Barely Lethal ** (2015, Hailee Steinfeld, Jaime King, Samuel L Jackson, Toby Sebastian, Thomas Mann, Jessica Alba, Rachael Harris) – Movie Review

Hailee Steinfeld (18) stars as teenage special ops agent Megan Walsh, who is training to be an international assassin for Hardman (Samuel L Jackson). But, wanting a normal life, Megan bails out of a mission and enrols in a student exchange programme in a suburban high school.

Adopted by Mrs Larson (Rachael Harris) and her nice kids Liz and Parker (Dove Cameron, Jason Ian Drucker), she soon finds high school is tricky too, even trickier than the international spy game, though she still gets her pick of hunky musician as Cash Fenton (Toby Sebastian) and sensitive Roger Marcus (Thomas Mann, from Me and Earl and the Dying Girl).

With Jessica Alba, Jaime King and Gabriel Basso (from The Kings of Summer, 2013) also aboard, the casting is very strong in this otherwise fairly weak effort, with a pretty lame screenplay by John D’Arco, who juts can’t manage to make it fresh or funny enough. Still, it’s brisk and capable in the acting and directing (Kyle Newman) departments. What Jackson and Alba are doing in this is anyone’s guess, and they’re both wasted, especially Alba in a rotten role as an evil villainess.

Lame as it is, it’s pleasant and harmless enough and is OK as a time-passer for teenage girls. It helps that Steinfeld puts a lot of backbone into her role.

Newman’s only previous film is Fanboys (2009).

© Derek Winnert 2015 Movie Review

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com

Gabriel Basso (from The Kings of Summer, 2013).

Toby Sebastian as Cash Fenton.

Roger Marcus (Thomas Mann, from Me and Earl and the Dying Girl).