Minneapolis Star Tribune

His latest film marks a rise, and a dip, on Zac Efron’s creative trajectory.

Moving beyond high school roles and away from song-and-dance silliness, he takes a confident half-step toward becoming a mature romantic lead. The film itself? Not so good.

“Charlie St. Cloud” incorporates love, drama, bereavement, comedy, seagoing adventure and mystical uplift … like a Baskin-Robbins cone precariously balancing all 31 flavors.

Charlie (Efron) is a champion sailor heading to Stanford University on an athletic scholarship when a horrible mistake ruins his dreams. His promising future crushed, Charlie signs on as caretaker at the local cemetery, where he’s locked in his own head — lonely and unable to connect.

Who will rescue this forlorn dreamboat? Could it be feisty, beautiful Tess Carroll (Amanda Crew), who plans to be one of the first women to sail solo around the globe?

Fans of “Titanic” and “Ghost” will get the feeling they’re watching a double feature here.