with matters of life and death. But this ode to “moving on” from grief packs so little genuine emotion that it will touch only the most susceptible of viewers.
As the title character, Disney pinup Zac Efron doesn’t have enough substance to be a cloud; he’s more like a barely perceptible Pacific Northwest drizzle, although he’ll presumably become more noticeable to the film’s target audience each time he takes off his shirt.
Adapted from Ben Sherwood’s 2005 novel, the movie begins with the camera skimming excitedly across Puget Sound. Charlie, a heck of a sailboat racer even though he’s not part of the upscale local in crowd, is about to win another regatta. Along for the ride is his little brother, Sam (Charlie Tahan). The two are nearly inseparable since Dad abandoned them; Mom (a Kim Basinger cameo) is usually working double shifts.
Sam fears that Charlie will soon abandon him for college. Instead, the brothers are divided by a drunk driver, who knocks their car into the path of a truck. Both boys die, but a devoutly religious paramedic (Ray Liotta) manages to zap Charlie back to this mortal coil.
Charlie’s reaction to what the paramedic calls “a complete miracle”? “I can’t leave him,” he protests, reaching for his inert brother.