And now for some more realistic high school kids: "Sky High"

Kurt Russell alone is almost always worth the price of admission, and I'll fight any man who says different.

Bold words, perhaps, but I can't help it. Maybe it's because I have a soft spot for "Big Trouble in Little China." (Need to get that on DVD.) Maybe it's because "Used Cars" should be required viewing for anyone who likes comedy. Maybe it's because "Escape from New York" is hilarious in its own, completely different way. Whatever the reason, I'm willing to give almost any movie -- let's not bring "3000 Miles to Graceland" into this -- a chance if my man Kurt is involved.

(A little trivia: Russell auditioned for the roles of Han Solo and Flash Gordon. And Ron Shelton wrote the Crash Davis role in "Bull Durham" for him. Wrap your brain around that.)

But "Sky High" also looked genuinely funny while being wholesome and cute, and that's exactly what it turned out to be. We get a world in which superheroes not only exist but procreate, with Russell and Kelly Preston ("Metalstorm: The Destruction of Jared-Syn") -- the most powerful of all superheroes -- sending their son off to superhero high school.

Before we continue, a word about Preston, whom I neglected in my fawning over Russell. Like many red-blooded American men, I've been smitten with Kelly since she showed us the goods way back in "Secret Admirer." (Also featuring one of the legendary Fred Ward's better roles.) True, she's made questionable choices since then, not the least of which was marrying John Travolta and becoming a Scientologist. But every now and then she'll look really good, like in "Jerry Maguire" or "For Love of the Game." Even now that she's in parent mode -- she's also a mom in "What a Girl Wants,"which the missus watches a lot -- Preston is solid. So that was another thing in favor of "Sky High."

Anyway, the super couple's kid doesn't have any superpowers when he starts high school, adding to the typical angst that comes with being a freshman. Some of his story is standard: He pines for the hot girl while the girl who is his best friend pines for him. He also has to deal with bullies and a nemesis, before and after he discovers his super powers. (That's not ruining anything, believe me.)

But the Disney folks do a decent job of interweaving the high school stuff and the superhero stuff, and "Sky High" moves along rather briskly. No question everything is too sanitized; that easily is the most sexless high school I've ever seen. But most everyone seems to be having fun, and we even get a small role played by everyone's favorite boomstick-owner, Bruce Campbell.

I guess it comes down to whether you can leave the grit and grime of other movies behind for some family fun. "The Incredibles" is better, no question, but this was pretty decent for live-action comic book stuff. And again, you get Kurt Russell hamming it up. Heck, I may even forgive him for "Overboard."