Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
Elaine "Ellie" Harrison has just moved from Minnesota to Annapolis, Maryland while her parents take a year-long sabbatical to continue their medieval studies in nearby Washington D.C. Her new high school, Avalon High, seems like a typical high school with the stereotypical students: Lance the jock, Jennifer the cheerleader, Marco, the bad boy/desperado, and Will, the senior class president, quarterback, and all around good guy. But not everyone at Avalon High is who they appear to be, not even Ellie herself. Eventually, it becomes apparent that Avalon High is a situation where the ancient Arthurian legend is repeating itself.
Avalon High is a lightweight Disney Channel TV movie that transplants Arthurian legend into a contemporary high school setting. The plot follows a fairly predictable YA formula — new girl discovers magical destiny, stock archetypes fill the cast — with only modest execution of its central conceit. Acting is serviceable but unremarkable, as expected from a made-for-TV teen production. Cinematography is flat and functional, typical of the Disney Channel house style with little visual ambition. Novelty earns a slight bump for its reincarnation-of-Camelot hook and the third-act twist on which character is actually the reincarnation of Arthur, which subverts expectations in a modest but genuine way. The ending resolves too neatly and too quickly, lacking emotional weight or satisfying payoff for the buildup.