'Justin Bieber: Never Say Never' is ever charming

Justin Bieber

Even if you're not much of a fan, Justin Bieber: Never Say Never isn't as painful as you might expect.

Unless you're a 10-year-old girl and are said fan, in which case you might find there to be too much talking and not enough baby, baby, baby.

Such is the quandary for the 16-year-old crooner and his shiny happy 3-D concert film: To continue courting the prepubescents who made him an international star or woo the older fans who will likely sustain him.

Bieber and director Jon M. Chu choose the former, as Never remains as wispy as his ballads. While the film makes clear Bieber is a wunderkind who wants to be seen more as a Justin Timberlake than a Rick Astley, his movie retreats from anything near the portrait that Michael Jackson's This Is It posthumously became.

That's a shame, because there was drama in Bieber's life. He grew up poor to a single mom in Ontario, Canada, and became a sensation only after posting his second-place finish in a singing competition on YouTube.

Never, though, touches only briefly on that childhood. And though Bieber taught himself to play several instruments, the film whisks past his talents to get to his bangs — and does nothing to risk Never's G-rating.

Justin Bieber: Never Say Never

* * out of four

Stars: Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Jaden Smith
Director: Jon M. Chu
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Rating: G
Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes
Opens Friday nationwide

Still, Never works as a gum-snapper concert movie and does provide a glimpse into instant stardom in the Twitter generation. Cameos by Jaden Smith and Miley Cyrus serve as humorous reminders that Hollywood is populated by lottery winners.

The movie, too, knows its fan base, from gap-toothed girls to the moms who know his moves a little too well. His high-topped feet and liquid locks play almost too well in 3-D: Fans' heads blocking your view aren't in the theater, they're on screen.

That Never doesn't work as a biopic isn't a surprise. Bieber's too young to paint a picture with much context. As loud as Transformers and as happy as a Teletubby, Never is as drama-free as the songs it belts.

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