Hannah Montana: The Movie

Plot

Miley Stewart and her best friend Lilly Truscott dash through a concert venue's back entrance just in time for Miley to switch into her pop star persona, Hannah Montana. After wrapping a music video for "The Best of Both Worlds," the disguised Miley runs into Oswald Granger, a shady tabloid reporter. Her publicist Vita manages to shoo him away, but not before he secretly records her hinting at a "secret," which he then reports to his editor Lucinda, vowing to expose it.

While shopping as Hannah, Miley gets into a public spat with Tyra Banks over a pair of shoes meant for Lilly's birthday, causing her to arrive late to Lilly's Sweet Sixteen party at the pier. Oswald records the shoe fight and tails her to the party, forcing Miley to stay in character as Hannah to protect her identity. Hannah's appearance steals the spotlight, and her performance of "Let's Get Crazy" leaves everyone distracted. Feeling ignored, Lilly leaves the party upset and is stopped by Oswald, who tricks her into revealing that Hannah comes from Crowley Corners, Tennessee.

Robby Stewart, already frustrated with Miley for putting her celebrity life ahead of family and friends, becomes furious when the shoe fight makes headlines. He pretends to let Vita book a private jet for Miley to attend an awards show as Hannah, but instead flies her to Crowley Corners for a two-week stay to celebrate her grandmother Ruby's birthday. Miley is desperate to get back to being Hannah, but Ruby scolds her for ignoring her family. Overcome with guilt, Miley wishes she could quit being Hannah Montana forever and sadly gazes at a photo of her late mother, longing for her presence.

Slowly, Miley reconnects with small-town life, her grandmother, and her childhood friend Travis Brody, while Robby starts getting close to a local woman named Lorelai. When Oswald shows up in town, Miley has to throw him off by pretending she simply knows Hannah.

The community organizes a barn party fundraiser to stop developer Mr. Bradley from turning local land into a shopping mall. Taylor Swift appears and performs "Crazier," Robby sings "Back to Tennessee," and Miley performs "Hoedown Throwdown" as herself, thrilling the crowd. When Mr. Bradley insists they won't raise enough money, Travis suggests Miley ask Hannah to put on a concert.

Production

The idea for a Hannah Montana movie was first mentioned by Billy Ray Cyrus and Miley Cyrus at the premiere of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. They confirmed plans for a feature film from Walt Disney Pictures, not a TV movie, based on the Disney Channel series that started on March 24, 2006. With the script still being written, Miley Cyrus shared her early thoughts, saying the best idea she had involved a return to her hometown of Nashville, Tennessee.

She had been spending up to eight and a half hours each day on set at Tribune Studios in Hollywood, far from the home she missed. Billy Ray Cyrus added that the movie would keep the realism of the show and Miley’s music, but push the comedy further and make everything look bigger for the big screen. The production budget was estimated at $30 million.

On an April 2 episode of The Miley & Mandy Show on YouTube, Miley told Ryan Seacrest she would fly to Tennessee in two weeks and stay for several months. She mentioned many guest stars, horseback riding, and attending school. Filming started in April 2008 in Los Angeles, California, and Columbia, Tennessee. Production began in May 2008, with post-production following in July 2008.

Filming

The opening scenes were shot in Los Angeles, including The Forum and Santa Monica State Beach. Several scenes were filmed in Nashville, Tennessee—the hometown of Miley and her father—for the part where Miley Stewart or Hannah Montana goes back home. Fairground scenes were shot near the end of the movie. A carnival sequence was filmed at Smiley Hollow in Ridgetop, Tennessee.

In it, Peter Gunn’s character searches for the real Hannah in a crowd. He spots Jackson selling Hannah wigs, and everyone around him looks like Hannah from behind, so he turns them around one by one, trying to find the actual person.

Marketing and release

The MPAA gave Hannah Montana: The Movie a G-rating, meaning it was suitable for all ages. Its first premiere took place in Los Angeles on April 2, 2009, followed by a UK premiere in London on April 23, 2009, before it opened in British and Irish cinemas on May 1, 2009. Play Along Toys produced dolls and other merchandise tied to the film. The movie later made its television debut on the Disney Channel on Friday, November 19, 2010, attracting 4.6 million viewers.

The official trailer and poster were released online on January 15, 2009, following a sneak peek that aired on Disney Channel in December 2008, including on New Year’s Eve. On February 16, 2009, an exclusive preview aired on Disney Channel alongside the music videos for “The Climb” and “Hoedown Throwdown,” both from the film’s soundtrack, which Miley Cyrus previewed. Cyrus promoted the movie and performed its lead single, “The Climb,” on talk shows such as The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Good Morning America, The Tyra Banks Show, and Rachael Ray.

She also sang the song on American Idol on April 16, 2009. A video game based on the film, rated by the ESRB, was released for seventh-generation consoles on April 7, 2009, three days before the movie’s theatrical release. Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment issued the film on DVD and Blu-ray on August 18, 2009, in the United States. In the UK, the DVD and Blu-ray arrived on September 7, 2009, while Australia saw releases on DVD, Blu-ray, and Disney Digital on October 21, 2009.

Home media

First-week DVD sales were strong, with 1,232,725 copies sold, generating over $20 million in revenue. Total DVD sales have reached 3,610,964 copies, bringing in $61 million. Bonus features included behind-the-scenes footage, bloopers, and sneak peeks. Three editions were available: a single-disc DVD, a two-disc DVD that included a digital copy, and a three-disc Blu-ray set containing the Blu-ray disc, a standard DVD, and a digital copy.

Reception

The film pulled in $17,436,095 on its first day and $32,324,487 over its opening weekend, averaging $10,367 per screen across 3,118 theaters to claim the number one spot. But in its second weekend, it dropped 58% in earnings, landing at number three with $13,406,217 and a $4,300 average, even after adding 113 theaters. Its final domestic total was $79,576,189, with $75,969,090 from overseas, for a worldwide haul of $155,545,279.

Critics were lukewarm. On Rotten Tomatoes, 44% of 129 reviews were positive, with an average rating of 5.2 out of 10. The site’s consensus called it “little more than a formulaic Disney Channel episode stretched thin,” though it noted that “youthful Miley fans won’t complain.” Metacritic gave it a score of 47 out of 100 from 25 critics, meaning “mixed or average” reviews. Audiences, however, loved it: CinemaScore reported an average grade of “A.”

Entertainment Weekly pointed out that the movie’s surface lesson is that celebrity life looks easy but is hard, while the real takeaway is that if even Miley has to work overtime to be Hannah, then any girl in the audience can become the star she wants to be. Peter Hartlaub of the San Francisco Chronicle called it “not an abomination,” noting the wholesome characters, easy-to-follow plot, and songs that all sound the same so only one gets stuck in your head at a time. But he warned that adults giving their blessing for kids to see it should plot to stay far away from the theater, adding that if you’re past the age of carrying a Hannah Montana lunch box, the movie will feel like punishment.