I finally got to check out
John Tucker Must Die based on the recommendations on here. The movie is far from perfect, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. The cast itself is able to move the plot along effortlessly, but not without some missteps along the way. First off, the plot is kind of an accidental
'Mean Girls'. Instead of
Kate (Brittany Snow) joining an already established clique in High School, she becomes an unwitting co-conspirator with three other girls that just found out they were cheated on by....you guessed it, J
ohn Tucker. Along the way to pretending to be someone she is not, she suddenly becomes the most popular girl in school and gets the biggest player to fall for her. If it wasn't for
Snow, Arielle Kebbel, Sophia Bush, and
Ashanti, this movie would absolutely suck beyond anything else out there.
But the quartet, beyond obvious reasons, does manage to make things interesting and
Jesse Metcalfe in the title role is good, but I still have issues with some of the subplots, especially
"The Other Tucker". So, they set it up that he and
Kate have "chemistry" with each other, when in fact there is absolutely no actual chemistry between the two actors playing said characters. None. It was not believable in any way, shape or form. So, with that little thing out of the way, we are to accept there is an attraction to each other. Along the way,
Kate falls for
John, to the point where its implied that she's now in love with him, but then at the very end, she just walks away from him and then back into the waiting arms of "
The Other Tucker" who gladly takes her back (even though technically he never had her to begin with), knowing that she "chose"
John over him instead knowing full well that she just tried to crush and humiliate his brother in front of the entire school? The other subplot that doesn't even have a resolution at all is the one involving
Kate's mother, played by
Jenny McCarthy. I was expecting her character to have an epiphany when she realizes her choice in men is dubious. The writer and / or director dropped the ball on this one as this is left unresolved and we never know if she finally changes her dating habits.
Like I said, the story and motivations for the characters are barely discernible for the most part. It doesn't help that I'm being super picky by expecting way more than most 'Teen Comedies' have to offer. But there are some good jokes and sight gags to be found in the movie and the quartet does make the movie play better than it absolutely should. I say it's worth a
Rent just for them alone. Just don't expect anything along the lines of some of the better Teen Comedies out there.