Stuck between life with the living and the dead, Charlie St. Cloud (Zac Efron) deals with the horrific death of his younger brother, Sam (Charlie Tahan), while simultaneously falling for local sailing legend, Tess (Amanda Crew). As Charlie and Tess grow closer, Sam, who appears to Charlie only as if he never died, becomes more and more distant, and Charlie needs to decide if he should continue on with the living, or hang back with the dead.

Zac Efron, who gained fame in High School Musical and Hairspray, has been trying to step back from musicals and step into more grown-up roles, and Charlie St. Cloud seems like the perfect fit for the 22-year-old actor. The film not only deals with the budding romance between Charlie and Tess, but also with how Charlie overcomes the grief of knowing he was driving the car when his brother died. Efron’s performance seems very genuine and he proves his ability to suavely step into a more mature role. Efron will possibly shake his past of tween movies and continue acting in more age appropriate roles, proving to Hollywood that he is not just a pretty boy with a good voice and hot dance moves.

Beyond Efron’s seemingly outstanding performance as Charlie St. Cloud, the film itself deals with some heavy issues, but seems to handle itself well. The drama doesn’t seem too over-the-top, and the romantic parts don’t seem too cheesy. Even the ghost brother – if he is a ghost, maybe he’s just a vision – doesn’t prove to be too much, as far as the trailers show. It actually might be quite brilliant to have the brother still be so important in Charlie’s life and may give an example of how some individuals deal with death.

Whether you are going to see Charlie St. Cloud to witness Zac Efron sailing a boat with no shirt on, to see him succeed – or fail – in his first “grown-up” role, or to see a peek at a postmortem brotherly relationship, it won’t matter because no matter what, this film will be sad. I say, bring a best girlfriend, grab a box of tissues, buy as much popcorn and candy as possible, and sit back for a bumpy, well-worth it, ride.