Only those who expected to be frightened by films like Scary Movie will be disappointed by Charlie’s Angels. Trailers for this movie ran for several months prior to its release and even if you only managed to catch it once, you’d know that this movie pretends to be nothing more than an extravagantly glorified remake of a very dubious television show from the ‘70s. Charlie’s Angels, the TV show, was a weekly parade of skin-tight outfits, feathered hair, and sexy crime fighting via flashly smiles and glamorous hair flips. Charlie’s Angels, the big-screen, mega-budget Hollywood movie, appropriates these ingredients and exploits them on a comic level that spoofs such over-the-top "sex as a weapon" fixation that often fascinates both Hollywood and movie-goers alike. Regardless of whether or not you followed the series in the seventies, if you go to this screening with your "political correctness" firmly checked at the ticket counter, you’re in for a laughter-filled two hours of camp, often juvenile, yet harmless silliness that’s loads of fun to watch.

Move over Jill, Kelly and Sabrina! Make room on the Townsend sofa for Natalie (Cameron Diaz) the bubbly blonde, Dylan (Drew Barrymore) the street-tough redhead, and Alex (Lucy Liu) the leather-clad brainy sex-kitten. The anonymous millionaire Charles Townsend (voice of the original Charlie, John Forsythe) still speaks to his angels through his speakerphone with goofy Bosley (Bill Murray) "puppeteering" the angels through their latest world-saving mission. This time, not unlike all the other times, the angels must rescue a genius engineer who has been kidnapped and whose voice-recognition software has been stolen by an evil rival. Through a series of high-tech manipulations and gravity-defying maneuvers, the angels successfully rescue the engineer only to discover that they were sent on a wild goose chase. They have been doubled crossed by the "bad guys" who are really after the one person beloved by the angels. Yes, the angels risk their lives to protect Charlie, the disembodied voice that brings danger, excitement and meaning into their otherwise insignificant lives. (If my memory serves me correctly, this premise is stolen from an actual episode. I recall the original angels twirling their locks in puzzlement trying to figure out how they will "save" Charlie if they’ve never seen him.)

Directed by Generation-MTV director McG and produced by Hollywood’s wild girl Drew Barrymore, Charlie’s Angels is shamelessly flashy and fleshy. Nudity is only partial in this PG-13 action comedy, but cleavage and close-up butt shots pretty much link one scene to the next. However, humor provides a balance to this over-sexed cinematography. Borrowing from her zany role in There’s Something About Mary, Cameron Diaz plays Natalie as ditzy and goofy. Perhaps the funniest moment in this movie is when Natalie fulfills her dream of dancing on stage for Soul Train. Performing her "white girl" dance to the dismay of the black crowd, Nathalie’s enthusiasm and wackiness is pure entertainment. Lucy Liu also maximizes on her personae as Ally McBeals’ Ling, a cold-hearted diva who is as intimidating as she is appealing. Dressed predominantly in leather, Alex may resemble cat woman, but at heart she simply aspires to cook wholesome meals for her boyfriend. Drew Barrymore’s Dylan is a pseudo La Femme Nikita. She’s a reformed street punk who fights and plays hard, even with the enemy.

All three characters are obvious clichés as are the fighting scenes that explode on scene. The angels kick, leap, block and punch their villains in a tribute to The Matrix, Mi:2, Jackie Chan and John Woo. Sure it’s special effects overload, but I can’t deny that I was both dazzled and amused by their moves. (Did anyone catch the cheerleading choreography they used to fly over the metal gate?) Charlie’s Angels may not amuse everyone, but if you’re looking for a silly spoof with some hard-kicking action sequences, go see this movie and be prepared to laugh hard. It’s worth its ***1/2 rating.

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