Verdict: A small-town study of teenage attitude.

Details: Starring Brendan Sexton III, Kate Hudson and Christina Ricci. Rated R for strong language and teenage alcohol abuse. 1 hour, 26 minutes.

See it: Theaters and showtimes for [an error occurred while processing this directive] Desert Blue

Review: "Desert Blue" is one of those movies in which the lack of anything interesting happening is presented as a badge of Gen-Y integrity and coolness. Written and directed by Morgan J. Freeman ("Hurricane Streets"), it introduces us to tiny Baxter, Calif., a little hunk of nowhere driven primarily by teenage angst.

Blue (Brendan Sexton III) is the leader of the small-town blahs, a moody guy who hangs out with chubby pal Cale (Ethan Suplee); Pete (Casey Affleck), who spends his free time preparing for all-terrain-vehicle races; and Pete's girlfriend, Ely (Christina Ricci), a raccoon-eyed malcontent whose expertise in explosives results in unexpected detonations all around Baxter.

The main point of local interest is a giant artificial ice cream cone on the roadside, built to attract tourists. There's also a sandy gulch, designed by Blue's now-deceased father, who had hoped to somehow fill it with water and turn Baxter into a lake resort. These broad strokes of Americana kitsch weigh the movie down with an early sense of condescension toward its characters. You can't help siding with young TV star Skye (Kate Hudson), who's passing through town with her dad (John Heard) and can't wait to leave.

When a soft-drink truck crashes, authorities fear that the pop is toxic, and they quarantine the town. Your reaction is bound to be like that of the Baxter residents: At least something has finally happened.

"Desert Blue" isn't intolerable. As it unfolds, Freeman elicits some sweet performances from his young stars. Ricci does her patented surly routine, Affleck makes a swell hothead, and Hudson is clearly an actress to watch. Only Sexton throws scenes out of whack; too often, his awkwardness seems to be more a matter of stiff acting than character development.

— Steve Murray, Cox News Service

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