The first half hour of this (yet another) dystopian alien-invasion tale for teens goes well, but it soon devolves into a derivative, increasingly illogical, and hokey mess. Chloe Grace Moretz brings all her talents to the lead, but no amount of Kick-Ass empowerment can breathe any life into this colossally dull and derivative waste of celluloid.

Several second-act reveals (nice way of saying “jack around”) are dopey to the point of hilarity, but do nothing to regenerate interest already lost. As it stumbles to its conclusion, it offers up an almost insulting setup for a highly unlikely sequel. (112 min)