Daphne & Velma

This live-action prequel to the beloved Scooby-Doo animated series follows young versions of Mystery Inc.’s female members Daphne (Sarah Jeffery) and Velma (Sarah Gilman). Online friends with an appreciation of the paranormal, the glam-ish, confident Daphne—who has lived all around the world—is thrilled to tell the nerdier, reticent Velma that she will soon be attending the latter’s school and they can be BFFs in real-life. After a bit of a kerfuffle over Velma’s worries about Daphne immediately being accepted in the popular crowd, the movie gets down to the nitty-gritty: what mysterious force is luring their classmates into misty, creepily-lit secret-locker passageways that leave them acting weird after they resurface? A ‘tween-friendly fluff film co-produced by High School Musical star Ashley Tisdale, Daphne & Velma doesn’t really emulate the kitsch of the long-running Scooby stories, so it could have been about any two teen girls solving a crime. But due to the popularity of the franchise, this should be considered a strong optional purchase. (J. Williams-Wood)