John Tucker Must Die review

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Promising title for a girly teen-com, that. It hints at a spiky, Heathers-style darkness... Of the sort you won’t find in this Betty Thomas-directed dud. Discovering that they’ve been three-timed by the studly Mr Tucker (Desperate Housewives hoe-wrangler Jesse Metcalfe), a pack of high-school pinheads swear revenge on his hoop-shooting ass. Set to an ear-bludgeoning bubblegum-pop soundtrack, their scheming involves such wheezes as switching steroids for oestrogen pills and the transformation of nice girl Kate (Brittany Snow) into cheer-squad lust-bait. With our heroine in danger of turning into a paid-up Plastic, this steers unwisely close to the infinitely funnier Mean Girls - and with a script as amusing as a coroner’s report, all that’s left for Thomas to fall back on is food fights, volleyball smackdowns and spinning the camera in stomach-worrying circles.

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.