Limp horror is light on magic

Elite boarding school Spencer Academy is a breeding ground for privileged teens, including the four Sons of Ipswich, descendants of four ancient local families, who all have magic powers.

But the more they practise magic, the weaker their powers become - something that worries 17-yearold Caleb (Steven Strait), who is due to get full use of his abilities on his upcoming 18th birthday. Caleb must also battle the newly arrived renegade fifth Son of Ipswich, Chase Collins (Sebastian Stan).

MTV-style action scenes are linked by lingering shots of the impressively ripped manwitches glistening in tiny swim trunks, together with female students seemingly unable to function in anything more restrictive than minuscule pants.

Despite these visual pleasures, The Covenant is limp, derivative and riddled with the worst teen horror clichés - and overacted and painfully badly scripted too boot.

A director like Buffy's Joss Whedon, with his understanding of the delicate balance between fantasy and reality, could have had a lot of fun with the final showdown between Caleb and Chase; Renny "Cliffhanger" Harlin misses that opportunity. Still, at least there's plenty of semi-nakedness to keep us awake.

The Covenant
Cert: 12A