The Lizzie McGuire Movie

In this Disney Channel spin-off, 'tweenybopper Hilary Duff does little more than giggle (at cute boys) and gasp (at Roman tourist attractions) her way through a wholly contrived trip to Italy--where she just happens to meet a harmlessly sexy bubblegum pop star, who just happens to have had a falling out with his singing partner/girlfriend, and she just happens to look exactly like Lizzie. Persuaded to pose as the AWOL Britney-wannabe, Lizzie spends her whole class trip to Rome sneaking off to rehearsals and clinging adorably to the singer as he shows her the picturesque sights from the back of a Vespa. Populated by stock characters (clueless parents, bratty little brother, catty in-crowd nemesis, sexless best guy-friend who secretly pines for Lizzie) and driven by invented circumstances (such as Lizzie's junior high school "graduation"), there's precious little creative effort here, save for a few animated asides from Lizzie's cartoon-character conscience and the enjoyably acidic performance of stocky, plucky Alex Borstein (Mad TV) as the class chaperone and tour guide. Not a terrible movie, just one that fails to embrace an audience outside of 11-12-year-old girls. Optional. [Note: DVD extras include both widescreen and full screen versions, the 12-minute behind-the-scenes movie tour featurette “Hilary's Roman Adventure” hosted by star Hilary Duff, the two-minute featurette “In the Recording Studio with Hilary Duff” on Duff's latest album Metamorphosis, a music-video-style two-minute montage of Duff and costar Yani Gellman cruising Rome on a scooter, Duff's music video “Why Not,” three deleted scenes--including an alternate ending (4 min.)--and trailers. Bottom line: a ‘tween-friendly extras package for a ‘tween-friendly film.] (R. Blackwelder)