A ‘Conspiracy’ to Waste Star Power on a Bizarre Story

In “Conspiracy Theory,” Mel Gibson stars as a borderline psychotic who sees government plots in just about everything. He hooks up with a Justice Department agent (Julia Roberts) when one of those plots starts looking credible. Rated R.

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Mel Gibson is cute enough and buff enough. But he sure is weird in the wildly farfetched “Conspiracy Theory.”

That’s the opinion of many teenage girls who still find Gibson hunky, even if they think he’d make a better date for their moms. But while his shiny blue eyes were appreciated, the strangeness of his character in this latest star vehicle gave girls the creeps.

“He’d get so crazy over the dumbest things,” fretted Sylvia Rosales, 14, of Lake Forest. “I couldn’t believe how nerdy he was.”

That overriding impression prevented Caroline Hayden from enjoying the movie. “I wasn’t sure if he was going to hurt somebody or not,” said the 15-year-old from Laguna Beach. “I didn’t like it.”

Of course, Gibson’s over-the-top character wasn’t the only reason most girls and some boys looked down on “Conspiracy Theory.” They felt that despite the star power of Gibson and Julia Roberts, the movie was hard to follow and way too long at more than two hours.

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The story does meander along its convoluted way. It’s unclear until the end whether the paranoia of Gibson’s Jerry Fletcher is just part of his wiring or induced by shadowy government agents using him in some global plot. And when the truth finally comes out, kids were still searching for answers.

Rick Heid, 14, of Laguna Beach thought it was unbelievable that Roberts’ character would be so friendly with Fletcher, given his manic behavior. Indeed, several scenes stretch credibility, including a fairly early one in which Roberts jeopardizes herself and her career to protect Jerry in a hospital.

“Most people would just stay away from someone like that,” Rick said.

“Maybe you’d want to talk to him, [but] I don’t know,” added his buddy, Jonah Collins, 13, also from Laguna Beach.

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That said, Rick pointed out that he enjoyed much of “Conspiracy Theory” and Gibson’s tic-heavy performance. Instead of being unnerved by Jerry, he got a kick out of the humor Gibson brought to the role.

Rick also thought the romance between Jerry and Roberts’ character, although unlikely, was exciting to watch.

That feeling was shared by Mission Viejo 16-year-old Kim Winters. “You could see that he really liked her,” Kim said. “He was in love and then she was in love with him.”

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Parent Perspective: Adults interviewed at a recent screening generally considered “Conspiracy Theory” appropriate for young teenagers. They tended to agree that it was too long and only sporadically thrilling but not a hazard for immature minds.

Some, however, did wonder whether Gibson’s portrayal of a psychologically troubled man would send the wrong, or at least a conflicting, message. Jerry quickly shifts from being intense and scary to lovable and sweet, which parents thought could confuse kids.

“They weren’t sure whether to make fun of this guy and get laughs [or] use him to raise tension,” said Laguna Niguel resident Janice Burack, who saw it with her 14-year-old son, Mark. “It’s good to feel sympathetic [to people with mental problems] and not be scared of them, but this didn’t make that clear.”

Another parent, John Anderson of Mission Viejo, felt the entire movie was so preposterous that nobody, not even a child, would take any of it seriously.

“So many [current movies] are just silly,” he said. “Even the little ones can see that.”