So... here's where I possibly lose all future credibility regarding movie ratings... Watched with the guys last night, they were sick of the usual B-movie crap we've been watching so decided to watch this instead.

Yeah, it was a really fun watch for how terrible it was. The acting, the script, the plot, the choreography, the editing... all were painfully bad in the funniest possible ways, it constantly had that "I can't tell if they're being serious or not" absurdity... So many scenes that don't make any sense. So many hilariously bad lines delivered with cringe inducing acting. "Serious" things will happen to a character and then suddenly they're going into another song and dance routine that doesn't match the mood at ALL. Added to all this are SO many of the typical cliches from a (PG rated) "spring breakers" plot.

I could see this movie being some group's "we've watched this more times than we're willing to admit" movie. One of the groups I hung out with in high school watched a lot of... "Pumpkinhead". Nothing going on tonight? Lets put on some "Pumpkinhead" and space out... Before my wife and I had kids, that movie was "Glitter". "Glitter" is stupid and horrible, but in a way that is really fun to laugh at. I have no idea how many times we watched that... I could see "From Justin to Kelly" being some group's "Glitter".

A couple random other comments... There were multiple filming/editing "errors" that always make this kind of movie fun... several times where someone was singing in a previous shot and should probably be singing in this shot, but they're obviously not. They're in frame, in focus, you can hear their voice, but they're definitely not singing. There were even a few times where a character would start speaking over their own singing, then go back to singing. A little trippy.

There's also a bunch of huge choreographed numbers with some pretty crazy dance moves... I don't know if they were just rushing takes, but wow were there a lot of screw ups in some of the dances, and not always in the background... And not always little thing, but stuff like seeing a girl get dropped or whipped around WAY harder than any of the others... Or seeing Kelly just kinda bopping around only kinda dancing while everyone around her is dancing crazy bananas. Choreography wasn't very tight.

So yeah, not a good movie. At all. But it was a hell of a lot of fun to laugh at.

One final comment... [i]They got in a Sideshow Bob reference!!![/i]

_**Fun musical / beach flick**_

All these ultra-low reviews are ridiculous. What were these people expecting? A serious drama with superb acting? An action film? Actually "From Justin to KellY" (2003) is a fun musical/beach film in the manner of Elvis films and the 60's beach flicks. One look at the movie poster and it's obvious.

When viewing films of this ilk it's time to just kick back, turn off your brain and have a good time. On this level "From Justin to Kelly" works fabulously. It's pretty much just as good or better than any Elvis or beach movie you can think of. Filmed in the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area, the story deals with the romantic adventures of youths on Spring Break. Keeping with the traditions of the genre there's no raunch or moronic sex/bathroom humor; the film has an appealing innocence.

Another highlight is that there are more gorgeous bikini-clad babes per minute than most movies out there (dudes too, if you're a woman).

To be expected, the songs featured are all substance-less modern pop ditties ('modern' as in the early 2000s, which hasn't changed much today). I don't normally listen to this kind of music, but it fits the upbeat and fun vibe of the film.

I'm hardly an American Idol aficionado but I admit that I did enjoy the show when I occasionally viewed it with my wife. And Kelly Clarkson and Justin Guarini, the two stars of the film, were two of the more likable "idols.". (I also confess to liking Katharine McPhee, Bo Bice, Carrie Underwood, Chris Daughtry, Kelly Pickler and Clay Aiken). (I'm just joking about Aiken, lol). To be expected, Kelly and Justin aren't the best actors but they're not bad either, particularly as the story proceeds; the quality of the acting certainly doesn't prevent you from enjoying the flick. They did a fine job all things considered.

One can't bring up American Idol without mentioning the ever-present Kimberly Caldwell (from the channel station). She's an undeniably good-looking woman but she tends to grate on the nerves. The reason I bring her up is, if you've ever secretly fantasized about seeing her chopped in half, be sure to check out the goofy gorefest "Wrong Turn 2: Dead End" (2007) (I'd call it a horror film but it's way too silly and over-the-top to be horrifying). This film makes your fantasies come true, literally.

The DVD features the 81-minute fullscreen version of the film whereas as well as the 90-minute extended widescreen cut, which has a few extra dance numbers.

If you're in the mood for an innocent beach flick turn your brain off and enjoy!

GRADE: B/B-