JENNIFER'S BODY - It's Megan Fox Gone Bawdy!

JENNIFER'S BODY (horror-comedy)
Cast: Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, Johnny Simmons, Adam Brody, J.K. Simmons, Amy Sedaris and Chris Pratt
Director: Karyn Kusama (from a screenplay by Diablo Cody)
Time: 102 mins
Rating: * 1/2 (out of 4)

PREAMBLE: Jennifer's Body is really all about Megan Fox gone bawdy - and there are moments in the film when I thought I was watching soft porn. And bad soft porn, at that. Admittedly, the Foxy Transformers chick has what it takes to heat up the screen anywhere. Alas, director Karyn Kusama, working on Oscar-winner Diablo Cody's screenplay, messes up big time - just like she did for the 2005 Aeon Flux.

The result is a movie that is neither scary nor funny; teasy but trite and not sexy enough to make any impact.

WHAT'S IT ABOUT? Jennifer (Fox) is the 'Queen Bee' of a small town high school to whom every guy is fair game. During a night out at a pub with her best friend Needy (Amanda Seyfried of Mama Mia), Jennifer takes off with a bunch of gothic rockers (led by Adam Brody of The O.C. fame) and things are never the same between the two girls again.

For one thing, Jennifer has grown from 'high school evil' (as in sexy 'man-eater') to devilishly evil (as in real man-eater) - and she does not give a damn who she hurts. For another, she is eyeing Needy's boyfriend Chip (Johnny Simmons), the school
nerd. And yes, you guess it: Needy must take it upon herself to do the needful - and go all out to protect the guy she loves.

Johnny Simmons and Megan Fox in JENNIFER'S BODY

HITS & MISSES: Like a regular soft porn flick, Cody has written some memorable lines, like Jennifer telling Needy how to use her chesty assets: "Those are like two smart bombs. Point them in the right direction and you'll have boys..." and, "Hey, I'm not even a back-door virgin".

I would like to put it on record that Fox and Seyfried have done a good job with their roles; Seyfried is suitably convincing as the dorky but gutsy coed while Fox sizzles in the title role. The problem lies in the script and the direction. Kusama seems unsure of where to take the movie - and it fails at being a horror (neither scary nor gory enough), comedy (only unintentionally funny) or even a sex romp. The 'world' of Devil's Kettle - the name of the small town - seems to be on some other planet where police presence is non-existent and all boys act like they're just plain stupid or are nerds.

Fox seems to be the only attraction in this movie that suggests that Juno was a flash in the pan for Cody.

THE LOWDOWN: Likely to be one of the 10 Worst Flicks of 2009.