Stick It

A tearaway teen learns about teamwork through sport in this unoriginal gymnastics drama (there’s a genre. . .). To avoid juvenile detention, Haley attends an academy run by Burt Vickerman (Jeff Bridges). At first her surly attitude and backchat alienates the other girls, but her rebellious instincts come in handy in the closing contest. Frequent montage sequences give this the air of a fleshed-out pop promo, and the perky dialogue places it firmly in tween territory. Like ‘Bring It On’, which was also written by ‘Stick It’ writer-director Jessica Bendinger, this isn’t short on cute one-liners. But Bendinger doesn’t demonstrate the same gift for directing, letting poor comic timing and indulgent editing undermine her script. Star Missy Peregrym shows more promise in her first feature, despite the fact that her teenage years are clearly behind her, and her charismatic screen presence enlivens an otherwise dull film. Well, dull if you’re not a young girl – or a dirty old man.