I found John Tucker Must Die to be insufferable, and not just because Jesse Metcalfe looks stiff and uncomfortable in the title role of a high school heartthrob who's dating three girls simultaneously. The screenplay and direction also left me feeling that something was missing.   

At the beginning of this less-than-inspiring teen comedy, Heather (Ashanti), Carrie (Arielle Kebbel) and Beth (Sophia Bush) have no idea they're dating the same guy. John Tucker (Metcalfe) has told each girl that she's the only one for him. To make sure the girls never find out he's dating multiple people, Tucker explains to them that his father pushes him hard to excel at basketball. He leads them to think his dad  believes his focus must be on the current season and scholarship possibilities -- but definitely not girls. 

Tucker's  relationships are kept discreet, and his girlfriends think this is so his father will never find out. Nobody suspects anything. For added protection, Tucker never dates girls belonging to the same circle.

Unfortunately for Tucker, when a substitute teacher is brought in to combine all the girls gym courses together after the regular teacher became ill, Heather and Beth overhear Carrie talking about her relationship with him. Both girls thought they had an exclusive relationship with Tucker, but now it dawns on them that he has been playing them for fools. 

Kate (Brittany Snow), a new student, is self-conscious and purposely flies under the radar at school. She has  been forced to move several times because of her mother's (Jenny McCarthy) failed relationships and constant desire to start anew. As soon as Kate becomes adjusted at school and makes friends, it’s time to pack up the car again and head to another state. Kate tries hard not to be noticed by her peers so there's never a need to say farewell.

Although Kate usually minds her own business, she becomes intrigued by a conversation Heather, Carrie, and Beth have about Tucker during detention. She tells them she would get revenge on a guy like Tucker. The girls agree with Kate and realize the only way to get their revenge is to destroy Tucker’s reputation. They plot to repeatedly embarrass him in front of his peers so that all the girls will view him as poison.

The problem with this stragegy? None of their schemes work. Tucker continues to grow even more popular and the three girls are left desperate. They decide to use a reluctant Kate, who has never been kissed, as bait to entice Tucker into dating her. Of course, Kate must make sure Tucker becomes so smitten with her that he cannot function without her. At that precise moment, she will reveal their relationship as a sham.

Besides Metcalfe's stiff performance, it's disappointing to see the lack of chemistry between this young actor and Snow in their key roles here. However, Snow listens beautifully and seems calm and natural. Still, she needs to tackle more grown-up roles and subjects like she did as Meg Pryor in the critically acclaimed television series American Dreams. 

I believe Jeff Lowell's screenplay for John Tucker Must Die should have been more sarcastic, with its  characters more malicious and bitter and torn up inside. Including something about Tucker's motivation would have helped also. We never learn why Tucker decides to date so many women at once and what leads him to repeatedly trample on them. 

Finally, as directed by Betty Thomas, John Tucker Must Die moves along too slowly and cautiously. As a result, many viewers will merely suffer through it.  

(Released by 20th Century Fox and rated "PG-13" for sexual content and language.)