Well, Beth Cooper (Hayden Panettiere) and her ever-present cheerleader friends show up for Denis's party only to have Beth's muscle-bound Army boyfriend how up with some bad thoughts on his mind. The chase is now on as the boyfriend wants to separate Denis's head from his body and Beth just wants to be rid of him. This is how the night goes.
Honestly, there really is not much to say about the story. It begins with that dream setup of professing undying love, proceeds to the chase, moves onto the touching tender moments, then comes to its inevitable conclusion. There really isn't much more than that; however, I actually enjoyed it and have no problem giving it a bit of a recommendation to to those who enjoy this genre. It is the kind of movie whose trailers will tell you if you have any chance of liking it. It has a definite audience and it is not everyone.
Why does this movie work? It is all in the performances. Paul Rust and Hayden Panettiere have decent enough chemistry, plus they almost seem born to play these roles. Rust may look a bit old for the character, but is close enough to pull it off, plus he has that nerdy character down pat. He has some great reactions and seems sincere in the quieter moments when his character realizes that this Beth is not the one he dreamed about. As for Panettiere, she carries over the popular cheerleader from the first season of Heroes and tweaks it just a little. She is the popular girl here, but the further in we go, we begin to see the seams in her popular armor with a little insecure girl peeking through. This brings us back to the fantasy of the film, where the nerd dreams of getting the girl and seeing her for who she is and not the persona.
Bottom line. In the end, it is a trifle of a movie that will likely be forgotten in pretty short order. Still, I found myself enjoying it. I am sure I will be off of it and onto something else shortly, but for a piece of momentary escapism, it delivers.
Mildly Recommended.
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